I believe there has to be a difference of 12 hours?

rachie,

Here are Thomsons T&C read under Major changes to your holiday.

http://www.thomson.co.uk/thomson/page/tandc/tandc.page?depDate=2009-05-01&accommInvSys=TPP&flightInvSys=TPP&lang=en

Hope this helps.

Angie.

thanks for the link.
I'm still unclear though as the flight time has not been moved as such, as we have been put onto the earlier flight. So a totally different flight number?

Dependent upon when you booked you may have fallen foul of the unconfirmed flight syndrome. Flight times are published very far in advance but are subject to the official schedules, agreed with the airports, not the TO/Airline. In most cases they are the same or possibly minor changes. In your case they may actually have consolidated everyone onto one flight. The T&Cs detail what is considered a major change.

fwh

ok, thanks for the clarification.
I'll just have to hope that there won't be any internal exams on the last day of term.
The resort looks nice (Hotel Polynesia), so will have to just go with the flow although I'm also having trouble getting the late check out fee removed!
Thanks again

Would you not have had to take your child out of school early anyway? As in time at the airport and travelling etc?

we live 10 mins from the airport and the kids finish school at 2.50pm, so no, it would have been ok, although I know flight times can change by 12 hours anyway.

just been having a read of those conditions too....never thought about it before...never had need to...but its really un-balanced......if they mess up your holiday...the most you will get is £40 each...but if for what ever reason you wish to cancel...they can have in comparrisment full cost of your holiday...for some over £1000 each person....they can mess about with your holiday ....change flight ...airport...hotel...even resort...and get away with little or no compensation to pay....on the other hand we the customer have to pay for each little change we wish or need to make.

When you book a holiday...its exactly what you want to purchase...something you have decided is fit for your purpose ie your holiday

When changes are made to the things you chose about the holiday that made it fit for purpose....it looses its credability ...and can be deemed to no longer be fit for purpose

It annoys me when 2 flights are offered for same holiday....and then its obvious that both have been amalgamated into one

I am suspicious that the 2 flights were offered to see which was the most popular...that then being the one all passengers would be booked onto.....no regard being given to those who chose the less popular of the 2 flights....and a condition that allows it to be done.....they may have not booked that holiday if other flight time had not been fit for purpose

Tweetie Pie, what peeves me slightly is that the earlier flight (at the time) was £150 cheaper for us all. I decided to go for the later one, so that the kids could go to school and thought that the chances of moving it were limited due to the 2 flights.
I've found recently that the travel companies are being quite inflexible.
I've just booked Easter 2011 with Thomson and had to pay £900 deposit for 4 of us. I know it's along way off but already our room requirements have sold out (we managed to get the last suite that takes 3 adults and 1 child)

have seen similar post somewhere on here before....where they booked early and had choice of morning or evening flight ....cant remember exactly but the morning flight was a bit more expensive but not much due to flight suppliments....they'd booked the evening one...but near the time of holiday they were told evening flight had been cancelled and they had to take the morning one....and to add insult to injury they were asked to pay more as moring flight was a lot more expensive because of flight subsidy...the subsidy on the morning flight had gone up since they'd booked......lady wasnt happy

Last year for my hols ...they had 2 flights offered for same hols one 7am the other about late tea time...by time mind made up I was very late booking it ...balance was due one week after the deposit....and only the 7am flight was available..

This year booked already for july...only saw the 7am flight on offer...but after reading that post last year would have booked it anyway....the flight supliment has already gone up since I booked...its the morning flight atracts the suppliments..so Ive decided if 2 offered book the morning one early while subsadies low...incase not enough for 2 flights...and later one gets canceled ...then a risk of being asked to pay extra....

learnt a lot over the years on this site....you might not avoid all the pitfalls...but you'll know its not only you had problems

thanks for the advice!

rachie....Ive noticed that the flight subsidies go up the more popular the flight and the closer it gets to the time....could just be my suspicious mind but think the morning flights are the harder to get slots for the airlines...and so they dont like canceling them...when a second later one is offered its for expected demand over the numbers needed to fill the morning plane....if numbers misjudged and only enough to fill one plane...then the people for the evening flight get transfered to the morning flight...

As the objective is to fill the morning plane at first the flight subsidies are set low...like I said getting higher according to popularity and the closer to departure ( this year when first found hols for 2009 the price for hols with morning flight was a lot cheaper than they were than when I finaly booked them...the difference in price was the flight subsidies...they had gone up...the online discount had also gone down...I think that there were too many for just 1 plane ...probably not too many empty on the morning flight ...so charging more the later you booked)

This year the way the economic climat is I think they dont expect as many wanting to travel next year...and maybe thats why I only found the 7am flight on offer...and the price already going up ...only change is cost of the subsidy added on.....maybe they will offer the evening flight nearer the time...if demand increasing.

