When you have a relatively small number of points, goals can seem to be quite far away. I’m going to show you examples of what you can do with small points balances in the British Airways Executive Club and Aer Lingus AerClub.

A Weekend Getaway

Taking a weekend getaway to the beach or even a city break is quite easy to do with points. The lowest amount of points for a one way flight on both Aer Lingus and British Airways is 4,500, which would come to 9,000 Avios return.

What happens if you don’t yet have that many points? Well, the airlines have you covered. As you can see above, the total price is 9,000 Avios plus €49.57 in taxes and charges. You usually have to pay these so no surprises there. But look at the bottom right.

You can reduce your points outlay to as little as 3,000 return, if you’re prepared to pony up some extra cash. Remember that all reward flights feature one checked bag included as standard. You could also just book a one way flight and book the other way separately with cash, which halves the amounts if you have even fewer points in your account.

How Far Can I Go?

It is 4,500 Avios each way for flights up to 600 miles or 965km in length. From Dublin on Aer Lingus, that means Ireland, all of the UK, Paris, Brest and Nantes in France, Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Brussels in Belgium and Dusseldorf in Germany.

Out of London with British Airways, that means the UK, all of Ireland, Denmark, Switzerland, Netherlands, Luxembourg, most of France, and virtually all Germany are within reach. Not too shabby at all!

Avios Reducing Ticket Prices

Frequent flyers generally value Avios at 1c or 1p per point, which makes it easy to work out how much they are worth. One other way to use them is to reduce the cash price of a ticket, which you will see towards the end of the booking process. That could reduce the cost of your weekend getaway, but should you do this?

British Airways is offering €10 off in the example for 1,000 Avios, which matches 1c per point. However the €22 off is 2,900 Avios, meaning that you’re getting less bang for your buck. Aer Lingus are offering €2 off for 250 Avios which is not as good value as the BA example. That being said, if you have a small amount of points laying around and will be hard pressed to use them, this provides a way to do that.

Overall Thoughts

That should illustrate just how few Avios points are needed to take a weekend getaway. Of course, the real value in the points is using them for flight upgrades, especially from British Airways World Traveller Plus to Club World (Premium Economy to Business Class). However, I sometimes use them for upgrades to Club Europe on Dublin to London, as it’s nice to have a little treat on the short flight.

Some people save their points for a big business class trip, some spend them as they get them – whatever you do will be right for you. Using Avios can result in big savings, especially if you can snag frequent flyer seats at popular times. Your saving over paying straight cash can be substantial (think ski resorts in Europe at half term, for example).

What say you? Are you someone who uses points regularly for a weekend getaway or are you a saver, an upgrader or something else? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Alf van Beem via Wikimedia Commons.

The two airlines ostensibly have no affiliation whatsoever with one another and the Dubai based airline is not a member of any airline alliance. Both carriers are standard competitors in the industry and there are no links between the two.

Well, if you don’t count this.

Qantas and Emirates Partnership

In 2013, Emirates and Qantas formed a close partnership meaning each airline placed the others code on their flights. This would allow a person to book a ticket from say Australia to Europe and return with Qantas, with the Australian airline’s flight numbers, but with the flights actually being operated by Emirates.

Essentially, the agreement allows each airline to sell tickets on the others flights as though they were their own. Codeshare agreements are quite common in the industry however this one is much more extensive than most. It has been extended a couple of times over the years, so clearly it works for the two airlines.

The Secret Back Door to Earning with Emirates

British Airways and Qantas are both members of the oneworld alliance which allows members of any frequent flyer programme to earn miles with any of the other member airlines. Third party airlines are generally excluded from earning even when it is a codeshare flight. However, the British Airways web site says the following when it comes to earning on Qantas.

The last line of text indicates any flight carrying the Qantas QF flight code on any third party airline will earn British Airways Avios as though you are flying with Qantas. This means that if you book a flight on the Qantas web site that happens to actually be an Emirates aircraft you will earn full Avios and Tier Points as though it was actually the Australian airline you were flying.

Overall Thoughts

While this means you can earn Avios on Emirates, it also means you it will work on any airline Qantas has a codeshare agreement with. If you happen to book a flight from Amsterdam to Sydney via Singapore, your Amsterdam to Singapore will be QF4218 but actually operated by KLM. That means you’ll fly KLM and earn your Avios that way.

The caveat is that you must book through Qantas and the flight must be a Qantas codeshare flight with a QF flight number. Flights on other carriers are marked quite clearly on the Qantas website, making choosing these services quite straightforward.

