Thomsonfly ski carriage

A snowHead

Hi.
We have just spent a pleasant hour or so on their website trying to find out whether the ski carriage we have booked is additional to the 25kgs allowed.
As it is ambiguos to say the least we would appreciate any advice.
Thanks.
Stephen.

A snowHead

Steve.S, when we used em last year, said it was another 25kg

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Don't know the definitive answer, but when we use them, they always weigh your suitcase, which must come under the limit, then send you off to oversize with your skis that aren't even weighed. so I would guess that yes your skis don't have to fit into your ordinary weight limit.

D

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Steve.S, I have a booking with them in January (which they have already messed about once and forced me to change my transfer booking - Evil or Very Mad

)

When I spoke to them about baggage I was told that Ski carriage includes skis and boots and these are NOT counted as part of your 25kg limit. Now what would happen if you filled your ski bag with clothes and made it REALLY heavy I don't know (but I think there is a max 32kg for any one item limit for H&S reasons and an overall 50Kg per passenger limit anyway.

If in doubt I'd phone them and check.

EDIT: Just checked their site and the maximum single item limit is 20kg not 32.

here are the relevant sections from their T&C's:

"Each passenger who has opted to pay for check in luggage or has an inclusive allowance as part of their inclusive Tour Operator package has a 20kg limit on checked-in luggage, irrespective of the number of bags checked in. Each passenger may take up to 10kg of hand luggage on board, although the combined total of hand and checked-in luggage may not exceed 25kg for each passenger without extra weight charges being levied. Extra weight can be pre-booked on Thomsonfly.com during the booking process at a 59% discount when compared to airport prices."

Thus your 25Kg limit.

and

"The maximum weight for any piece of luggage to be checked into the aircraft hold is 20kgs."

So no single bag can weigh more than this

and

"You can take oversized or sports equipment on the flight, providing you contact us on on 0870 607 6757 (Thomson holidays) or 0870 1900 737 for Thomsonfly"

Phone numbers for queries

and

"Prices for sports equipment start from £15 per flight, but may vary depending on route. Please note that ski carriage will only include 1 pair of boots, 1 set of skis and 1 set of poles."

Ski equipment.

Hope this helps.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

I went with them last year and it was similar to sleazyjet and ryan air - it was a faff getting the skis put on. but as others have said they don't weigh your skis

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Always bugs me this,

If you are going on a skiing holiday with a ski company who charters or has their own planes, then why should you have to pay extra ?

After all it's a skiing holiday, what do they expect.

3 years ago, 4 of our party of 15 got stung at Leeds/Bradford for £ 20 each, ski carriage.Despite our protests that nothing had been mentioned about this charge when we booked
over the telephone, we were basically held to ransom to pay it.No pay, no boarding card, so we had to stump up.

Determined to get this back I wrote to the company and asked for a refund but of course we got a letter fobbing us off.After 3 letters and them saying there was nothing they could do for us, I filed a claim through MoneyClaim.It cost me £30 but in for a penny and all that.

They were issued with a summons to appear in court if they were to defend the case and they said they would.

Guess what, a week before the date of the court case,I received a cheque from their solicitors for £80 plus my costs and a letter saying it was not worth their time to defend the case.

The company was Crystal Ski/TUI

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

bernie, TUI = Gits Evil or Very Mad

After all it is free

bernie, If you look at the queues for boarding, and at the people getting on the transfer coaches at the other end, you might notice something.

Well over 90% of package holiday customers don't have their own skis.

I can't say I'm happy about paying to take my skis, but the charges have been listed in the brochures for at least 5/6 years now, so it really shouldn't come as any surprise.

When you book on the phone, you are expected to have seen the brochure, and to know what the T&C are. They should really have asked if you would have skis, and added the charge then if you said yes (at £15 rather than the £20 they charge without advance booking). But they presumably expected you would tell them if you did.

The only reason you got anything out of them was indeed down to the fact it simply wasn't worth their while sending representatives to the court, as that would have cost them more than just paying you. You would almost certainly have lost in court if it had got that far.

alex_heney, I am quite happy to pay for luggage/skis whatever, as then I can chose to take mine or hire or travel light as suits the occasion and pay accordingly. What I don't like is the way several 'cheap' airlines 'hide' the charges rather than publishing a simple price list making it easy to compare prices, flight times, convenience etc before booking.

I also think it is a despicable practice (and one that I have experienced on several occasions now) to change flight times after the booking has been made. This forces the customer to re-visit all their transfer arrangements (or car hire) and can even cost you a day on the slopes if the timetable change is severe enough. Thomsonfly reserve the right to change times without even offering a refund.

Even if a refund is offered, this may not be any help as the change can be at such short notice that all other carriers are booked up by then anyway. Thomson have done this to me twice with their flights and twice with hotels. I will NOT use them for 'packages' again and only use their flights because Coventry is a very close airport for me (but if easyjet have a suitable flight from east mids I will use them first).

