 Poster: A snowHead
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Our TO, Inghams are using BA fo provide flights. BA want £55 each way for ski carriage.
I feel that £110 for ski carriage is really taking the p*ss. Am I being unreasonable?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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BA don't offer "ski carriage" any more, your only option is to pay for an additional item of hold luggage (up to 23kg) and use that for your ski bag. It's the main reason that if I'm flying with skis I prefer to use Swiss, who do still offer free ski carriage.
One tip, if you can upgrade one leg of your journey to Club class you will receive two items of hold luggage for both legs of your flight.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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or just pack everything in your ski bag, keep it under 23 kg & pay nada - better than a charter.
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Flying with SwissAir is great- I'll do it again.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Just get a double ski bag and pack everything in there. It's still tough to keep it below 23kg but you won't pay anything extra.
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Looking at BA flights to Zurich; extra baggage is £40 each way. I think Inghams are adding something on there. (Swiss Air don't exist any more; Swiss International Airlines or plain Swiss do!) 
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| Dr Rock wrote: |
| Flying with SwissAir is great- I'll do it again. |
You are unlikely to do it again as they went bust in 2002. The carrier is now "Swiss". I just wish they'd run more return flights from Geneva to Gatwick on a Saturday.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| Quote: |
Just get a double ski bag and pack everything in there. It's still tough to keep it below 23kg but you won't pay anything extra.
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It's not really - just take small, heavy stuff out and put it in your hand luggage.
Other tip is if two of your are travelling with skis, share one double ski bag and one huge holdall between you.
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@LOTA, it depends on where the flight is to/from:-
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I'd say that's fair enough for that price.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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In response to some of the advice above, I would confirm the following;
The BA flight is a charter flight provided as part of the Ingham's package.
The final flight information provided states;
A) Ski carriage cannot be pre-booked and must be paid for at check-in at a cost of £55 per flight.
B) Cabin baggage is restricted to one item of up to 10kg (plus one laptop or handbag).
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Haha...my handbag would be around 6 feet long
Why do people still use Tour Operators again?
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You know it makes sense.
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Rip off. Why would Tour Operators impose more costly and stringent rules than the airline itself?
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Why? To make you pay for more bags in the hold, without having to take extra weight as you would've taken it anyway.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I'm not sure that the TO is making anything from this.
The £110 ski carriage has to be paid at check-in and I presume it all goes too BA
However, it reflects badly on Inghams who include a charter carrier in their package that thinks £110 ski carriage is acceptable!
All of the members of our party have now decided to leave their own skis at home and hire in resort because it will be cheaper. Therefore BA will now earn nothing!
Anyone else who has a BA flight as part of their TO's package should watch out for this hefty charge.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Something doesn't add up here...
I flew GLA>Heathrow>Lyon, we paid £40 for an extra bag each, so £80 total, which also doubled our weight limit to 46KG.
It was more expensive to pay for the extra bag at check in, so we added it online. BA don't differentiate between skis, normal suitcase etc
I know they're hand luggage changed just after we flew but I believe you can still have 2 items
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| Mr Marmot wrote: |
| The BA flight is a charter flight provided as part of the Ingham's package. |
Is that right? Since when did BA charter its aircraft to tour operators? I'd have thought it more likely that tour operators buy seats on BA's existing scheduled services. I think the question is whether BA's normal terms (including luggage charges) apply to such bookings, or whether the TO can impose its own terms including different charges for luggage?
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@rob@rar, they do at weekends. I flew EDI-CMF on an Esprit charter in 2014. It is the part of BA that was known as CityFlyer. They have a fleet that normally does EDI-LCY during the week but is virtually unused at the weekend.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Mr Marmot wrote: |
| I feel that £110 for ski carriage is really taking the p*ss. Am I being unreasonable? |
It isn't hugely different to what other carriers charge, except Swiss. Yes economically it makes sense for most people to hire skis rather than own them. Always has. I own skis because I want to, not because it saves me money.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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| rob@rar wrote: |
| Mr Marmot wrote: |
| The BA flight is a charter flight provided as part of the Ingham's package. |
Is that right? Since when did BA charter its aircraft to tour operators? I'd have thought it more likely that tour operators buy seats on BA's existing scheduled services. I think the question is whether BA's normal terms (including luggage charges) apply to such bookings, or whether the TO can impose its own terms including different charges for luggage? |
I'm sure you are right, rob@rar. However, this is also not a scheduled flight but a flight that has obviously been arranged to take passengers to a ski region on a day and time that skiers would choose. I would have expected the carrier to be a bit more skier friendly.
