Advantages: Cheap, Local and Friendyl
Disadvantages: Limited Destinations

...As a resident of Loughborough, East Midlands aiport (yes I know it is now Nottingham East Midlands but that is a sore point around here) is great for us. Both BMI Baby and Easyjet have regular flights out to various destinations, in my most recent 3 flights I have travelled with BMI Baby. Flying to Edinburgh, Paris & Knock are all the less than 1 hour 'hops' by plane and all have been extremely enjoyable and I must congratulate BMI on there service through. The staff have all been friendly, the planes etc tidy and the flight costs have all been bargains - try getting to these places by other means for less! My main reason for this review is in regard to my last flight, this was in May 04 to Knock in Ireland. This experience has a few tales to tell......... Firstly we arrived and checked in, here we were told there had been problems... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: cheap prices
Disadvantages: bad service, awful staff

...BMI Baby:-Baby fares, and baby service!!! The planes... Mostly Boeing 737s to my knowledge, BMI Baby's planes are mostly almost new and in good condition, however age is not everything. The planes are very small and very cramped with virtually no room for your legs (I am 1'7 metres tall and struggle). Other than this the planes are not too bad however there can sometimes be litter laying around. The Staff... I must say that the staff are the worst I have ever encountered on any airline. They appeared somewhat arrogent and appeared to have no interest in the customers or their job. I saw none of them smile at all which made me somewhat miserable, more miserable than I was already coming back from holiday. Everything appeared to be all too much trouble for them. The food... The food on BMI Baby is virtually non-existant and unless you... Read review

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Advantages: Can earn BMI points using BMI partners
Disadvantages: None I can think of yet

...I have been a member of the BMI Diamond Club for the past two years now and would be lost without it since I fly with BMI quite regulary. Membership is free and is quite simple to join. They have to different points that they give you: Membership - These are issued for each reward and determine card level Destination - These are your actual free flight or car hire certs. MEMBERSHIP LEVELS blue card membership On check-in, you're allowed 20Kg additional free baggage allowance, and you get priority on stand-by availability on bmi flights. If you're travelling with just hand luggage you can also use the telephone check-in facility on flights leaving from the UK and ROI even when you're travelling on an economy ticket. In addition you can also recieve discounts and upgrades with their hotel and car parking partners. silver card membership... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Cheap, reliable and great customer service.
Disadvantages: None

...Who are British Midland (BMI)? According to BMI’s website, www.flybmi.com, BMI are the UK’s second largest full service airline, operating over 2000 flights a week from various airports around the UK. They are based at London Heathrow airport where they have a fleet of 41 jet aircraft. They fly between numerous airports across the UK. Full details can be found at the above named website. BMI are also a member of the Star Alliance. The Star Alliance is a group of airlines that operate an alliance of services across the globe to provide customers with a complete global travel itinerary. The member airlines include Air Canada, Air New Zealand, Asiana Airlines, US Airways, Spanair, Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa German Airlines and a whole host of others. Again, full details on the Star Alliance can be found on BMI’s website... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Modern colourful decor
Disadvantages: Uncomfortable cramped seats

...I am a frequent business flyer, usually using British Airways. On a recent trip to Amsterdam I decided to try bmi, as their flight times were more convenient than British Airways. I bought a business class fare, expecting service to a similar standard of BA. The bmi lounge was comfortable providing all the usual refinements, champagne, and other drinks, and light snacks; seating was good, washrooms were clean. The flight to Amsterdam was on time fortunately. The seats themselves were in the same two either side combination used in all European business class cabins, however, there was no adjustable headrest which made the seat rather uncomfortable. The pitch was large enough, on BA flights, my knees never touch the seat in front, on this occasion they did. Service was of a relatively good standard, the champagne continental... Read review

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Advantages: Can get free flights and earn miles from a variety of sources
Disadvantages: Unless you are a serious frequent flyer, it could take you a long time

...In light of the fact that I am now waiting for around 7 hotels to be listed on Ciao, and that I walked out of the only hotel in disgust for the only one they have listed, (you will have to wait now until I take advantage of my free visit) and I am dithering over whether to go to Australia in a few weeks time, but nervous of the thought of 24 hours on a plane, I thought I would try writing on something completely different, so here I am, be gentle with me. BMI Diamond club, as its name suggests is a loyalty club membership for British Midland customers, the UK’s second full airline carrier. Therefore the most logical way to sign up, is when booking a flight with them. You can however, also sign up for a BMI Classic or Platinum Mastercard with MBNA, where you will currently receive 20,000 destination miles (sufficient for one short... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Cheap Prices
Disadvantages: Expensive food/drink on flight

...Had my first BMI flight from Glasgow to Heathrow and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I have never used this airline before but will definitely use them again. Unfortunately, the flights were booked by someone else so I can't really comment on how easy it was to book these but i'd imagine it would be much the same as easyjet or ryanair. One of the party I was in checked in online before we left for the airport. This is good if you are travelling on your own but not so great for a large booking. We arrived at the airport approximately an hour before departure which was great, no sitting around in the airport for hours. The check-in closing 40 minutes before the flight time is great. There was barely a queue when we arrived and we managed to check in easily and were given seats together. I much prefer this to easyjet... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Bigger Seats, Friendly staff, Good booking system
Disadvantages: no sandwiches or free net use

...I've been a member of the diamond club now for almost a year due to my work in London for the past 10 months, basically you get 30 points per flight (Man - LHR) and the free flights start at around 400 points. During the quiet periods BMI have double your points offers on flights so your points add up quickly. The member lounges are very tidy and have a great selection of drinks, the London Heathrow has an additional lounge for silver & gold members the difference being that it has a bar and doesn't get as busy. The Manchester lounge is quite small and also has a small separate area for Silver/Gold members but does get very busy in the morning . . .. you have a choice of fresh tea/coffee plus many juices and the usual cakes/croissants. The staff at both airports are always very polite/helpful and up for some pleasant chat. Another... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: CHEAP and friendly
Disadvantages: Dont go to all destinations

...********Background******* BMI (British Midland) is becoming a growing Airline, they have many sites now that are always popping up around the country. They are also getting new flight paths all the time. (Which helps the customer and keeps them happy) BMI have flights that go to Washington and Boston but only from Heathrow or Manchester. They mostly fly domestic flights around the UK and around Europe. Which is how I came to use BMI. Booking I bought my ticket online which was completly fantastic. I put in the details of when, where and destination. The site came up with a whole page of different timings and prices which would suit me. Brillent!! All I had to do was tick a box flight out and tick a box return flight. With the timings I wanted to fly. It then calculated the total amount including Airport tax and VAT. I paid by cardit... Read review

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Advantages: Part of the Star Alliance
Disadvantages: Ties you in.. takes a while to collect rewards

...I have just joined the BMI diamond club, the frequent flyer programme for BMI. I am due to do quite a bit of travelling this year so thought I'd earn points to hopefully get a free flight or hotel stay at the end! I looked around at the different programmes available, and the diamond club seems to be the best on the Star Alliance for a UK based traveller. Earning ----------- You can earn with a variety of 'partners', be it hotels, airlines, car rental etc.. Present your card or number when booking. There are 'destianation miles' which accumulate to determine the awards you can redeem. Only partners miles count as 'membership status miles' which determine the level of membership you have. (See below). These are only valid for a year. Flights and Star Alliance Miles are earnt according to the distance of the journey... Read review

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