Have you earned Avios on Emirates before? Did you even know this was possible? I’ve heard it works seamlessly by those who have done it. Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image via Emirates.

I always receive good service on board a flight. Sure, I have been more or less ignored on one or two flights and on others given the bare minimum of service (hi, American Airlines!) but I have never received overtly bad service. Here are some tips to help you receive great service on your flights.

Smile!

Smiling is so simple and costs nothing… plus, just about everyone looks hotter when smiling! Cabin crew enjoy serving someone who is smiling at them rather than someone who has that serial killer grimace on their face.

Travel can be stressful but remember to smile – it not only inspires people to be friendlier to you but it also makes you feel happier by association. Who knows, you might also pick up a date!

Remember Your Manners, Please! Thank You!

Cabin Crew have commented more than once about how they find me to be very polite. My parents taught me always to say please and thank you and it is amazing how many people forget this.

Are you the kind of person who watches a movie during dinner on a long haul flight? You’re probably that person who has accepted their meal or drinks without acknowledging the crew. It is common courtesy to remove your headphones when the crew arrive to deliver your meal and to thank them for doing so with a smile. I have had two hour movies take three hours due to this but it’s worth it.

Sitting in the window seat and the crew has to deliver your tray over two other people? Reach out and take it from them. Cabin crew do enough bending and stretching and a little help is always appreciated.

While one of the aspects of their job is to ensure your safety serve your meals and so on, they are human beings as well, so treat them as such. Your crew always appreciate a little common courtesy.

Attitude Is Key To Great Service

Everything you do makes people form an impression of what kind of person you are. The way you dress, your attitude, the way you interact – people subconsciously tally this up and judge you. Are the crew making a small joke or wanting a little banter? Join in, laugh at the joke – at least smile appreciatively – it won’t kill you.

The aim is to make someone else’s day a bit lighter – and for a person who has to serve lots of people, anything to lighten the mood is welcome. A great attitude is infectious and your fellow passengers will appreciate this too. Everyone benefits when people are in a good mood, so be the one who helps cultivate this.

Overall Thoughts

You might be reading this and think, “I’m always nice on flights – that doesn’t get me anywhere!” – but are you really? Take a good long hard look at the way you act on board a flight – really analyse it. If you are someone who constantly receives bad service, it’s probably not the airline, it’s probably you.

Not only does great attitude, politeness and smiling result in good service, you sometimes might get goodies too! I have received gifts from the crew more than once so you never know what you might end up with at the end of a flight – all for doing things that cost you nothing.

How do you find things when you fly? Do you get great service or are you routinely treated like garbage? Thanks for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image and Qatar Airways service via the oneworld Alliance.
Smiling and happy passengers via Aer Lingus.

Currently the Amman based carrier operates two Embraer 175 aircraft, which I had the pleasure of flying on in 2008. They also have two of the larger Embraer 195s, which I also took a business class flight in the same year.

The Embraer E2 Series

According to Azorra’s press release, four E190-E2 and two E195-E2 will be leased for 12 years. The first two regional jets are due for delivery in December 2023. An additional pair of E195-E2s were ordered directly from the manufacturer.

The new E195-E2 at Royal Jordanian will seat 12 passengers in Crown Class and 108 in Economy Class. The E190-E2 will also have 12 up front with just 80 seats in the back. In keeping with the premium nature of the airline, there will be mood lighting, leather seats and Wi-Fi installed.

Once delivered, the updated aircraft will replace the fleet of four first generation Embraers currently in service and allow for expansion. Samer Majali, Royal Jordanian’s current CEO, states the new planes offer 25% fuel savings versus the ones flying now. Various reasons also influenced the decision such as pilot training and common spare parts.

It’s interesting to see the CEO return to the helm of the airline. During his previous tenure between 2001 and 2009, the airline recorded some of its best financial performance. Let’s hope this happens again!

Overall Thoughts

Royal Jordanian are an airline I have fond memories of as I flew multiple flights with them back in 2007 and 2008. I really need to get back to Jordan, a country I thoroughly enjoyed visiting.

As far as oneworld airlines go, they tend to be overshadowed by some of the larger carriers. However they more than hold their own against the big boys and if you get a chance, fly them.

What do you think of this Embraer E2 order from RJ? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Fabrizio Gandolfo on JetPhotos.net via Wikimedia Commons.
E195 image via Aviation Spotting.

