• Just seen on an old mate’s Instagram story that he’s stuck in Gran Canaria with his wife and kid, after Tui cancelled their flight home and can’t give a date for an alternative flight.

    I went to Twitter and searched “tui” as I fancied a nose at what’s happened (global IT issue being blamed) and I’m shocked at how package holiday customers are treated - in one example, everyone from a particular flight has been taken to another hotel but then shoved in a conference room and there are no reps to speak to.

    I get the impression that if you don’t toe the line then you’re probably at risk of missing information and alternative flights being arranged. I think in any non-package situation, you’d book a hotel, an alternative flight and then get onto Travel Insurance when home. Rather than be treated poorly by a disorganised middleman.

    I dunno, maybe people book package holidays because they like being “looked after” throughout the whole experience?

  • maybe people book package holidays because they like being “looked after” throughout the whole experience?

    Price is a big factor. When you have kids and put together an indy holiday things can escalate quickly.

    Ease is another. We went to a Costa del Sol resort a few years ago and it was so relaxing. Not cooking 4/5 meals a day. Not tidying up 4/5 meals a day. Not finding a restaurant. Not begrudging paying for a meal because your kids are being a nightmare and all you've done is tell them off and tried to stop them breaking shit. Not driving anywhere. Talking and having a drink while they watch shit live entertainment. No bedtime bullshit because they're falling asleep as you carry them through the hotel door.

    If you'd tried to tell me how much I enjoyed it pre-kids I'd have asked you to neuter me on the spot. But it is by far and a way the most relaxing holiday I've had with kids.

  • It’s relatively minor compared to what some folks have gone through with the IT outage, but we had a bit of a nightmare with TUI outbound on a package to Gran Canaria last summer. Flying out of Gatwick when there were storms around and nothing was taking off, the plane was an old charter airbus a320 which had a fault meaning the aircon didn’t work until the engines were turned on. We boarded and sat there for an hour, mostly family with kids, as the cabin temperature rose to 40 degrees and no water was made available. As we were still attached to the jetway a small mutiny ensued and people started disembarking themselves, leading to the whole flight being disembarked and we were then effectively kettled for an hour at the gate whilst they decided what to do with us. Eventually we were ushered back through passports and with my wife being pregnant we managed to persuade them to let us book at the Gatwick premier inn rather than be bused to Croydon as happened to most of the flight and we eventually flew off on a day shorter holiday the next day. Whilst we were reimbursed for the lost day, we got no compensation for the flight issues as ‘passengers chose to disembark’, casually ignoring that they chose to due to the alternative being slow roasted…

    That said, all the stuff hugo7 said applied once we got there, comfortably the best holiday I’ve had since my daughter was born for all the reasons they pointed out.

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