Cheap flights from local airport, good customer service
Disadvantages:
only short haul, limited numbers of flights
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
I’ve recently written a review on my local airport so it only seemed fit that I reviewed some of the services operating out of there. Over the past few years a large number of airlines have introduced “bargain” brands offering cheaper flights within the UK and to limited numbers of European destinations.
When these were first introduced I travelled a couple of times to London for £10 flights to destinations such as Paris. However the transport costs to the airport (approx. £40 a person from Cardiff) and the time required to get there and back (3 hours each way) made these bargain flights not as much of a bargain as they first appeared.
Last year one of the discount operators choose to operate out of Cardiff (my local) airport. Since then I’ve booked many bargain breaks through the service and never had even the slightest complaint to make about the service that I received. I thought I’d share my views on the service with you – you’ll have to excuse me if I start to reminiss about holidays away but getting on a BMI baby plane brings back memories of many good weekends away.
BMI baby first started offering flights from East Midlands airport in March 2002. Within their first hour of trading they had booked a record number of flights and they were gaining plenty of publicity. In July 2002 they added Cardiff airport as their second Uk base becoming the biggest airline operating out of Cardiff. By this year they had progressed so well that they started operating out of Manchester in May. They currently operate around 325 flights a week.
My experiences are limited. I have only flown from Cardiff airport. To be honest the only reason that I first booked a flight was that they had some amazing opening offers. I booked a flight to Edinburgh for around £20.00 return. Amazing deal! When I arrived at the airport for the first time I was expecting some early hitches due to it being a new operation.
I couldn’t have been more wrong. Check in went quickly and smoothly and information around the airport was clearly visible. The check in staff were friendly and looked like they were enjoying their job. I always enjoy my time at the airport if everything is running smoothly I look at it as the start of your holiday. If everything is right you should have enough time to have a drink and a snack and wander round the shops, everything went to plan.
When we were called to the boarding gate I was expecting to see a small plane, instead I saw a 747 for approximately 150 passengers, newly painted with a very clean interior. Very much what I am used to taking on a normal package holiday. The staff on the aeroplane are friendly and efficient. They also seemed to be very keen to help and enthusiastic. On this flight I put it down to being the start of a new job but later flights have proved me wrong their staff are always like this.
People often talk about the economy airlines having less space for their customers on board. I found that the seats were the same size as they are for your average short haul package holiday. If you are fit and healthy and arrive early they may ask you if you want to sit by an emergency exit which basically means you get lots more leg room but have to listen to the air hostess tell you about the exit for 5 minutes first.
The things that were missing on my flight compared to the package deal flight that mot people are used to were inflight entertainment and the customary microwave meal. Drinks and snacks are available to purchase on board, however choice is limited and the prices are higher than you would normally pay. I would suggest taking things with you or doing like I do stop in the airport newsagents, stock up on cold drinks, crisps or chocolate and magazines. You can guarantee that when you go out for your first meal at your destination you will really appreciate it!
To be quite honest I can’t really tell you much about what the airline service is like when I arrive at my destination. I am always too excited and eager to get to where I am staying to pay much attention. However, on landing I have never faced a delay in getting off the plane or retrieving my luggage.
Since my first journey I’ve flown 5 other times with BMI baby to Glasgow, Palma (x2). Malaga and Alicante. Each time I have been able to have weekend or week breaks for significantly less than for your average package tour. I’ve also booked flights to Palma for July this year and am looking at going to Malaga in September if I can book the holidays at work. I’m even thinking of going to East Midlands to Prague in December Christmas shopping if possible.
Booking is very easy and straightforward online. The web page is primarily white with the BMIbaby logo and always features the latest news or offer on the home page. The menu options are: -
bmibaby bookings – make your booking – simple and straightforward destinations & timetable – pick your destination and see flight days and times airport & city information – basic information on each airport, included taxi costs to towns terms & conditions – important to read before booking special offers & email – sign up for email offers if you go away often live flight arrivals bmibaby news contact us & jobs car, hotel, insurance, park – useful links
To book you pick your departure and arrival airports and the days that you wish to fly. It then shows available flights with a next and previous day option. When you have selected your flights you proceed to the payment section where you need the full names (passport names) of all travellers. You can pay over a secure connection by Visa\matercard\switch\delta\AMEX. You should not that there will be an additional charge on top of the flight charge for the relevant airport taxes but this will be detailed on your payment screen. I have only had to call their customer service line once where my Internet connection cut off and I had not completed the booking. I called to see whether it had gone through. I received helpful friendly service and no long call waiting queues like you often get with ticket companies.
The only thing I would add to my opinion is from my own personal experiences and I do not know if what I am saying is actually true or just tend to happen to me. When I book flights I appear to get better offers and prices if I book them at least a couple of months in advance. Often planes are full for the next week or have limited prices so they push the prices up. They often have special offers on the site which have included free flights, double discount or a number of flights for just £10. I would recommend keeping a close watch on the site or signing up for their newsletter to ensure that you don't miss these.
If you have friends in any of the destinations that they serve or you know where you can find cheap accommodation I would recommend BMIbaby for a cheap holiday. You’ll get friendly excellent service, cheap flights and from my point local departures.
Hints and Tips
Bookings must be made at least 2 hours in advance of travel There is a £4.00 credit card fee per booking Refunds are not given for any bookings made. There is a £15.00 charge for changes made to a booking (£30 for name changes) As stated discount is given for booking online – if you book by phone expect to pay an additional £5.00 per single flight. bmibaby check-in desks will open 2 hours before your flight is due to depart and will close promptly 30 minutes prior to departure Arrive on time with the necessary photo ID and your booking reference number – no tickets are issued.
Luggage
Checked baggage allowance is 2 pieces with a maximum total weight of 20kgs, plus free additional 10kg for golf clubs or snow/water ski equipment subject to space on the aircraft. Your hand baggage allowance is one piece with maximum total dimensions of 115cm and a maximum weight of 5KG. The following items are currently banned as cabin luggage : - Toy or replica guns (plastic or metal), catapults, household cutlery, knives with blades of any length, paper knives, razor blades, tradesmens tools, darts, scissors, hypodermic syringes (unless a genuine medical need can be proven), knitting needles, sporting bats, billiard, snooker or pool cues.
Paris, Toulouse, Munich, Milan, Alicante, Malaga, Palma, Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Jersey
From Manchester to : -
Alicante, Malaga, Murcia, Palma, Cork and Belfast
Further Info: -
Web Site : www.flybmi.com
Telephone number : 0870 264 2229 for UK passengers 01 242 0794 for Republic of Ireland passengers
Customer relations :
PO Box 737 Bmibaby Castle Donington Derby, East Midlands DE74 2XP
Email address: babytalk@bmi-email.com
Airport Parking & hotels : link available on BMI baby web site www.fhr-net.co.uk/partners/index.asp?Agent=Espot www.holidayextras.co.uk
NB: as stated in my Cardiff airport op – there is a brilliant page available on Teletext for villas, apartments and self catering accommodation where you can find hotels often for less than £20 a night.
More details
Class flown most frequently
Economy
How often do you travel with this airline
Regularly
Where did you book
Directly with this airline
Safety
Very safe
How well does it cater for disabled people
OK
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