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Original poster

My DC have never asked for a lift to the Airport..

144 replies

Pebblepoppy · 14/10/2025 09:03

We live within 1.5 hours of several major airports. When I go, I either drive (and pay extortionate parking charges) or go by public transport, which is also pretty straightforward, and cheaper if I'm travelling alone.

Most of my friends seem to be regularly doing airport runs for their adult children, often in the early hours.

I'm not saying I wouldn't do it, if I was asked, or it was necessary, but it's occurred to me mine have never asked.

Hopefully that's because they prefer to be independent, rather than they don't feel they could...?

OP posts:
Goldbar · 14/10/2025 11:47

We live in an area with excellent public transport. It has never occurred to me to ask someone for a lift (or offer a lift) when it would mean that a journey that would take me 1.5 hours would then mean a 3-hour return trip for them. Very inefficient.

My parents live in an area with poor public transport. A location 15 minutes' drive away might mean a 2 hour wait for the bus and then a 35 minute bus trip. You might have to change train lines which means an extra hour on the train. Or it might just be completely inaccessible by public transport/walking. And taxis need to be pre-booked and aren't plentiful (no Uber). So when we're staying with them, it's much more common for lifts to be offered to each other.

FuzzyWolf · 14/10/2025 11:50

youalright · 14/10/2025 11:02

Where on earth do you live that you can't book a taxi ahead of time to go to an airport. Taxi go everywhere.

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No, taxis really don’t go everywhere.

DingDongJingle · 14/10/2025 11:53

I think people who don’t come from families where people regularly offer to do things for each other will find this far more bizarre than those of us who come from families where it’s perfectly normal to say ‘what time is your flight? I’ll give you a life if you like’.

thisishowloween · 14/10/2025 12:00

DingDongJingle · 14/10/2025 11:53

I think people who don’t come from families where people regularly offer to do things for each other will find this far more bizarre than those of us who come from families where it’s perfectly normal to say ‘what time is your flight? I’ll give you a life if you like’.

I think you’re probably right.

It’s totally normal among my family and friends to offer lifts and people would be borderline offended if you took a taxi instead of asking them!

TempestToo · 14/10/2025 12:02

I take my adult kids, family and friends to the airport and pick them up. We now get free parking so we drive ourselves as it’s easier but I know if I asked someone they would take us and pick us up. It’s just one of those reciprocal things. Why won’t you over next time OP? Then you’ll know if they don’t want to put you out or just don’t think about it.

DingDongJingle · 14/10/2025 12:07

thisishowloween · 14/10/2025 12:00

I think you’re probably right.

It’s totally normal among my family and friends to offer lifts and people would be borderline offended if you took a taxi instead of asking them!

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If I booked a taxi my dad would say ‘why have you done that, I could have taken you!’

thisishowloween · 14/10/2025 12:09

DingDongJingle · 14/10/2025 12:07

If I booked a taxi my dad would say ‘why have you done that, I could have taken you!’

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Same! I’d be told off for wasting money and told to cancel it 😂

Cherrytree86 · 14/10/2025 12:16

youalright · 14/10/2025 11:14

All jobs should take priority

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I know right. E.g I really wouldn’t be impressed if my hairdresser didn’t do a good job on my hair because she had been up half the night before picking her thirty year old son up from the airport.

Mikart · 14/10/2025 12:17

Ive never dropped or taken mine to airport...they got an Uber

SoReadyFor · 14/10/2025 12:17

I always use public transportation and would never rely on lifts.

thisishowloween · 14/10/2025 12:18

You can tell some posters don’t understand the realities of rural living with all this talk of taxis, Ubers and public transport 🫣

DingDongJingle · 14/10/2025 12:19

Cherrytree86 · 14/10/2025 12:16

I know right. E.g I really wouldn’t be impressed if my hairdresser didn’t do a good job on my hair because she had been up half the night before picking her thirty year old son up from the airport.

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I’m assuming that hairdresser wouldn’t offer a lift if she thought it was going to affect her work performance the next day. Why are you assuming that these people don’t have the ability to say no if it doesn’t suit them?

tinydynamine · 14/10/2025 12:21

I'm 56, my mum's 84. I can't drive. She picks me up from and takes me back to the airport when I visit, unless it's a really early departure or a late arrival. It's a 20-minute drive. Long may it continue!

Buxusmortus · 14/10/2025 12:26

Cherrytree86 · 14/10/2025 12:16

I know right. E.g I really wouldn’t be impressed if my hairdresser didn’t do a good job on my hair because she had been up half the night before picking her thirty year old son up from the airport.

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You wouldn't have a clue why your hairdresser might be tired. She might have done an airport trip, or she might have had to go and see an ill parent or had an ill partner or be an insomniac or any number of other reasons, all of which you'd never know because it's none of your business!

