Chat thread – Friday 18th April
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This is today’s chat thread.
If you have specific questions about Avios, hotels or credit cards, please ask them in the appropriate forum and not here. This thread is a good place to post interesting deals you have spotted or your general thoughts on travel and all things miles and points. Thank you for contributing.
Morning from Berlin where after yesterdays sunshine and warmth it’s turned cold and dank.
And good morning from BA1438 where some prankster decided to change the status to “closed” about 45 minutes before the flight.
Freddo had been watching the board like a hawk and clocked the B45 gate.
As we headed that way from Galleries South we thought we would double check and there was no Edinburgh flight on the big board. I looked on the app and the gate was indeed B45 and it was closed.
So we caned our way there. It did seem weird given that we still had 20 minutes to go until our boarding pass said the gate was closing. We arrived at a tranquil gate where boarding hadn’t even commenced.
We then saw many flustered passengers charging towards the gate, much like we had done.
Fun times.
And good morning from BA1438 where some prankster decided to change the status to “closed” about 45 minutes before the flight.
Freddo had been watching the board like a hawk and clocked the B45 gate.
As we headed that way from Galleries South we thought we would double check and there was no Edinburgh flight on the big board. I looked on the app and the gate was indeed B45 and it was closed.
So we caned our way there. It did seem weird given that we still had 20 minutes to go until our boarding pass said the gate was closing. We arrived at a tranquil gate where boarding hadn’t even commenced.
We then saw many flustered passengers charging towards the gate, much like we had done.
Fun times.
Manchester from B gates the other day for me, now Edinburgh from B gates for you. Just get Leeds Bradford flights back now and let them go from B gates.
And good morning from Lake Garda where yesterday’s torrential rain has given way to glorious sunshine. The ‘kids’ have gone to Venice for the day to drink expensive coffee whilst we are on grandparent duty.
Virgin have made it really easy to hate them since the changes last year.
Flight I was looking at yesterday in UC went from 34k + $260 to 54k + $493 overnight 🙁
And good morning from BA1438 where some prankster decided to change the status to “closed” about 45 minutes before the flight.
Freddo had been watching the board like a hawk and clocked the B45 gate.
As we headed that way from Galleries South we thought we would double check and there was no Edinburgh flight on the big board. I looked on the app and the gate was indeed B45 and it was closed.
So we caned our way there. It did seem weird given that we still had 20 minutes to go until our boarding pass said the gate was closing. We arrived at a tranquil gate where boarding hadn’t even commenced.
We then saw many flustered passengers charging towards the gate, much like we had done.
Fun times.
This has happened to me a number of times at LHR in the past year, claims of Boarding when planes are not – clearly a strategy to get people to the gate early. Problem is it’s now a game of chicken as far as I am concerned!
I would have done the same but iirc they cannot shut the gate until 20 minutes before departure
Have I missed / misread that you can earn Tier Points via Amex spending?
If not, is anyone aware of any rumours as to when we should expect to see it pop up the PremPlus / Black BA Amex card offers?I’ve got some spending to do and am holding off (rightly or wrongly?)!
Anything in particular I need to know about flying from Stansted (got special assistance booked if that makes any difference)? Two firsts next week – flying from Stansted and flying Ryanair!
@Froggee, BA staff need the extra time to wander around finding hand baggage to check in and pax to work out whether they’re behind people who should be in their boarding queue or folk who are just chancing it!
Morning all. Flying J with BA with an Amex plat card from YUL to LHR. Anyone got recent experience towards the lounge offerings? We’re keen to have a decent meal as we intend to sleep on the flight.
Hello from MAN T2 where security was unbelievably pleasant and despite the boards showing 0% rejection rate there were plenty got the rummage treatment apart from me…. very odd.
The Aspire lounge where I’m burning one of my dragon passes (because they’re generaly useless) is only 20% full but I was told it was fully booked so could only stay for an houre.
And my Jet2 bus is delayed for at least 45 mins despite it arriving from Geneva at 8pm last night. So wtf knows when I’ll leave – and I can’t drink because picking up hire car at destination 🙁
And when the F did tipping culture hit UK lounges? Barcodes on every surface saying scan to tip and a device at the bar labelled tap to tip!
Whoever said gates close at T-20 hasn’t been to MAN.