It boggles my mind, because most people stick to the same airlines that operate from their nearest airport. Therefore, I thought I’d pose the question to you and find out more.

How Often Do People Really Fly?

Aer Lingus released some data showing that in 2016, the average person in the Republic of Ireland took 6.79 flights. With a trip being considered two flights, they found 21% of people took one to two trips that year, 29% took three to four trips and 34% took five to ten trips.

That’s rather a lot of flying, but of course Ireland is an island, so you need to fly to get anywhere else. The very frequent flyers filled out the rest of the stats that year, with 11% taking 11-20 trips and 6% taking more than 21 trips, which would be 42 flights. Looking at my flight log, I took 34 flights that year but I used only four airlines to do it.

How Many Airline Apps Then?

Since I am always chasing frequent flyer status with British Airways, I try to stick to them as much as possible. It’s either BA or one of the members of the oneworld alliance, unless I absolutely have to go off piste and fly with someone else.

In my phone, I have the following ones installed. On the main screen, British Airways, American Airlines and Aer Lingus. The second page has Ryanair and the third page has the Aer Lingus AerClub app, Finnair and Qatar Airways. The latter two I’ve only added recently as I have upcoming trips with them.

Since I didn’t exit the womb with an iPhone in my hand, I have little use for airline apps before flying. All trip planning and so on is done on my laptop as it’s both much faster and the information is presented better.

The only time I use the apps are to check-in for a flight and get my mobile boarding pass. That’s pretty much it, as the airlines I use don’t have the whizz bang functionality of the US airlines that let you change your flights during disruptions and so on.

Overall Thoughts

Lots of companies have an app, and a lot of the time that was just jumping on the bandwagon. Airline apps are useful, but not as much as you might expect, in my opinion anyway.

Once my flying with Finnair and Qatar Airways is complete, I’ll delete their apps as I have no reason to have them on my phone doing nothing. I tend to be good at digital housekeeping like that, though I know I am an outlier on that.

So, what about you? How many airline apps do you have on your phone? Which airlines? Do you use them all or are some there just because you’ve forgotten to delete them? Are you using them for bookings and so on or just for check-in? I’d be interested in your views. Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Stanislav Doronenko via Wikimedia Commons.
Aer Lingus by Anna Zvereva via Wikimedia Commons.

The Internet came along, and eventually the paper timetables became PDF files online, before being dropped altogether. Nowadays we refer to an airline’s website to search for flights, but it’s perhaps not as fun as the past.

What Did Timetables Look Like?

British Airways still have their final PDF timetable online for the Winter season 28 October 2007 to 29 March 2008. The only way it differs from the printed ones is that it doesn’t include all the aircraft seating plans in the back (which was actually my favourite part, but today we arguably have it better with aeroLOPA).

Back in the day it was fun to have timetables from large airlines like BA. There were so many different places you could go, so it was definitely food for the imagination reading all the different cities. I’d go so far as to say it was a bit more romantic than things are today.

A Current British Airways Timetable

Speedbird Online has current BA timetables on their website, in the same format as the PDF and printed versions from times past. This discovery has made a certain cohort of frequent flyers quite happy.

One of the limitations of airline websites is that it’s not really possible to easily flip through the various destinations. When you’re looking for inspiration, it takes much more effort than having an entire schedule at your fingertips, so this format is actually rather simpler all round.

Overall Thoughts

It’s fantastic to see this schedule online at Speedbird Online. One caveat is that you should not rely totally on the data, because things change very quickly in the airline world. If you’re planning to use it before booking flights, you will be smart to check the British Airways website to ensure the service you want is operating.

Surely it would not take much effort for an airline to have something like this available all the time, in this format, that updates automatically. The fact airlines have largely removed route maps is another bug bear of mine, because they were also really quite handy to look at for inspiration.

What do you think of airline timetables? Do you miss having them available or is it no big deal? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Rafael Luiz Canossa via Wikimedia Commons.

BOAC was the prime user of this aircraft on routes to Africa, the Far East, transpacific and transatlantic during the late 1960s and through the 1970s. There are two videos here from the British Pathé archives on YouTube and while short they are well worth checking out.

Automatic Landings

Today it is common knowledge that aircraft can land themselves by autopilot. When pilots are unable to see due to low visibility or fog conditions, autopilot will take care of the landing which saves flights from having to divert to other airports. Back in the 1960s this was a revolutionary concept, so much so that it was news worthy. This one minute video shows an automatic landing in a Vickers VC10.

