Cheapest way from North to South?

Murphy_The_Cat

tinandsue wrote:

Thanks, but that' s about the same price as I' d got.

I pitched in the price because you had never actually said what price you could get the flights for - only that they were expensive !
was the BMI option that someone else suggested any nearer the sort of money taht you wanted to pay ?

MTC

alanrowell

Just to point out I got £83.50 return for a Friday to Sunday in March via the BA website

skintscotsman

you tried doing aberdeen - edinburgh on train and then edi - lgw on plane with easjtet? bit of a long and dranw out journey but if you're quick enough you sohuld get edi- lgw at reasonable price.

pboae

How about Ryanair from Aberdeen to Liverpool, then FlyBe from Liverpool to Southampton?

tinandsue

I love the idea of going to Edinburgh by train and then getting a cheaper easyjet fare to LGW. I' ll have to look into the cost of trains and see if I can get a good deal that way.

The flights direct from ABZ to LGW are currently £88 return at cheapest. British Airways don' t do last minute deals and the price actually goes up astronomically if you want a last minute flight. I' d like to find a cheaper way for several reasons:

1) It seems ridiculous that when my family are only at the other end of the Uk, an hour or so flight away, I have to save up to get a flight when I could go to Ireland etc for 99p
2) We are a family of 6 so I' m frequently forced to leave my young children behind or else face £88 x 6= £528!!! Going on the coach with toddlers would be hell.
3) I know that I can visit my sister in Portugal with the whole family for a fraction of the cost - It just doesn' t seem right. We' re not all business customers!!!
4) If someone was to be taken ill suddenly, which has actually happened quite frequently, I rush to be with them and pay the last minute rate which is really high or am forced to wait an agonising 15hrs plus on the Megabus.

With all the cheap flights around nowadays, it just seems ludicrous that BA can slap so much profit onto a domestic flight and there must be loads of people like me in the same boat.

pennylane99

alanrowell wrote:

Just to point out I got £83.50 return for a Friday to Sunday in March via the BA website

yes, I got £83.60 BA Aberdeen/Gatwick return price for dates in February.....£55.60 of that is made up of tax/surcharges.....:eek:

tinandsue

Yes, the tax and surcharges are just unbelievable!

Sam_Bee

tinandsue wrote:

With all the cheap flights around nowadays, it just seems ludicrous that BA can slap so much profit onto a domestic flight and there must be loads of people like me in the same boat.

Well, as the two posts above say of that £88, £56 is tax, so that's erm, £32 going to BA's coffers. So, £16 each way. To fly. Including a meal! And pre-assigned seats (all costs!). I'd hardly call that 'slapping on so much profit'.

I'm not being funny, but we take flights for granted these days. 10 years ago you never would have considered flights for such short route, as your only options BA & British Midland would most likely have charged you hundreds of pounds. £88 seems an amazingly cheap price to me. And I don't want Easyjet or Ryanair quoted to me - they are completely different.

I've spent a lifetime travelling from London to Scotland by train, using Family Railcards, early booking etc, and always had acceptably deals. Surely it's part of the equation when you move so far away from your home area??

iceman_2

Sam_Bee wrote:

Well, as the two posts above say of that £88, £56 is tax, so that's erm, £32 going to BA's coffers. So, £16 each way. To fly. Including a meal! And pre-assigned seats (all costs!). I'd hardly call that 'slapping on so much profit'.

No £56 is not tax, it's tax and surcharges. The surcharges most certainly do go to BA's coffers.

Murphy_The_Cat

iceman wrote:

No £56 is not tax, it's tax and surcharges. The surcharges most certainly do go to BA's coffers.

Here'e the breakdown on a £39 BA ticket from Aberdeen to Brighton Gatwick.
Ticket cost £44.00
Security charge £2.50
Air Tax £10
Fuel Surcharge £8.00

Which leaves £18.50 for BA to fly you 575 miles (ish) in an hour and a half - rather than spend an entire day driving.

I've never looked at it that way before, and that makes it outstanding value.(IMO)

MTC