I am waiting for Easyjet to release their summer schedule from Gatwick. Their website tells me that these flights were due to go live today at midday and Easy sent me an email to remind me earlier this morning but as yet I am unable to book seats to Dalaman. When trying to book I get a pop-up box telling me that these seats are only available until 31st October 2008. Has anyone else booked Gatwick summer flights to anywhere yet?

I am a bit concerned as this was a route they had to offer last year when they took over GB Airways and I am wondering now if they have dropped this route for summer 09?

Cazz

Cazz ... the timetable section of the website does show a Gatwick/Dalaman service for Summer 2009, so perhaps it has just not been released for sale yet.

David

That's what I'm hoping David!

Just tried a couple of other Summer 2009 routes Cazz, such as Gatwick/Edinburgh, and they don't appear to have been loaded or released yet either.

David

Thanks for your help, David. I managed to book the 3 seats on the July dates I wanted for 16 nights to Dalaman totalling £428. Thomas Cook are currently around £1100.00 for similar flight times!

I checked Easyjet again a few minutes ago and the seats I purchased are now £867 so they've more than doubled in the last 3 hours. It certainly seems to pay to book with Easyjet the moment the seats are released!

Cazz

That's great Cazz, well done !
David

Just booked our ONE WAY flight to Rhodes on 28th May from Gatwick. Total £121.91. for 2 passengers. Prices up & down towards end of May cos of Bank holiday. Had we travelled on 28th May would be over £200.EACH

I have been looking on the Easyjet site and got a good price for next June but have not booked it ye as I would like some questions answered first.

1. Baggage, they say each person is allowed 20 kgs. of hold luggage, how about your hand luggage, do you pay extra for them, if so how much. I could not make it out.

2. Speedy boarding, does eveyone just rush on and sit down like you do on a bus?

Are the Dalaman fight seats cramped or are they using the GB planes which apparently were roomy..as you can tell have never flown with Easyjet.

3. Can you get snacks and drinks on board and do they sell duty free?

Thanks.

Barb

Barb,

I can answer some of your questions: Baggage is 20Kg per passenger. Hand baggage has to be within the measurements listed on their website but there is no additional charge for this. I don't believe there is a weight limit for hand baggage as long as the size is within their limits.

I have never used the speedy boarding. At UK airports you usually either get taken in the first bus to the aircraft or you board first if the aircraft is at the gate. At overseas airports this doesn't seem to happen. We usually check in earlyish when travelling with Easyjet and have usually been given 'A' boarding, which means you board after speedy boarders, passengers with special needs and passengers with young children. We have always had seats together and often manage to get exit seats.

I too would be interested to know what aircraft Easyjet use for this route! The usual Easyjet seats are fine, enough legroom. You can buy snacks on board - pizza, sandwiches, soup, crisps, chocolate mostly. They sell coffee, tea, hot chocolate etc. (Kenco) and alcohol which is reasonably priced for an airline! Duty free is pretty much the same as other airlines.

The flights I booked early today are now pushing the £950 mark so I wouldn't take too long to make a decision!

Cazz

Barb et al,
The former GB Airways aircraft (Airbus A320s and A321s) were reconfigured and had extra rows of seats inserted - they now offer the same legroom as the Easyjet A319 aircraft - which is still not too bad for short-haul (until the person in front of you whacks their seat back!)

Cheers,
Jet

Thanks fo much Cazz & Jetnoise.

I have only flown with Thomson, TC & FC to Dalaman so have no idea what Easyhet was like,,,you see that programme on tv and some of their customers really moan, so was a bit concerned. Another reason is that both of us are "pennies" and cannot move as quickly as the young and did not want to get pushed out ouf the way in the scramble!!!!

So when you board do you just sit down where you like, for example on the other flights seat numbers are called out and you board in sections.

The other airline prices are ridiculous, have been quoted over £600 whereas Easyjet came out around £300. I am also looking at a Wednesday flight as it may not be as busy like the normal Monday, Thursday ones.

Barb

BarbH,

Take the Tv with a pinch of salt. I have a lot of dealings with the media (even had to do a tv interview or two!) as part of my job; they only show the most 'entertaining' bits and these tend to be the parts where there is conflict. The vast majority of flights are uneventful. When you think about some of the things the Tv programme shows, most are the fault of the passenger anyway, eg arriving late, forgetting passports / id, not reading the T&C's etc. You might be pleasantly surprised by the Easyjet experience. You'll have slightly more seat pitch than with the charter airlines you mention. EZY don't allocate seating, it's like a bus. You get on and find a seat. There is a priority boarding system, which you may want to take a look at. Details are on EZY's website.

Darren

Easyjet do issue seat numbers. Easy boarding just means you get on the bus to the aircraft first. That does not mean you are first on the aircraft. Regarding the TV show about Easyjet. Passengers good experiences would not make for a good programme.

Sorry Tpebop, do you mean that they don't issue seat numbers for that has always been my experience. For us "Pennies" it is just as Dazbo Says a bus ride but without the free pass.

Dazbo sums up Easy Jet exactly as it is, never had any problem with them some times the passengers who want more than they have paid for get up my nose but I don't spend much time listening to them.

Dave.

Just read on page 2 of our confirmation for next May. Easyjet does not allocate seats & you can choose where to sit when you board the aircraft.

we have just come back from an easy jet flight, gatwick to madeira, we paid for speedy boarding, at gatwick we werre able to queue in a speedy queue which saved time and we allowed on the bus first but then they filled bus up with other passengers so we didnt get on plane first but on the return speedy boarders were allowed on plane first, this also happened in istanbul in oct ,so who ever said this never happens abroad is incorrect ,sadly this time we hadnt paid for speedy boarding and it was terrible rush and people pushing and shoving we didnt get seats together despite having an 8 yr old child we us, so they moved 1 passenger so i could sit next to my daughter my hubby had to sit elsewhere, they only allow passengers with kids under 5 to board early , its a risk you take, but i would always pay for it now when travelling with my daughter

on the hand luggage ,there was a sign saying no weight restrictions within reason, and all hand luggage cases were put in a metal frame to see if they fit, longest side of the suitcase was put in sideways, 1 person infront of us was refused as they bag was too big and weighed 20 kilos !!!

Ellie-meg, I mentioned in a previous post regarding speedy boarding that in my experience it doesn't tend to happen at the overseas airport, not that it never happens! We live near Luton and fly a lot with Easyjet, yet the only place I've seen speedy boarding happen when abroad is Istanbul. In other airports, as you experienced in Madeira, they call the speedy boarders first, then tend to fill up the bus with passengers who haven't paid extra and typically the later you get on the bus, the earlier you get off!

no in madeira we walked onto the plane first, it was gatwick end they didnt do it !!!, the last 2 flights i have used in oct and dec 08 both benefitted from using speedy boarding abroad, maybe ive just picked on 2 countries that do benefit from it !!! they also wouldnt allow early check in at madeira like they do at luton

New Gatwick routes for Easyjet

EasyJet will be launching four new routes from Gatwick Airport to destinations in Croatia, Cyprus, Italy and Greece.

On March 31, it will start flights to Larnaca each Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday from £30.99 one way.

On May 1, it will launch daily flights to Naples (£31.99 one way) and to Dubrovnik on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday (£29.99).

On May 3, it will begin operating to Santorini onTuesday, Thursday and Sunday, with fares from £36.99.

Regional general manager for the UK David Osborne said: "Today's announcement will further strengthen our position at Gatwick; which is our biggest single airport base."

With permission from Travelmole