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

[Pebblepoppy]

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...?

I've taken my DDs to and from the airport on occasion. Sometimes because the flight was early in the morning and there is no public transport at that time. Sometimes just because I was looking forward to seeing them and wanted to do it. Other times I have taken them to the station or the park and ride so they can get to the airport. We live semi rurally with poor public transport so before they could drive themselves places they needed to be taken and picked up. It was just logistics really.

At 84? And because you can’t drive. Wow I’d feel so bad..

I wouldn’t dream of asking elderly parents to drive me to the airport for one of my many holidays. I pay for a taxi. For those that live in areas that don’t have taxis - you have to factor that in. You go the day before and stay in a hotel by the airport for example. You don’t expect elderly parents to be running around after you, facilitating your holidays…

DH and I have never asked for a lift to the airport, but my in laws always offer, even all the way from Devon to London. Likewise, they’d never ask us either… but we offer, and the offers both ways are nearly always accepted.

At 84? And because you can’t drive. Wow I’d feel so bad..
I wouldn’t dream of asking elderly parents to drive me to the airport for one of my many holidays. I pay for a taxi. For those that live in areas that don’t have taxis - you have to factor that in. You go the day before and stay in a hotel by the airport for example. You don’t expect elderly parents to be running around

As I said in my last post, you dont know a thing about the family dynamics. Stop bei judgey
Both my parents are 84 and 83 and have no medical conditions and have regular health checks. They drive a lot more miles than me annually as they like visiting places in the UK and im still working!
Seeing that my dad is up at 4 am every morning he wouldn't have a problem doing an airport drop off!

I'm the opposite!
I've regularly asked my teen/young adult to drive me to the airport/pick me up.
In fairness, I did pay for all the driving lessons, insurance and bought them a car, it's the least they can do.

That’s fine but it works both ways. No judgement for those that would hate to put parents out by asking. Doesn’t mean their families ‘don’t help each other out’ .

I wouldn’t ask anybody to drive me to the airport in the middle of the night. I’d hate to put someone out like that when it’s easy to get a taxi.

My son gives me a lift to the airrport and collects me. When he visits me, I collect him and take him to the airport. Why wouldn't you?

Surely it depends on family dynamics- my parents often did airport runs for me and my siblings when we lived at home if it was convenient, and especially if the alternative was travelling alone in the middle of the night - but crucially we never expected them to and we also all did the same for them and each other.

Mind you, my MIL was amazed earlier this year when DH turned down at lift to the airport - they live an hour away and offered to come pick him up and take him to the airport.... he had to be there by 6am, so they'd have had to have been up by 3. He (obviously) said no as he booked a taxi (and I was around as back up).... but they're so used to running around after spoilt SIL who would have not only accepted but asked them to do it that they couldn't comprehend that it was an unreasonable thing to expect them to do!

You talk about no judgement but then go on to assume that people are putting their parents out by asking.

My parents would be borderline offended if I booked a taxi instead of asking them for a lift.

It’s so strange that some people clearly can’t see that people can be independent but also have supportive and helpful relationships with family and friends where you do things for one another just because you can.

Given the number of threads on this site about people without friends or in family dynamics where they don’t get on, I wonder if that’s what makes the difference.

That’s exactly what I thought - the OP is the only person likely to know the answer!

I agree @Lifestooshort71.

I’m quite happy to give lifts if asked and will accept them myself if offered- but we also have a cheap public transport option that deposits you right at a terminal so I usually take that. 🤷 DD (20) flies every few months and I often pick her up, but she wouldn’t fuss if I didn’t, she’d get home independently.

MN can be very prone to weird extremes IMO - either you’re a dependent freeloader who can’t do anything for yourself or you’re so independent that you couldn’t possibly imagine asking anyone to help you with anything ever.

Whereas most of us are probably somewhere in between.

I might have asked my Mum when I was living at hers (e.g. uni holidays) because there wasn’t really a straightforward way to any of the airports on public transport. And we have had lifts from my in laws when we were travelling to Heathrow before the Lizzy line existed but tbh it was then a pain for other reasons so think we just find it easier to make our own way.

I wouldn’t ask for or offer my husband a lift to the airport either tbh - we just use public transport which have lots of options. Maybe I’d given him a lift to a train station/coach stop if it was going to save him a lot of time.

My mum asked me recently if my husband would pick me up from the tube station when I was travelling back from visiting her and honestly it just baffled me because I would never think to ask as it seems unnecessary. But we tend to only use the car when there’s no other option, rather than the car being the default.

Hmm, I take and pick up my parents, friends, DC, and they do the same for me (well not, my parents - we live 20 mins from an airport, they don't).40 mins round trip is no skin off my nose (vs a ridiculously over-priced taxi and criminally priced airport parking).

Exactly. I consider myself to be fairly independent… moved abroad after uni on my own and came back 6 years later! I still say yes when my dad offers me a lift to the airport (and vice versa) 🤷🏻‍♀️

I’d never turn down the offer of a lift either @DingDongJingle! I wouldn’t expect it or ask for one in the early hours… but if someone offered, I’d say yes immediately!

Of course they will come however far you need them to. You just pay for it. our nearest airport is over 2 hours away and we always do taxis as I would never expect someone using 5 hours of there day to drive me about and yes of course its part of the holiday expenditure just like paying for the transfer the other end and the million other extras you pay when you travel.

They do

You know how they operate in every single town and village up and down the UK do you?

Good for you. You’re clearly far more superior and know more about where I live than I do 👍

If you live somewhere so remote that there are zero taxis ever. Then you must be hours away from an airport also. So you’re expecting a family member to drive hours in both directions. Maybe in the middle of the night? Even when elderly. I just wouldn’t ask or expect this.

What's your postcode? I bet I can get a taxi to go to your house.

A quick Google found a couple of taxi companies doing nationwide pick-ups.

We ðo airport lifts. Otherwise it's going into London for a connection. Op can you tell my adult son to get a train home from Uni in the holidays? 😂