Out of all those things it's least likely she'd have gone to the airport because she would have known it was a late flight and she had work the next day, so she would likely not have offered or would have said no if asked.

ShenandoahRiver · 14/10/2025 12:27

I'm going to the airport on Sunday morning. DD is dropping me.

Figcherry · 14/10/2025 12:30

My cousin worked as an au pair in france, when she returned home my uncle made it clear he would not be fetching her from the airport although he hadn’t seen her for 2 years, she was his only dc too. My aunt couldn’t drive and was dreadfully upset.
That was in the 1970’s when it was easy to park at an airport. Strange man he was.

spoonbillstretford · 14/10/2025 12:32

I don't ask people for a fuck o'clock flight but ether's nothing wrong with having a lift. We reciprocate, the PIL are always on holiday! It's lovely to be met when you come back I think.

And we had an awkward flight the other day as there were engineering works on the trains. DD1 gave us a lift!

staringatthesun · 14/10/2025 12:32

We are often dropping our older children to the airport, I am happy to do it, to save extortionate parking fees. They do the same for us.

TorroFerney · 14/10/2025 12:35

I wouldn’t have but I’m quite hyper independent. I did however have to (well was expected to) take my mum and dad when id just passed my test, really early flight before work and I got terribly lost.

it’s a real imposition I think to ask.

TheNinkyNonkyIsATardis · 14/10/2025 12:38

ILs do this for BIL and SIL, but I would find their faffing around arrangements at the arse end of the night when we're in a rush too maddening.

MIL wanted to drive me to the hospital when I went into labour - she lives an hour away and we're a 10m drive from the hospital. She kept offering to drop around to visit near the birth, and ordered things to her house to "just drop by" instead of ordering to us.

Basically, she's a nice woman, but give her an inch and she takes a mile. So we try not to give her an inch, when all things being equal, we'd happily give her a foot.

(If I'm not stretching the metaphor too far...)

Flakey99 · 14/10/2025 12:40

We always collect our adult DS’s and their families from the airport when they come to visit us. It’s the start of their holiday and something I really enjoy doing.

Bumply · 14/10/2025 12:40

The world seems to be split into those who never think to ask to be picked up/dropped off at an airport (or provide service for friends/relatives) and those who think it rude not to provide/be provided with that service as a courtesy.

I’m in the former group, and only time I’ve been picked up was visiting people I’d not seen for years where we wanted to be together every minute possible.

braceforcorrection · 14/10/2025 12:43

TheNinkyNonkyIsATardis · 14/10/2025 12:38

ILs do this for BIL and SIL, but I would find their faffing around arrangements at the arse end of the night when we're in a rush too maddening.

MIL wanted to drive me to the hospital when I went into labour - she lives an hour away and we're a 10m drive from the hospital. She kept offering to drop around to visit near the birth, and ordered things to her house to "just drop by" instead of ordering to us.

Basically, she's a nice woman, but give her an inch and she takes a mile. So we try not to give her an inch, when all things being equal, we'd happily give her a foot.

(If I'm not stretching the metaphor too far...)

Oh come on. No one needs to be driven to the hospital by a relative unless they requested or didn't have transport etc. that sounds so bizarre.

notacooldad · 14/10/2025 12:45

That's great news that they are perfectly capable of looking after themselves! Who wants mollycoddled kids who expect mummy and daddy to run round after them?

Why is it mollycoddling if you help family members out?

The way it works in our house is we all help each other out without expectation.

The boys will come over and help with the logging or other jobs, dh will help them with vehicles and other maintence stuff,

The boys will help me when needed ( eg after my train from airport was cancelled from a certain point and I was stuck in the middle of nowhere and the first taxi that could come was two hours
hour way.( thus is on a rainy night, pitch black, alone on a platform, in a place I'd never heard off.) One of them jumped in a car picked up with question. Thats is raising them right.
If we can help we will, if they can help, they do, but obviously there's times when its not convenient.

How about people being a bit less judgey as they don't know the dynamics of other people's family life and stop making stupid scenarios up such as not being impressed by an imaginary hairdresser giving lifts
Bonkers!

DingDongJingle · 14/10/2025 12:51

Bumply · 14/10/2025 12:40

The world seems to be split into those who never think to ask to be picked up/dropped off at an airport (or provide service for friends/relatives) and those who think it rude not to provide/be provided with that service as a courtesy.

I’m in the former group, and only time I’ve been picked up was visiting people I’d not seen for years where we wanted to be together every minute possible.

Well no… I’m a third category. Ive never asked to be picked up/dropped off, but my dad always offers. I also always offer to take him and his wife if I’m able to. I think it’s divided into ‘families where it’s normal to offer to do each other favours’ and ‘families where it’s not’.