yeah us too! when we booked to greece even thought the flights were more expensive we chose the ones that gave us the most time there, even on long haul packages it annoys me when its a night flight!!!! i feel cheated in some way!!!!

I like to go on the morning too but not so early that you have to get up in the middle of the night as we have two young children. On the way back early evening is good for us, so the girls can sleep on the plane.

I'm more concerned with finding the exact accomodation and resort I want than with flight times. I decide on my holiday first and wouldn't dream of changing my mind because of a flight time. I know the time of the flight is one of the most important things to a friend of mine and she will pick accordingly.

I've flown at all times of the day and night and imo they all have pros and cons. I'm not too keen on late night flights home when we have to check out of our accomodation at lunch time but needs must and we just treat that day like another day of our hols.

Couldn't care less about flight times, we always travel long haul and are used to being up all night long travelling, so if I was travelling short haul I would not be fussy at all, however I work in travel and daytime flights are extremely important to at least 50% of customers if not more.

Without a doubt for me it has to be the first flight out in the morning, doesn't even bother me getting up at silly o'clock to travel to the airport.
On the way back, a midday flight is perfect for us, as on the last night i've kind of resigned myself to the holiday being over, so just want to get home as quick as possible.
We did have a night flight coming back from Jamaica, which was fine as we all got a bit of a kip.

I do prefer an early flight, can't sleep the night before anyway even if we left for the airport late the next day.
If the holiday was dirt cheap I wouldn't discount travelling on a night flight, although my husband would throw a fit.

I also decide on the holiday first, rather than the flight time. I suppose because I know they can change it anyway so try not to get too hung up about it. For choice I would rather fly early I guess so that I can get to wherever I am going before it gets dark. But have flown all times.

I've quite enjoyed red eye flights when you come back over the Atlantic through the night and then get to Heathrow at 7am, seems a good use of time to sleep your way through long haul.

Without a doubt for me it has to be the first flight out in the morning, doesn't even bother me getting up at silly o'clock to travel to the airport.
On the way back, a midday flight is perfect for us, as on the last night i've kind of resigned myself to the holiday being over, so just want to get home as quick as possible.

A girl after my own hear Juby, but like Shirley h said, its the holiday that's important to me, and the last thing I look at is flight times.

daytime flights are extremely important to at least 50% of customers if not more.

That's interesting to read Shirley v- So do a lot of people actually turn down a holiday they really fancy because the flight time doesn't suit? As I said, a friend of mine always looks for nice flight times but I wouldn't have thought the majority of people class it as a priority.

You would be surprised Shirley, we get customers in the shop looking for a late deal, and for example it will be a bargain price , lovely accommodation etc, but they will pull thier faces if it is on a night flight.

i'm at the stage now where my fist question to the agent is what time flights can you offer, depending on distance and departure airport we prefer [sorry will not accept] flights after 9-30 am

wiz

When I was young, I used to love getting up around 3/4 o'clock in the morning it was so exciting, I used to be shaking from head to toe Now I can't say flight times bother me any longer, I pick my destination first and take whatever flight time it is!

I much prefer night flights especially to Turkey.
They are quieter and most people sleep when the crew dim the lights.
I hate queueing outside the airport in the heat as in Turkey you have to put your cases through the first scanner as you enter the airport.I have stood outside for at least 1 hour on day flights.
I can also use the Metro to get to the airport as it saves on car parking charges.

Ideally I prefer to be leaving the house between 4-6am to be on a nice morning flight which will have me at my hotel by lunchtime/early afternoon. Coming home, it's best to be up and out of the room and on the transfer coach after a good breakfast and a last look around; arriving home sometime in the afternoon for a nice English "chippy tea" before a bath and bed

Realistically, most of the holidays we've had have been afternoon departures, arriving in resort in the evening; and by the time you've found your way to your room, unpacked a bit and freshened-up, it's too late to bother heading out for a drink. Coming home usually seems to involve checking out of the room at lunchtime and then "hanging around" all afternoon until our pick-up in the evening; then arriving home exhausted in the wee small hours and collapsing into a cold bed for a few hours before beginning the mammoth laundry session...

