Penny pinching at Heathrow

[SLeanne]

We are due to go away soon from Heathrow T4. OH and I like a couple of drinks before the flight (at 9pm). However, I was shocked last time that a glass of wine is over £10 a glass. If we are discreet, could we get away with buying a bottle in Duty Free and drinking it before the flight (and disposing of the empty bottle before boarding). I know it's not allowed but has anyone done it before and got away with it? Quite frankly I'm getting sick of having to spend C 100 quid for something to eat and a couple of drinks each (family of 4) and am looking at ways of cheating the system 🤔

If you weren't fussed about drinking it out of proper glasses you could decant it into reusable water bottles.

Really it is appalling that I asked a question to save a few quid and have been subject to all kinds of abuse. I am apparently 'a skank', and other horrible things. Take a look at what happens with shoplifting throughout the UK in broad daylight. Really? In the grand scale of things?

I’d rather not have a drink than be miserable about spending money on holiday! Holidays are for treating yourself, spending our hard earned cash and having fun.

Why such a huge edit on your last post?? You took the entire post away

i like a wine before a flight (depending on the time of day). And usually will suck up the cost and go to the bar.

however. Don’t M&S sell wine in a plastic cup? Or in a can? Not as nice as in a proper glass but better than smuggling it in a water bottle.

In Canadian airports any alcohol you buy in the duty free is kept and delivered to you at the door of the plane. It must be to stop this kind of thing and try to prevent people boarding the plane totally hammered. Just buy a drink at the airport bar.

Airport prices are a complete rip off. They have a captive audience and they know it. On a recent journey I paid €4.20 for a bottle of water and €5.20 for a packet of crisps. I noticed that an ordinary packet of oreo's was €5.10. Lots of people had brought their own sandwiches and snacks to eat in the departure lounge. I don't think that what the OP is asking is much different to people bringing their own snacks and can totally understand her thinking.

SKANK ALERT! I will often buy a bottle of wine (red, about 10-15£ in duty free so just a little more than one large glass will cost in the bar) and pour it in to our thermos cups to take on the plane. And I take my own pringles in my hand luggage. And I couldn't give a flying fart 😎

Good for you. Why feel the need to comment on our asd / adhd family situation? Our son is diagnosed with both and prescribed adhd medication.

If you are desperate for a drink, bring some mini toiletries bottles from boots and fill with gin from home. You can take them through security and it will be much cheaper than duty free. The wine is duty free isn’t cheap.

This is spoken like…ahem…the recovering alcoholic that I am. As long as you aren’t pounding a bottle of vodka and tripping over yourself before you get on the flight, it’s fine. No different then me bringing my flask of coffee from home and a supermarket pain au chocolat in my purse to avoid £9 on coffee and a pastry. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Why don't u take your own plane. You just want to use the runway to take off and land. Why pay for the extortionate ticket.

Sorry it is skank to be this cheap for a drink.

I'll bet there's nothing more relaxing than a sipping a nice paper cup of warm wine while someone pushes out a big noisy shit in the next cubicle along. I applaud OP for going to such lengths to save a few quid just before going on holiday.

This is the real reason people are struggling these days. It's not house prices and avocado toast at all, we've just normalised paying for alcohol! Vive la resistance!

Seriously, you would report it?

OP, do what you need to do. People are so judgmental.

*Holidays are for lining the pockets of the airport bars because it's 'skanky' to buy and drink the exact same drink from a different place in the same building for a cheaper price. The corporations have you all right where they want you.

You can fit a whole bottle of wine into a Stanley cup and no one can see what you are drinking.....just saying.....

Fuck it I’m with you OP, just be a cheeky bastard about it. Buy the wine in the shop, get some water from bar and bobs your dog!

mumsmet is not the place to ask a question like this but I haven’t thought about doing this before and quite frankly think it’s genius!

Tbf it is a bit skanky to pour it into an empty water bottle in the loos! Context when drinking is quite important - like drinking white wine out of a mug just tastes vile, no matter how nice a wine it is. This is the same thing! Surely most of the enjoyment of a glass of wine will be spoilt by all the… toilet vibes and the plastic water bottles?

Ha! I didn’t actually mean whilst queuing for security. Surely you’d drop your wine whilst trying to balance a laptop on your head and take your shoes off. I meant find somewhere to sit and chat/drink prior to going through security, rather than on the other side.

Personally I think it's rather fun to give the middle finger to inflated prices for a trapped audience. I approve.

Some of these replies are insane.

I can happily go 6 months without a drink, but there's not a chance in hell you'd get me on a plane without 2 doubles first.

Do what you want OP, you're not actually harming anyone. But I'd echo other posters that it would be easier to just take alcohol from home in less than 100ml bottles.

There’s a Wetherspoons airside in T4. It’s not that much more than a regular spoons. Main problem will be getting a seat.

The wine selection in most U.K. duty free is complete rubbish. They’re really focussed on spirits/liqueurs and even then duty free are seldom much cheaper than the supermarket.

It isn’t illegal to open the sealed bags and crack into it while you’re in departures. However be aware, particularly if you’re flying transatlantic/with a US carrier, that if you’re caught with open duty free (especially spirits) you may be refused boarding.

It’s crap that airports are so expensive generally - I personally am looking forward to the liquids rule going away.

Yeah I just don't see it as an issue. Wine sipped from a travel mug tastes all the better knowing you stuck two fingers up to the greedy bars who want you to feel like buying from them is the only option. It may be that you only like wine from a wine glass but it doesn't make someone skanky if they don't care either way. Just all feels a bit snobby to me.

I don't thinks it's going to be the same experience having a couple of drinks at a bar and sitting in a corner secretly swigging out of a bottle/plastic cup. Just wait till you get on holiday and drink there instead.

Why are you so desperate to drink at the airport? Just get a bottle of water. Tons of wine before the flight is unhealthy and frankly rather tacky.
do you always prioritise drinking over other things? It’s seems deeply odd and quite unhealthy. maybe consider an alcholhol suppport programme?

Wine tastes better when it's chilled. I would just pay it rather than have it luke warm off the shelf. If you don't finish the whole bottle it will be wasted anyway. If you do you risk getting drunk and being refused boarding.