Flight delayed from 16.25 to 17.20. then suddenly departure at 17.08. go to gate called at 16.15 final call at 16.25 then gate closed at 16.35. this is a bus gate
Surrounded by screaming toddlers, had to move my paid for seat so that a family with 3 kids can sit together, now behind being kicked in the back for 3 hours 🙁
@davefl, where are you off to today? This creeping tipping culture feels like end of civilisation as we know it! Though we had a very nice and reasonably-priced pre-theatre Italian meal in Manchester last night and no service charge was automatically added. Service was exemplary, so it got rounded up to a decent amount!
*Good lord, I just read your 2nd post. Definitely the end of civilisation! Though you’re always taking a massive risk on this travelling in school holidays lol.
@davefl It’s a good job those J2 seat backs are really padded and thick. Hope it’s a short flight.
@davefl, This creeping tipping culture feels like end of civilisation as we know it!.
@NorthernLass – I couldn’t agree more. I was in Vienna two weekends ago, and one night had a buffet meal at a hotel (certainly not my choice, but there were 30 of us who had gone over for the marathon, and this was the only option for us to eat together one night). When paying the restaurant manager asked me why I had declined to add a tip – my response “It’s a buffet – there was no service” was met with a blank stare as if it was irrelevant…. 🤷♂️Today is a good day, €13.99 for an Amarone Classico from Lidl in Italy. It’s chuffing delicious. The ‘kids’ will be back in half an hour and we have 3/4 of a bottle left, checks FindMy and measures wine remaining again.
@Chas – ha. Before the free Hilton gold breakfast in the US was enhanced away, we had the buffet offering at one HGI. A lady whose sole duty had been to point us to the buffet and tell us to serve ourselves presented us with a bill for 20% of the price of the breakfast!
Re tipping within the Uk, people need to collectively make a stand. I feel quite passionate about it tbh.
I’ve had a few experiences that have left a sour taste in the mouth. A few hotels where they tell me it’s for the cleaners but if I really don’t have the money or don’t want to, I don’t have to. Another time was a restaurant where I said I would have left a cash tip if you accepted cash and the reply from the waiter was “it used to be ten pound, but you are not even prepared to tip a fiver to me”.
The last experience I had re tipping was the crafthouse in Leeds where at first they asked what was a matter when I asked for it to be removed, and then they said they could only get the authority from the manager to remove the gratuity. After 10 minutes, and me saying I’m not wasting anymore time and they will need me to contact me for me to pay the bill, they miraculously removed it.I think anyone that even should dare ask for tips on Uk, customers should boycott it. They would soon get it.
It should totally be a rule that if it’s asked for, it’s not going to be given! I don’t mind tipping in local places where staff aren’t well paid and profit margins are precarious but in a city hotel costing £000’s per night, they can blooming well pay their employees a decent wage.
Problem is, Americans especially are so inured to tipping that they seem to genuinely believe it’s the responsibility of the customer to pay staff wages and not the employer! Which is very convenient for the employer.
I’m sure there was a thread about this not long ago …
It is 100% already my rule that if you tout/beg/pressure for a tip you get zero, and a few places have lost the tip they would have got this way.
If you feel grumpy, use the bar code malarkey to tip 1p – it will cost them more in payment fees to process it!
It should totally be a rule that if it’s asked for, it’s not going to be given! I don’t mind tipping in local places where staff aren’t well paid and profit margins are precarious but in a city hotel costing £000’s per night, they can blooming well pay their employees a decent wage.
Problem is, Americans especially are so inured to tipping that they seem to genuinely believe it’s the responsibility of the customer to pay staff wages and not the employer! Which is very convenient for the employer.
I’m sure there was a thread about this not long ago …
How does this even work? It’s not so simple. How are you able to assess which establishments have precarious margins, something the price of the place doesn’t help you with? What do you say constitutes “a decent wage”? And how do you know whether a member of staff is or isn’t getting such a wage?
It’s not easy currently to get waiting staff, kitchen staff or chamber maids so employers often have to pay way above the living wage to recruit people at all. They will never be that well paid relative to the guests that can afford to patronise their establishments.
my response “It’s a buffet – there was no service” was met with a blank stare as if it was irrelevant…. 🤷♂️
You should try that line in the USA where self service tills at supermarkets now ask for a tip and also gas stations where you’ve pumped your own gas and then walked inside to pay.
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