It also occurs to me that in past years the TO would invariably demand pre-booking and pre-payment of ski carriage. I presume the TO had negotiated a deal with the carrier and also earned a 'commission' from the 'sale'. Inghams haven't done this on this holiday. Maybe they have no power to either reduce, or earn commission, from BA,s ski carriage charges.
Other posts above show a variety of ski carriage charges from BA. It seems BA charge whatever they think they can squeeze from customers. It seems Inghams can do nothing about it.
I believe £110 ski carriage to be profiteering and neither BA or Inghams look good because of it.
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@Gaza, thanks, outside of the Cityflyer fleet of Embraer aircraft do you know if any of the other aircraft are used?
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| Mr Marmot wrote: |
| I believe £110 ski carriage to be profiteering |
I agree, it's bonkers. Is that for a short-haul flight or long-haul? Vote with your wallet, fly Swiss or Lufthansa (who still do free ski carriage?).
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| rob@rar wrote: |
| Mr Marmot wrote: |
| The BA flight is a charter flight provided as part of the Ingham's package. |
Is that right? Since when did BA charter its aircraft to tour operators? I'd have thought it more likely that tour operators buy seats on BA's existing scheduled services. I think the question is whether BA's normal terms (including luggage charges) apply to such bookings, or whether the TO can impose its own terms including different charges for luggage? |
I'm sure you are right, rob@rar. However, this is also not a scheduled flight but a flight that has obviously been arranged to take passengers to a ski region on a day and time that skiers would choose. I would have expected the carrier to be a bit more skier friendly.
It also occurs to me that in past years the TO would invariably demand pre-booking and pre-payment of ski carriage. I presume the TO had negotiated a deal with the carrier and also earned a 'commission' from the 'sale'. Inghams haven't done this on this holiday. Maybe they have no power to either reduce, or earn commission, from BA,s ski carriage charges.
Other posts above show a variety of ski carriage charges from BA. It seems BA charge whatever they think they can squeeze from customers. It seems Inghams can do nothing about it.
I believe £110 ski carriage to be profiteering and neither BA or Inghams look good because of it.
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@Mr Marmot, If ski carriage can not be prebooked on your Inghams trip is there a risk that your skis will not get on the flight (out and then return)?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Highway robbery along the lines of budget airlines. The new norm is that owning skis is more and more uneconomical.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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If this starts becoming more standard, will this drive more people DIY?
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| NickyJ wrote: |
| If this starts becoming more standard, will this drive more people DIY? |
2 pairs of skis at that price and you've paid for your petrol to drive to the Alps...
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You know it makes sense.
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Last year we looked at going with Inghams, flying from Inverness to Geneva. I think it was a Monarch flight, but not 100% sure. We noticed that ski carriage was limited to 15 sets of skis/board per flight. The booking info online advised that we had to book the holiday then add carriage after. We assumed quite a few travellers would have their own kit due to the proximity to the Cairngorms and were concerned that the quota would be full. We contacted Inghams by phone. They confirmed that we had to book and pay (or part pay) before finding out if there was any space left for ski carriage. We were told that if the quota was full then we could cancel and get a refund. Seemed like too much of a faff to bother with, we ended up driving down to Edinburgh.
Speaking to a mate who had booked made a group booking through Inghams via Inverness last year (maybe 2yrs ago) and he said that the booking got cancelled before the holiday as there hadn't been enough flight tickets sold!
This year Inghams are offering free ski carriage out of Inverness. We bit the bullet and booked for March, to save on a 7hr round trip drive to the central belt. Fingers crossed.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| rob@rar wrote: |
| @Gaza, thanks, outside of the Cityflyer fleet of Embraer aircraft do you know if any of the other aircraft are used? |
Not that I'm aware off. BA Mainline often have to charter in outfits like Titan so I don't think there is much slack in the system.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Inghams seem to be adding extra costs here and there for this season. A couple of weeks ago, we were in Les Arcs 1950 with some friends who had booked, as per usual with Inghams. However, this year they were made to pay the local/tourist tax, whereas in previous years this had been included in the Inghams (now no longer) fully inclusive price. (The hotel/condo people had a list of operators who did pay this, so it is clearly an Inghams decision).
