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 🤔

Coming Not sure I agree as factoring in such a relatively small amount over the course of the year is very easy to do if having that drink at the the airport is important to you?** £40/52 =£0.77 a week and that potentially allows a couple of rounds too

But to instead consider buying a bottle of duty free wine (so already massively overpriced anyway and you need to neck it before take off) and then decanting it while in a public toilet is quite grim. It has a small air of desperation about it - I think I'd rather wait till I'd arrived.

The actual cost saving is really so small it's not worth a) the possible humiliation is caught, and b) having to drink more before a flight

And it's terminal 4, Heathrow, so scheduled long haul flight to somewhere like Dubai. Not a charter flight from Gatwick.

This thread is hilarious.

OP, I’d be all for it if you were on a girls trip or something but a holiday with your kids - if you were caught they’d probably be mortified, so I’d suck up paying what you think is over the odds for their sake.

side note - £10 for a wine in Heathrow? Bloody hell, don’t think I’ve seen a glass under £14 where I live.

TBF It’s a bit of a mix, there is some short and mid haul done out of T4 but as you say it’s mainly legacy/traditional carriers and a lot of Long Haul.

www.heathrowshuttle.com/pages/heathrow-airport-terminal-4

Tbf I love an airport wine as much as you OP, but I imagine that the price is hiked right up not just to make shed loads of profit but to also discourage people from drinking too much and being pissed on the flight which kind of makes sense.
Wetherspoons at Heathrow is much more expensive than a normal high street Wetherspoons.
Personally I'd either just resign myself to paying through the nose for a glass of wine or going without- I wouldn't be sneaking in a bottle if wine but each to their own I guess!

@SLeanne

Why dont you just start a crowd fund me?
I will donate as I hate seeing this level of desperation when I'm about to depart on holiday.

The relatively high price of drinks/tee shirts/ hats in airside shops is pretty much all down to the need for the retailer to pay the (astronomical) rent that the airport operator charges…

Whilst the airport operators may indulge in what I believe is commonly called gouging it’s maybe worth being aware that extra dosh that the drinkers and tee shirt buyers etc hand over helps in part keep the lights on and all the other stuff running in the terminal - I’m sure you’ve all wondered who pays for that..🤔

So without the drinkers and other spenders in the shops the airport operator would put passenger handling charges up, which at LHR is around £20 per short haul passenger and about £50 per long haul passenger ATM…and as a result everybody’s ticket price would go up.

Okay 👍

It can cost £10 for a glass of wine in a non description pub in London. Don't ever go to Santorini, you'll need chest presses.

Tbf to OP my sister and BIL take home more than most in a year as they’re both high earners and they will pinch pennies as much as they can yet wouldn’t think nothing of dropping a few grand on a week away.

That's my thinking. It's a bit sad really, why do people need a couple of drinks to enjoy themselves? Alcohol and flying isn't a good combination, you get more dehydrated, and feel crappy after a few hours.

😂😂😂😂😂😂

😂😂😂 I will start - 5p donation
now if everyone who has posted donates the same amount we can get to 10 pounds for her glass of wine 😂👌

@MarvellousMonsters Because some people drink at any hour to “celebrate” every little thing. There’s no real enjoyment of quality wine, it’s just about thinking you aren’t happy if you don’t drink. We are told how much is a sensible amount but I bet anyone who wants a flask of wine in an airport is drinking an unhealthy amount. It’s a Brit thing.

This is a joke right?!?!? How very lower working class of you…..🤣

I don’t agree with the OP but you are as classless as she is with this comment.

I feel embarrassed for you OP

@BeMintBee totally agree but felt bitchy this morning so thought I would go for it

Master of Wine? Is that gained through drinking a lot of it? Half the nation would qualify!

They really are not looking out for this. It wouldn’t interest them in the slightest.

Just googled this :-

How hard is it to get a Master of Wine?

It's just a qualification you get by passing a series of exams. Admittedly, they are pretty difficult ones – including working against the clock to identify a series of anonymous wines. The pass rate is notoriously low and there are still only about 380-odd Masters of Wine in the world.

So either the OP is telling porkies or she is one of a select few in the whole world (and would likely be struck off if the powers that be saw this thread 😀)

oh my toes are curling for the OP

enjoy that drink Op!

@Pickandmixmood Exactly. Total rubbish. She means she drinks a lot of wine. If you just want to knock back airport bar wine I rather suspect the OP doesn’t care what grape, vintage or wine estate.

your goods will be confiscated, which defeats the purpose.

All the more reason to drink the bottle once you've opened it