to expect spanish air traffic controllers to not ruin my one and only weeks holiday in yorkshire?

[EccentricaGallumbits]

fuckers.

Dd1 will be away with her friends family. If the fuckers strike on the 18th she won't be back for when we are supposed to be going away on the 21st. thus ruining the one week away i will have had in the last 3 years.

bastardbastardbastards

YANBU! I'd be fuming if my child ended up stuck in another country. Can you organise any other form of travel for her return, if they strike?

it's not the getting stuck there that matters so much.

the problem is getting back and either we'll be away (worrying about her) or I'll have to stay home (runing my holiday) or she gets put on a train this end, has to change trains and cross london alone and we'd meet her in york.

humph.

That is really aggravating. Nice friends, though. What will the family do if their return is delayed? If she's old enough to go away without you, is she equally capable of getting from the return airport to Yorkshire? Could you give the family some money in case she needs to buy a train ticket?

OK, look up the journey on transport for London's journey planner, so she knows exactly where to go and roughly how long it will take. I'm sure she'll be tired but crossing London isn't that scary or hard. How old is dd?

is there more news on this? the latest I can find is 6th Aug.
Meant to be flying to Spain on 23rd....

she's 14 and quite keen on getting the train.

I'm not so sure though.

She could probably find her way from Paddinton to Kings Cross but whether she'd be able to find the right train and right platform at Kings Cross I don't know.

I will phone friend's mum and see if they could sort out the ticket and put her on this end.

Kings Cross really not too big station and the train going to York would be from the main concourse (ie platforms 1 to 8). Quite a few trains are non stop to York as well.

Paddington to Kings Cross is on the same line (circle or hammersmith and city) so not too bad.

I would be feeling v cross with Spanish air traffic controllers though.

so it's not too unreasonable to get DD to get on a train then? I'd do her some journey printouts and she'd have her phone.

Just explain to her how train stations work. It's not that complicated. Tell her to look at the departures board and see which platform the train leaves from. She can always ask a member of staff.

The complicated bit is the fare. Check national rail enquiries or East Coast trains (or whatever the service to York is called now) before you all set off so she knows what ticket to buy. Would be horrible if she had the wrong sort and got told off. Might also be cheaper to buy a return rather than a single, even if she doesn't need to use the return portion.

Btw, IIRC the Hammersmith and City line leaves from a different platform to the other tube lines at Paddington. It's at the far end of the platform at one side of the station, and over a bridge. Check the Transport for London journey planner.

(And the H&C platform is above ground on the same level as the main line platforms.)

She should be fine at Kings' Cross - there is usually a guard on the gate that goes through into each platform, so if she's at all unsure that she's getting on the right train, she can ask that guard. That's what they're there for. The people on the information desk and in the travel centre are also very helpful - I had a really complicated journey to do a few weeks ago and there'd been a mess-up with the tickets, and they got me all sorted again.

so se'll be ok then? i'm all of a wibble at the thought.

i was wibbling anyway at the thought of her flying off to forin parts without me but now this.

will get a granny to do tickets and maybe put her on this end, rather than adding a bu journey into the mix.

YANBU but dont worry yet, have read that 50% of flights should be operating as normal.

We are due to fly to menorca on the 25th. What happens if you are delayed for a few days? Will insurance pay for the lost holiday?