(By the by, Inghams also cocked-up their return transfer leaving them out in the cold at 1950 at 6 am for 30 mins and only realising that they had to pick them up when the rep got a text on the way down from 2000 to 1950. The rep at 2000/1950 seemed to have no idea about what was going on (although I guess this is an Inghams management failure rather than the fault of the rep). Next year, I guess they will opt for the DIY alternative.)
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Mr Marmot wrote: |
It also occurs to me that in past years the TO would invariably demand pre-booking and pre-payment of ski carriage. I presume the TO had negotiated a deal with the carrier and also earned a 'commission' from the 'sale'. Inghams haven't done this on this holiday. Maybe they have no power to either reduce, or earn commission, from BA,s ski carriage charges.
Other posts above show a variety of ski carriage charges from BA. It seems BA charge whatever they think they can squeeze from customers. It seems Inghams can do nothing about it.
I believe £110 ski carriage to be profiteering and neither BA or Inghams look good because of it. |
I believe it is the charterer who sets the rules and costs, not the charter airline, so I'd lay this farce firmly at Inghams feet. The £55 e/w in itself is a nonsense as it is extremely unlikely that someone would only purchase o/w ski carriage. If I was you I'd be on their facebook page and Twitter saying what I thought of their policy and costs. They are ski holiday specialist FFS so why do they try to discourage people from taking skis? This could seriously backfire on them as if they start going down that route with their other brands such as Esprit, I'll be going elsewhere.
TOs need to be very careful. The budget airlines (especially Ryanair) have pulled back from treating their customers with contempt and are finding that being nice and not having absurdly strict policies improves loyalty and advocacy. If specialist TOs such as ski holidays companies start making it hard for people to take equipment with them or prohibitively expensive, then they will drive people towards the DIY route.
I really do despair at companies sometimes. I can't for the life of me imagine what they are thinking when they set these policies. I despair more at the idiots at the highest level who sign-off on these policies. Some bean counter will probably show an increase in revenue column but completely ignore the negative column.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I can confirm that BA charter is BA aircraft and standard BA rules as per scheduled for luggage.
Any change to that is imposed by the TO and any money collected at check in or before goes to the TO
BA's rules are
1 hold bag 23kgs
1 cabin bag within standard dimensions 23kgs
1 personal bag , the personal bag is BA's new change in that the have now given a definative size which is that of a decent laptop bag .
The size is on the website if you look
These are facts and i have this from a TO I personally know and experience of both BA charter and BA scheduled in the last 6 months
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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23kgs for a cabin bag? Blimey!
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I can't imagine why anyone would need more than 2 x 23kg bags, plus a laptop bag, for a ski or snowboard holiday. Whatever are people carrying? 
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| Quote: |
Whatever are people carrying?
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Cheese for the Chalet hosts?
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Try 3 weeks in the usa with all your own gear for 2 people and having clothing for a ski destination plus say vegas 
That you will struggle without 1 extra bag.
Boots and helmets take up room for starters
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Something isn't right here - https://www.inghams.co.uk/ski-holidays/ski-holiday-essentials/ski-carriage
| Inghams Website wrote: |
| The number of skis/boards we can carry on some of our charter flights is strictly limited. If you have your own equipment, you should pre-book carriage of skis/boards when you confirm your booking to ensure that space is reserved. There is a charge of £35 per set of skis/snowboard for return carriage. |
They are also mention £49 'at the airport' so I've no idea where the £55 each-way comes from. As I've said already; get on Twitter and Facebook and ask them. What airport is this BTW?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Crystal Ski (TO) charge £35 return carriage for 15kg allowance per one set of skis or 1 board (or up to 25kg, as we were confirmed at Manchester check-in recently and as per Crystal's T&Cs for 2016, not 23kg, for 2 sets or skis + board in 1 bag). But if you don't pre-book carraige when booking the oliday then it's around £55 (? each way?) at check in I think.
They've charged this for many a year (and long may it continue or be less  ) so I'd be surprised if Inghams were being silly enough to charge such a lot more pre-book.
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| Quote: |
or just pack everything in your ski bag, keep it under 23 kg & pay nada - better than a charter.
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^This
The standard BA flight approach is to pack all ski and snowboard equipment into a coffin bag which can be up to 23kg and is your included luggage allowance. That, plus your 2 pieces of hand luggage should be seriously ample for a ski trip.
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