Not wanting inbound flights so late at night

[Kitchensinktoday]

We've just booked a trip to Gran Canaria, and it was really tricky to find inbound flights at reasonable times. We usually travel with either TUI or Jet2, and apart from one or two Manchester/Birmingham options (we've opted for Manchester) all other flights got back into the UK after midnight. I really didn't want to get back so late, and I can't imagine anyone with children would be keen on it either.

I remember struggling to get civilised flight times back from Cyprus a few years ago, and recently had the same issues with Greece. TUI usually offer a late check out option (at a cost ....... ) but it makes your journey home a really long day.

Spain and the Balearics still seem ok, so maybe it’s medium-haul issue?

Oh no how annoying! I really hope that doesn't happen to us!

The last flights of the day are often delayed. It’s cumulative - slight delays throughout the day build up.

I guess don’t go to Gran Canaria if flight times are horrible. There’s other options.

We went to Gran Canaria with Tui in December and had good flight times, I want to say 10am outbound and 4pm inbound. Stanstead.

I never book with Jet2, their flight times are crap and there is no option to alter them, at least with Tui you can pay more and get an early flight, I like to arrive in the afternoon in the sunshine and get settled and out to the pub

You can do exactly the same with Jet2, they almost always have a flight before about 10 am.

Believe me to many destinations in Greece (from Manchester at least) they don’t

I am one of those people who bases my holiday choices around when the decent flights are

but op if you are booking for 2026 bear in line there is a significant risk of flight times changing

Manchester to Cyprus are shit flight times for Jet 2

I am one of those people who bases my holiday choices around when the decent flights are

I thought it was just me, until I started this thread!

I think I mentioned I finally found decent Manchester/Gran Canaria flights with TUI (outbound: 1535hrs/2005hrs, inbound: 1245hrs/1700hrs) but having looked at Easyjet and BA they also offered decent times, so thank you to those who made the suggestions.

I hadn't realised that BA did ATOL protected package deals, even if they're mostly from Gatwick, and Easyjet don't always have the best reputation - has anyone been on a package with them, and can they be recommended?

I often just book a hotel on arrival if late flights. I have just done this as we would land 8pm from long haul flight, and it’s a 4hr+ drive home from Main airport. So we should be at hotel with luggage by 9pm, can sleep, breakfast and then collect Car and drive home at a decent time the next day

It’s cheaper to book hotel often at airport than change flight times. Although for long haul we had 9am or 3am option, so it the good flight leaving, but arrives 8pm local. Leaving at 3am is worse

Maybe at the doctors this is the case but not really with flights anymore. They are very efficient. A quick glance at flights over the past week from Gran Canaria to Manchester shows the vast majority landed ahead of schedule with no delays

I was put off from going to Greece due to the weirdly timed flights. Back to the south of France it is!

We did a package with easyjet to Spain. Absolutely fine and I found by booking a package luggage and transfers were included in the price. Would do it again but not this year. We are off to Gibraltar with BA.

What TizerorFizz says definitely still happens but it can very much depend on routes, number of turnarounds in the day and how tight they are scheduled and even time of year. Certainly an aircraft doing maybe four medium haul sectors a day is going to be less exposed to reactionary delays than one doing maybe eight sectors.

For anyone thinking of examining this further it’s worth being aware that one or two popular aviation tracking sites out there incorrectly conflate arrival times with landing times (and FWIW departure with takeoff-off), I think Flightaware and the airport/airline’s own sites tend to be more accurate, certainly on the day.

It is easy to misread on FR I agree but they definitely state the scheduled arrival time and then show the status correctly as to the time the aircraft landed. They use the correct terminology too. FWIW they tend to disembark almost immediately these days so the arrival and landing times aren’t so far apart. Airport dependant of course.

I always fly Easy jet and tbh they are fine. Plus now I use assisted die to ankle injury and again they are helpful

I think different people prefer different things!

My kids are sleepers. I prefer to have a long last day by the pool (no need to late checkout; store the cases with the hotel and keep hand luggage and swimmers with you), enjoy the day and then head to the airport for dinner and late flight. Kids sleep on flight, wake to walk through terminal/to car, sleep I. The car and then sleep if we’re home in time for more sleeping!

Take it easy the next day - adults take it in turns for a nap, kids watch movies/play indoors. Big dinner and an early night on first day back and all sorted and back to normal.

I hate the thought of a short last day.

I got stuck on the A3 in the snow at 3am after coming back on a late flight from Sharm. Had landed from 25 degrees in summer clothes. I always book flights with sensible times now, although Wizz foiled my plans a few months ago with a 7 hour delay from Istanbul. They did have to pay us £350 compensation though, so I'm not too traumatised.

This week is still winter schedule.
Planes aren’t out 24/7 yet.
everything in and out of Manchester in high summer is delayed

That’s not the case with many destinations including Gran Canaria. EasyJet, Jet2, Ryanair all operate the same schedule MAN-LPA this month as they do in August.

Generally the aircraft will do 4 flights between the UK and Canaries each day. There isn’t much of a cumulative delay effect as the day goes on anymore whether that be in winter or summer. The worst thing in winter is the weather!

End of the day some routes do better than others.

lots of info in the précis at following link, (it’s slightly dated but gives an overview and some of the problems airlines face over the years), the attached full report even has month by month analysis and indicators as to how much things have really improved (or not) up to 22/23:

https://www.eurocontrol.int/publication/all-causes-delays-air-transport-europe-annual-2023

I did Manchester to Tenerife very reasonable flight times. Early on the way out then back about 11 with time for a breakfast then off to airport. That was easyjet or ryanair last year.

A word of caution about EasyJet. We booked a package last year for this February and chose flights that suited us. Our flight times were later changed, not by that much but late enough that we couldn’t get the train home.
We are due to go to Budapest in April and they have done it again. It’s wiped out our last day as we now have to leave early morning. We have also had to book an airport hotel for the way out as it’s too early for public transport and I don’t want to get up at silly o’clock to get a taxi.
I don’t plan on using them again unless I have no choice.

I do the same

730am flight out. Land noon
12.30om flight home - land 5pm