I love the commentary referring to the aircraft as “the giant BOAC VC10” and “huge” when today it would be thought of as fairly small. The pilots have their hands crossed and it’s interesting to see all the controls move on their own. Apparently they did not use it often in service though, as it was more suited to short haul aircraft like the Hawker Siddeley Trident.

A Vickers VC10 Shakedown Flight

The second video is from 1964 when the VC10 was brand new and had not entered service. As the voice over says, “see what flying in a VC10 is like!”. It’s interesting to see at this point the old BOAC livery, which was changed completely before the plane entered service.

Look out for the cabin shots when they are serving the meal. The aisle is unbelievably wide, wider than any I have ever seen. I also love how the food is plated and served at your seat. Royal Jordanian still do this today in Crown Class and it feels so very luxurious.

Overall Thoughts

British Pathé films are a window into a past that a lot of us will never experience. I love the plummy British voice over, the superlatives used, plus the way they try to give you a good overview of what they’re reporting on.

What I particularly enjoyed about the second video is the sound of the aircraft. It’s much, much louder than planes today, so we’ve come a long way when it comes to sound suppression it seems. Let’s face it, I really like the Vickers VC10 and wish I’d flown on it.

Did you ever get the chance to fly on a VC10? What was that like? What did you think of the videos? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image via British Airways.

According to Executive Traveller, the Finnish planes will be used on Sydney to Singapore (as QF291/292) from October 2023 and Sydney to Bangkok (as QF295/296) from March 2024. The reaction from Australian frequent flyers has been mixed to say the least, which is pretty amusing.

Leasing Finnair Planes Means The AirLounge!

Finnair have installed a non-reclining and pretty groundbreaking business class seat called the AirLounge on their fleet. This will be on the Airbus A330s that Qantas will be putting into service. The seat map here shows it to scale.

A friend of mine tried the new seat on the A350 and he concluded, “THE most comfortable seats on any plane I’ve ever been on. Seriously good. Cannot fault them.” From what I’ve read around the Internet, the general consensus is pretty much the same – it’s an excellent product.

Moaning Aussie Frequent Flyers

People are usually quite supportive of their home airlines and nowhere is this more evident than in Australia. Some people have been immediately negative about the leasing arrangement, such as these comments.

“Of course there is nothing positive to come out of this except additional capacity, an aircraft with what looks like a pretty decent business and premium economy class, a probable reduction in fares and a choice… nothing positive at all.”

“Sigh. Legacy of AJ creating a good business and lacklustre airline. Can only imagine these will be the oldest Finnair aircraft available. And what a weird experience to have half Finnair and half Qantas hard & soft product.”

“Qantas wonders why passengers with lifetime status are moving to other airlines. Here’s a good example with a further downgrade of Qantas service because of poor management of their fleet coupled with Thai & Singapore flying multiple times a day to Asia.”

Luckily virtually everyone else commenting has been pointing out just how amazing the new AirLounge seats are. Anyone who has actually experienced the product is essentially jumping for joy at the fact Qantas is leasing Finnair aircraft.

Overall Thoughts

It’s funny to see the knee jerk reactions from a certain group of Qantas frequent flyers at the news the Aussie airline is leasing Finnair Airbus A330s. I guess some people are just glass half empty people as a general rule.

This is a total upgrade from the usual Qantas business class seat. Anyone flying from Sydney to Bangkok or Singapore should actively choose to fly on the leased aircraft.

What do you think of the fact Qantas is leasing Finnair A330s? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Jakkrit Prasertwit on Airliners.net via Wikimedia Commons.
All other images via Finnair.

While everything from the Wi-Fi to the electricity to charge your phones is on the house, how far does it stretch? Should you be taking things out of the lounge with you?

Well Heeled Thieves Everywhere!

Once upon a time I was sitting in the lounge casually passing the time on my laptop when I spied a group of business people getting up to go to their gate for their flight. One of them paused at the food section and loaded his bag with at least three packets of crisps and a couple of pieces of fruit. There was no subtlety involved and it was all quite brazen while chatting away to nearby colleagues.

Online forums devoted to airline travel reveal the art of the steal is alive and well. There are reports of people loading up their bags with cans of beer, various foods and some even say they have seen large bottles of booze decanted into plastic bottles for take away. It is mind boggling what people will stoop to!

Who Steals Food And Is It Actually Stealing?