Think that was why your morning flight would have been on offer for £150 lessthan the evening one ...to fill it up first...am curious if you offered refund for difference now.....if not and you ask why if your told the morning flight has gone up in price since then.....in reality you are paying £150 more for same flight........thats why I would always choose the morning flight if booking early and 2 on offer....

ps...have a nice hols

thanks TP.
I think the Tour Ops have grown so large that the customer no longer comes first.

Very true - but not restricted to Tour Ops! The bottom line is that apart from small private outfits, most companies have shareholders and in that case they are legally obliged to put them first.

The big two companies can stand losing a few disgruntled customers, in fact evidence on this site shows that people will use them again even after being badly treated.

The best you can do is understand their get out clauses (it seems to have been an eye opener for Tweetie Pie who is now much better prepared) BEFORE you give them any money. Work out how much they can mess you about and decide how badly it would affect you if they did. If they have given themsleves too much leeway or, as in your case, a particular holiday would be too tight for your arrangements then look somewhere else. There is some legislation to help you fight unfair terms, or more importantly, unfair use of innnocent looking terms but your best defence is to make sure they can't wreck your plans before you give them money.

hi steve....your right there steve...a change of flight or even airport (have come across them doing this too but not that often...and seems same senario ...flight at one airport gets canceled...when there is another that day else where) can really mess up your plans... and if you can put a fail safe in place...atleaste you can lessen the effect it can have....damage limitation in a way ...for example in my case

I work fri sat sun nights ...12 hr shifts ...8pm to 8am on a permanant basis....because of the job I do I have to book my holiday time off as early as possible...taking an extra day off at short notice would cause problems ...we have a rule only 1 member of staff on leave at same time...so my hols for next july have been booked for weeks now...and my holiday request form is already in..

The holiday I wanted to go on offers a 7am and 8pm flight...and I have also seen a late afternoom flight...(this year up untill now only noticed a 7am flight) all from same airport...and flights from other airports on same day...mondays

If I opted to book the afternoon or evening flight I would have planned to work the sunday night ...would not have booked it off...and no cover staff would have been booked...for paid leave we have to give a months notice...In reasonable logical reasoning booking the later flights would make sense...plenty of time if right preperations made even for afternoon flight...only living 10 mins drive from work.....to go home get a nap for a few hours...get ready and make airport in plenty of time....after all why use up a days holiday entitlement if not nescassary..

If the later flight Id booked were to be canceled...and moved to the 7am flight...and this under the airline terms can be done at fairly short notice...I would have problems...my night shift wouldnt finnish till 8am....I would need to take my sun night shift off at short notice...and unless it was more than a month before it would be unpaid leave...its a hard shift to cover...and at very short notice I could be leaving my coleagues short staffed..

So I choose instead the 7am flight...book the sun night off...as I know its really needed....if it did get changed for technical or operational reasons to one of the later flights it might annoy me having taken the extra night off....but it wouldnt really be a problem..

When I booked same hols last year...I went on the net ...found it with the 7am 4.45pm and 8pm option which was a lot cheaper...ideal I thought...was wanting to book a surprise week away for hubby...meant Id be working sun night as normal ...so he wouldnt suspect a thing....and not unusual for me to want go visit family in manchester on a monday afternoon either...was a sunday Id found it...I like to find a hol on the net then take details into a shop to book it...so decide as was only 11weeks before the holiday I wanted to go into work that night...put my holiday request form in as already checked no one else booked for hols on the 3 shifts I needed off...then first thing monday morning print the holiday details off the net...and go into a shop and book it...

On monday morning when I went to print it off both of the later flight options had dissappeared...only the 7am one was still available...and had gone up in price....I had not included the sun night shift on my holiday form...I phoned shop got a price match...went in and sorted it ...then had to go into work to speedily add the sunday night shift on to my holiday request form incase someone else thought it was free and booked hols that needed it too....it then dawned on me I could have been in a pickle if I had booked the later flights and they had been changed to the early one at short notice...with flights being on the monday...then read posts on here of others having problems with flights being changed.....

So there was a wise old owl perched on my shoulder this time round ...

well Thomson have agreed a full refund of deposit, much to my surprise.
I have accepted this and have just booked a weeks holiday to Dreams La Romana for less than the price of a week in Spain.
I take back my harsh words!

I take it you've checked the small print this time!

did you by any chance say you were a member on her rachie...glad you got sorted...have a nice holiday....ps where you going instead of spain...sounds like you know this hotel is good..as your really pleased about it...great to hear people being happier than they were in the begining