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Holidays

Use our Travel forum for recommendations on everything from day trips to the best family-friendly holiday destinations.

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Original poster

early flight 05.50 or pay extra £200 for 1250 flight?

27 replies

Queenie72 · 09/06/2013 19:54

we have a 3 and 15 month old, are planning a hol in Oct.
Would you bite the bullet and go for early flight (would mean getting us all up at 3ish) or pay the extra and fly out at 1250?

OP posts:

hermioneweasley · 09/06/2013 19:55

Pay the extra!

MelanieCheeks · 09/06/2013 19:57

Oh pay the extra!

Tortington · 09/06/2013 19:57

im a tight arse -i'd go early - save money - GET there early and have more holiday

QOD · 09/06/2013 19:58

Get there early and have that day as holiday!

WowOoo · 09/06/2013 19:59

I'd leave early too. Save £200 for spending.

Plenty of time to relax at destination later!

BackforGood · 09/06/2013 20:02

and don't forget, they can change the time of your flight (it's in the small print) so you'd be gutted if you'd chosen one for tht reason, then they changed it!

WitchOfEndor · 09/06/2013 20:02

We just had a 7:15 flight and we would really never do it again. It's just not worth dragging DS out of bed at insane o'clock to get there on time.

Theonlyoneiknow · 09/06/2013 20:04

Pay the extra! I am driving to another airport 150 miles away to avoid a red eye flight with a one year old and three year old !

Fluffy1234 · 10/06/2013 16:51

I used to do the early flights when dc were that age and didn't find them to bad. I used to take them to airport in pj's and they usually either slept on the plane or on the coach the other end. One thing to consider is what time you can check into your accommodation as you may end up with a gap which is not good.

AttilaTheMeerkat · 10/06/2013 18:25

Pay the extra. Many hotels do not let travellers check in until 12.00 or even later in some places.

Trills · 10/06/2013 18:29

How long is the flight?

That will affect whether QOD's "have that day as a holiday" and Attila's "can't check in til 12" apply to you or not.

Kbear · 10/06/2013 18:31

less traffic on way to airport at silly o'clock - I'd go then

iwantavuvezela · 10/06/2013 18:35

Could you not book into one of those cheap hotels next to the airport the day before. Then you at least just need to get to airport in morning? I have friends who have donecthiscwith very early flights. I wouldcsavecthe money, although hate morning flights, as I would see it as extra spending money!

Trills · 10/06/2013 18:45

The cheap hotels near the airport (with free shuttle bus) are often not much more expensive than parking would be.

hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman · 10/06/2013 18:47

Stay at a hotel on site, cheaper parking and a free shuttle bus=less than the extra £200.

noramum · 10/06/2013 20:23

Either the airport hotel or bite the bullet. We took several early flights and I prefer it to arriving late and missing a day holiday.

Original poster

Queenie72 · 10/06/2013 21:16

Flight is 4 hours so we would have a few hours before we could book into accommodation , so we would be missing an afternoon if we got later flight .

OP posts:

Branleuse · 10/06/2013 21:22

id pay extra to go later, or id even go so far as to choose an entirely different destination if i couldnt get a decent flight time with such young kids.

That sort of thing would have messed my kids routine up for ages though plus starting the holiday shattered is never nice

mikkii · 10/06/2013 21:27

I'd always go for the early flight, but I'm not tied to hotel check in times.

I have taken DCs to the airport in pjs, panning to change hem there, but they decided to stay in pjs. Made some of the other passengers smile.

Having said that our routine is relaxed to say the least.

AttilaTheMeerkat · 11/06/2013 07:02

I'd still pay the extra. I cannot see any real advantage to arriving there early; you won't be able to have the room either because it will not be ready.

You'll perhaps be missing an afternoon anyway because you'll all feel exhausted from the very early start.

SpottyTeacakes · 11/06/2013 07:06

I love getting up stupidly early for a holiday. We did it with almost 2yo dd last year and she was really excited in the car as she knew something was going on. We checked our bags in the day before so we could go straight through security and get some breakfast.

Can you try and get an earlier check in at the hotel? Might be cheaper than the later flight.

TheDoctrineOfAllan · 11/06/2013 07:12

Pay the extra. £50 per person.

chicaguapa · 11/06/2013 07:14

After years of compromising on flight times and airlines to save money, we now pay extra for decent times etc and it makes such a difference to the journey and the start of the holiday.

We recently flew from Heathrow terminal 5 with BA, while at the same time my mum flew with easyJet and battled with the crowds at Gatwick. We were texting each other and while she'd had enough and wanted to go home, we were having lunch in Wagamama. We'd paid more for the flights but in our opinion it was worth it.

The journey is as important as the destination and in your situation, I'd go for the later flight. It also takes a couple of days for everyone to recover from a very early start, so it's better to arrive refreshed to begin with.

ProbablyJustGas · 11/06/2013 08:58

We tried to do a noontime flight with DSD (who was 6) and my niece (who was 10) last year, and were bumped onto the 6 am anyway. We survived, but our journey involved a 10-hour layover in CDG and hours of trying to entertain a couple of bored, overtired and hyperactive kids. None of the adults spoke any French confidently, and we were too exhausted to try having an adventure in Paris and then try getting back to the airport in time for our next flight.

This year, DH and I have paid a bit extra to fly out at 2 pm. Considering DH and I go bonkers the night before we fly anywhere and always stay up way too late packing last-minute things, I think having the later flight will be worth the expense.

It will not be a nice vacation if you have to handle two kids kicking off in a child-unfriendly (the plane, the airport) area, especially if you can't check in early once you arrive. I think paying the extra will be the better option.

HenriettaPye · 11/06/2013 09:01

I would get the early one- kids will be tired from getting up early so will hopefully sleep through the flight!

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