There are two schools of thought on the matter. One is what airlines intend, which is food and drink available in the lounge should be consumed in the lounge. The other, of course, is that it is available and expected to be consumed so taking some with you is perfectly acceptable.

It does beg the question as to where the line should be drawn. A bag of crisps, piece of fruit or bottle of water to tide you over is probably more acceptable than taking half a dozen beers or sneaking out an entire unopened bottle of wine. It is perhaps less acceptable to remove glasses, plates, cutlery or furniture of course, though I bet this does happen.

Overall Thoughts

For what it’s worth, I think food and drink should be consumed in the lounge. Part of the reasoning for my thinking is that usually I’m flying in business class so I’m going to get even more to eat on the plane, so why be any greedier?

I’m not a person who steals food as a general rule. However, that being said, taking a bottle of water or a bag of crisps with you is completely fine. I’ve liberated the odd bag of crisps when the mood has taken me. Removing everything that is not nailed down is unacceptable and goes against the spirit of what the lounge is there for.

The amount of people with airline spoons, plates, cutlery or mugs is actually a lot more than you think. Airlines expect breakage and items to go missing, so who knows, maybe it’s all accounted for at the end of the day.

What do you think? Are you someone who steals food or is very strictly eat it in the lounge? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Since it was such a busy weekend, prices were sky high at £626 for two nights. The same room in two weeks time is less than half that at £150 per night, so that gives you an idea of the normal price range.

Arrival and Check-In

My flight arrived in Liverpool and the 500 bus is £2 and half an hour to the city centre bus station. From there it is less than a 10 minute walk along the flat city centre mall, where all the shops are, to the hotel which is nice and easy.

The very friendly lady at the desk checked me in and gave me my cookie. She also took the time to discuss this and that, such as why I was there and so on, then I was given directions to the lifts. I have to say I had a very favourable impression from that interaction, which was great!

Deluxe Room at the DoubleTree Liverpool

When booking we had no choice of room, which we were fine with as we just wanted something in the city centre that wasn’t a dive. After going up the lift and through the various higgledy-piggledy passages (that were daunting at first, but quickly got used to) I arrived at our room.

The room had everything you would expect from a major chain hotel. Happily the bed turned out to be exceedingly comfortable and very good for a sleep. On arrival the room was quite stuffy, but once the air conditioning was turned on, it was very fresh and pleasant inside.

What Is Up The Stairs?

Arriving into a room and finding a mystery staircase is a bit fun. Of course, I had an idea of what was up there, but it was fun to wonder exactly how things would appear. If you haven’t guessed, it’s the bathroom!

Perhaps the only bad thing I can say about the bathroom is that my friend was wondering how to turn on the heated towel rack. Who knows! There was also no toilet brush, a small detail but even so. Regardless of that, it was lovely with thick fluffy towels.

Welcome, Welcome!

Besides the welcome cookie that is a feature of the DoubleTree hotels, we also received a little letter from housekeeping. This was found on the bed when I arrived.

Since my friend was getting to the hotel separately (and from Miami, much further than I had to travel) I was given a voucher for his cookie to claim later. He certainly appreciated that!

Eforia Spa

I had more than two hours to kill before my friend arrived, which worked out rather well for me. At check-in, I had mentioned the spa and the lady at the desk said she thought they had a special on today. It turns out all the treatments were at the mid-week price of £79 instead of £99. I’ll take that, so I booked a full body 50 minute massage.

The massage was lovely and afterwards you are permitted to use all the spa facilities for an hour. Swimming in the pool, hitting the sauna, steam room and thermal pool were as relaxing as you’d expect. Those not wanting to get a treatment could also purchase an hour in the pool and so on for £25. For what it’s worth an hour is plenty of time, I actually finished up earlier than that.

Overall Thoughts

We had a lovely time in Liverpool and it was wonderful to come back to a nice room after each night’s Eurovision festivities. All of the staff in this hotel were very welcoming, from the check-in and check-out people to the chatty bar staff to the spa people, we were treated as treasured guests. It sounds like such a simple thing to get right, but I’ve been to many hotels where the staff feel like they’re phoning it in and don’t really care. Not the case here!

I would really recommend the location, hotel and the spa. It would make for a wonderful city break for anyone and it’s especially easy to get to Liverpool from within the UK or even from Ireland. My only real regret is that we did not eat in the hotel, so I have no idea what the food is like, or the enticing things on the signage like the Cigar Lounge.

Have you been to Liverpool or stayed at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel and Spa before? What was it like? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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