The worst one we had was to Gran Canaria a few years ago, flying out Saturday evening, arriving at the hotel around 2am and then the following week, leaving the hotel at midnight (after "hanging around" all day and night) coming home on a horrendous turbulent night flight, arriving back at our house at around 8am, (after a long wait for suitcases and our taxi at Manchester Airport) and not being able to have a sleep all day because the neighbours were having "work done" .... and then having to go into work the day after

I don't look at flight times when researching a holiday but I do consider it when making my final decision, although if there was a specific place I was particularly taken with, I would not let horrid flight times put me off.

To me flight times are very important, with some destinations you have to take whats there, i'm off to Egypt soon and flights are around 10am which is ok , but when i go to Lanzarote i like to get early flights like 7 or 8am so i'm there by midday, get the car at the airport , drive to Playa Blanca, have lunch on the seafront, get some shopping, Rioja, San Miguel , 200 M.lights and a baguette then off to the villa , unpack and sit by the pool by 3pm to decide where i'm going to eat that night. On the way back , leave villa at 9am, drop off car and check-in , get on plane at 12, land at 4pm , get ready meal at M&S on way out of airport, get home at a sensible time to relax and catch-up, get to bed early ready for work next day.
I have to pay more for this obviously but i think its worth it , can't see the point in saving 30 to 40 quid to sit around in an airport all evening waiting for a flight that dumps me back at an unearthly hour in the freezing cold. the relaxing stress free holiday has just been undone!

Totally agree Andy.
I've done the cheap flights at stupid o'clock hours when the kids were younger, and now I won't even consider a holiday if the flight is leaving in the evening and you're kicked out of the room at 12 noon, sometimes it is possible to pay a bit extra and keep the room until 6 pm, but that's not always an option.
I remember the days of being stuck in Palma Airport at midnight or landing back from Tenerife at 2 am and then having another 1½ hours in a taxi.

Nope, for me, I like an early flight out to Spain and a flight around dinner-time home, landing back in the UK and arriving home for tea-time.
I've now got very selective and won't even look at Manchester departures anymore, because it's no fun travelling over the Pennines in the dead of night and at certain times of the year, it's possibly one of the most dangerous journeys you can make in a car.

Travelling to EMA is not quite as bad, but after trying my local airport (Doncaster/Sheffield) and despite it not being the best organised airport, and Thomson having a monopoly on the flights with little competition and the prices higher than Manchester......the short journey in a taxi is a blessing.

Sanji

Some interesting thoughts/comments here...

If we weren't doing DIY short haul holidays (as we have goodness knows how many times now)
we would'nt be as fussy about flight times.
Of course the holiday as a whole would all be taken into consideration and we wouldn't NOT go
on a holiday because the flight times weren't "perfect."
(We've had some nightmare flight times with package holidays in the past - especially when the
children were littlies. )

But as I said, with our DIY hols, luckily, we've never had to leave our accomodation until we've
been leaving for the airport - so depending on the time of the flight, it's always felt like we have
been gaining another days holiday.

If we had to be out of our accomodation early (like when we used to book through travel
agencies/companies) then I'd opt for an early return flight.
We feel it really does makes a difference when you aren't tied to time in having to get out - it's so
much more relaxing getting sorted for going home - especially when there's four of you to organise.

With long haul, we've never really been bothered either way whether they are day time or night
time flights, but we have always preferred to arrive at our holiday location during the daytime
whenever possible.

HI Andy,
I like the sound of your holiday

get home at a sensible time to relax and catch-up, get to bed early ready for work next day.

Do you mind me asking when do you do your unpacking and washing ? I can't relax until that's done.

Last year we flew to Thailand on a daytime flight- leaving Heathrow at 12 which ment getting to Bangkok at about 6am (Thai time) we then had a whole day and night in BKK before flying on to Phuket. I have never been so knakered!!
This year we are leaving Heathrow at 9.30pm so will land around 3pm Thai time, we are not spending anytime in BKK so straight to Cha Am- we should be in the hotel by around 7pm, just enough time to grab a quick bite to eat and a nice cold Chang before heading to bed. I think this way will be a lot less tiring and on the first full day of our holiday we will feel a lot more relaxed- thats the idea anyway! The only down side is having to hang around all day waiting for the flight!