Holidays - taking bags to airport before return flight early - good idea?

pheonixrising21

Just want to gauge opinion on this:

My partner and I were on holiday in Crete and three days before we were due to leave we had a note pushed under our door to say that on the day of our departure a team from the airport would be coming to the hotel to collect and check-in our luggage to save time at the airport. This, they said, meant that we could be collected later for our drive to the airport and would sail past check-in to passport control.

Great idea you might think, but ur flight was 10pm, we were to be collected to travel to the airport at 8pm. Our bags had to eb checked in at the hotel at 9AM!! We were without our bags for the entire day and had to be sure we were around the hotel at 9am.

Without bags for an entire day, couldn't purchase souvenirs, couldn't go on a trip, couldn't even use the gym in the hotel, wasted a full bottle of sun tan lotion as can't take more than 100ml of liquid in hand luggage! Last day completely ruined and wasted.

Anyone got any opinions on this?

duchy

Eh ?

You didn't have a carry on bag ? Change of clothes could have gone in there if you needed to go to the gym or shower at the gym -bits and bobs of shopping too
As luggage is usually just dumped in hotel reception for the day I think taking it to the airport is a really good idea. Much more secure.
Most hotels want you checked out of the room by noon anyway so it's not a lot different.
Sorry but I honestly don't understand what you are moaning about TBH

meer53

We do this when we go to Florida, it's a brilliant idea. You just have to make sure you have what you need for the rest of the day with you, i have a small holdall or backpack which i use. What stopped you buying souvenirs ? I carried a birdhouse onboard with me last time we went ! Last minute purchase that i couldn't resist !

pheonixrising21

We had a late check out room, which we paid for in advance. Most hotels have "courtesy rooms" for you freshen up before travel, so in my opinion access to all your luggage is a common thing on departure day, is it not? We had a small carry on bag, but as this was already full with a change of clothes for the evening, we had no room for anything else. It was hotel policy for smart dress in the evenings for dinner, so needed clothes for that before we left. Personally, I would have found it a great idea too, if the cases had been collected, say, 2 hours before we were due to leave (about the time we checked out of our late check-out room - 6pm).

Also, if you cases are in the hotel, they are just as secure as at the airport, and also, you can get access to them if needed.

And what if we had booked an excursion for the final morning (before knowing that we HAD to go through this process)? We would either have had to miss the excursion or miss check-in!

And what about those with young children? Fancy being without your luggage for an entire day with a 1 yr old? Makes sense to me!

And if its so great, why not make people aware of this as a "perk" when booking, instead of hiding it and springing it on you when you're already there and can't do anything about it!

Murtle

Now you know it's not for you, next time you get the note say "no thank you" to the kind offer of saving you time.

pheonixrising21

Meer53, you clearly knew about this process before you left, therefore brought a decent sized carry on. Advance warning would have been great! also, what if that mst have birdcage souvenir was a must have litre of rare local spirits? good luck getting that through security and onto the plane in hand luggage! No problems in the hold luggage though - but no, can't do that, it went to the airport 9 hours ago!

pheonixrising21

Murtle, please then, explain to me how we get to the airport when the transfer is deliberately timed to mean you HAVE to use this or miss the plane! They even say on the note if you don't use this service you don't use their coach! There is no way you can get from Hersonnos to Heraklion (Crete), though check-in, then through passport control and to the gate on time in less than two hours. We barely made it to the gate in time as it was!

meer53

Surely you had the option to say "no thanks, i'll check mine in myself at the airport" ? Or was it compulsory ?

When my kids were younger it was a huge bonus for us to do the early check in thing as it meant we didn't have to struggle with luggage AND a buggy, and kids at the airport. Just turn up at the airport with your hand luggage.

Plus i don't think i would have bothered eating in the hotel if i had to change clothes, i would have eaten somewhere else, but thats just me

Don't worry, i would have thought about buying my duty free spirits long before my last day. Don't bother normally though, don't drink much really so not really worth it for me.

edenbank6

failed to read bit about doing check-in at the hotel - have never heard of that before.

pheonixrising21

edenbank6, thats the point the luggage was checked in by ourselves, with airport staff, just at the hotel over 12 hours early! and it was compulsary, not optional!

And why should we be forced to eat elsewhere when we had paid for full board - just to save room in hand luggage for something else.

I know this is turning into a bit of a rant now, but it really annoyed us. Would have been better if we had known about it before we left. Could have taken a bigger carry on and been able to plan for the last day. And making it optional (with enough time at the airport for both options), even if that meant two separate transfers, one for pre-checked, one for normal.

Like I said, in principle its a good idea, but in this case poorly executed. There were even some flights leaving at 2am the following morning, not scheduled to be picked up from the hotel til midnight but still had to check-in at 9am.

And in reality it doesnt really save time does it? There's still a queue, its just that the queue is at your hotel instead of the airport!

meer53

OP, is this the issue you have posted about on another thread and been offered £100 compensation ?