I know the expression 'you get what you pay for' but my point is that when they change flight times on you , you don't get what you have booked.

(I would be happy to pay a bit more to fly with a reliable company that didn't mess me about but sadly the choice in the Midlands is not that great and driving down to a London airport is even more inconvenient.

I'm Looking at using the train this year and making the whole journey more civilised. Of course when the family come along, we always drive anyway.

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I'd have thought "packages" would be the right time to use them, as the transfer coaches will be required to fit in with the flight times.

It's when using them as the flight part of a DIY trip that you are more likely to have problems if the times change.

I very much agree about charges being hidden away though. ALL compulsory charges should be shown as part of the headline charge, and any "optional" charges should be specified at time of booking with queries as to whethetr you want those. And as you say, should also be listed on a price list available before booking.

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

We booked with YSE this year , they charter flights to Grenoble with Thomsonfly and the there is no supplement for Ski carriage. I also needed to book a connecting flight from Edinburgh to Gatwick , ended up booking with BA as Easyjet was more expensive due to charging for ski carriage. Worth checking BA or other scheduled airlines as they dont charge for ski carriage

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AxsMan, We're off to Maria Alm the day after you and also flying with Thomsonfly (from Bournemouth). Have all the Saturday flights been changed or just the flight on the 12th? We haven't heard anything yet so assume our Sunday flight is unchanged.

Sue S, I believe they have changed all Saturday flights (and when I spoke to Holiday shuttle to re-arrange the transfers they said they had had quite a few calls from similarly affected folk). I haven't looked at Sundays. You could have a look at their schedules to be safe.

alex_heney, Fair point re the package, it's just that a change in flight times is bad enough, but when they 'lose the contract' with the hotel you were booked into, resulting in you having to stay in a different hotel further from the slopes, and don't tell you until its too late to book into the hotel you really wanted (and had thought you had booked already) it's a bit galling Evil or Very Mad

TUI are IMHO the worst TO for skiing judged by my experience of the quality of their in-resort staff, transport arrangements, and customer care. If more people realised just how cr@p they are they might have to improve (or die) Evil or Very Mad

You know it makes sense.

Thanks everyone for the information.

Stephen.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

In case anyone comes across this thread in 2008, Thomsonski's current policy is:

Skis, snowboards and boots must be checked into the baggage hold, you may not take them with you into the cabin. Boot bags count towards your overall weight limit on all flights, as do skis on some scheduled flights. On charter flights you may be able, in addition to your checked baggage allowance, to check one pair of skis or a snowboard for each person in the party. Carriage is however limited on many charter flights. Therefore, a charge of £30 for each snowboard or skis is made. It is essential that you advise your travel agent of this at the time of booking. In the unlikely event of your skis or snowboard not arriving in resort for your first day on the snow, our representative will refund your £30. Pre-booked Ski Carriage will be confirmed on your holiday invoice. It is possible, that carriage not pre-booked will be declined by the check-in staff, at which point you will have to arrange for storage at the airport until your return at your own expense. If the airline is able to carry your ski equipment at short notice, a £30 carriage fee will have to be paid at the airport.

NB Ski and snowboard bags must contain skis and snowboards ONLY and should weigh no more than 6 kgs.

in summary, it's now £30 per 1 set of skis, and boots now count as part of your 20kg allowance.... so a double whammy.

A snowHead

That's weird, because I just booked ski carriage on my Thomsonfly flight on Monday, and they charged me £14 for the return flight, and they said on the phone that is for one set of skis, poles and boots. I suspect I have been under-charged...

D

Edited to add that unhelpfully, the website is not currently allowing you to add these when you book a flight, you have to ring the call centre and get them added on. Something to do with them merging their systems with First Choice and not having everything working properly yet.

A snowHead

I'm sure any one who can time travel will not need to use charter airlines.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

I have always packed clothing in with my ski's. Is this not allowed anymore? Puzzled

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Isn't Thomsonfly 14/15 quid eachway normally.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Only tried to take my own skis once - with Thomsons from Manchester.
Pre-booked and paid £30.00 for two pairs. There were about 30 sets of skis checked in onto the flight. Only 12 were put on board
"because it was full"

Skis arrived in resort in time for the last 3 days skiing - had to hire for first three days.

Thomson refused point blank to either refund ski carriage money - or pay for hire of skis.

Just kept saying - claim on your insurance - it is not our fault...

Oh and this year booked with Crystal a nice lunch time Thomson flight out of Newcastle as part of a package....now changed to 07-20 - which will mean getting up about
03:00 .

Guess I am just a slow learner when it comes to TUI.

You'll need to Register first of course.

Most airlines do have disclaimers saying that they don't guarantee your ski\bike\golf bags will be on your flight even if you paided for it.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

papasmurf, I thought so too, but being me, I just rang to check, as I hadn't had the confirmation through yet, and I did say, can you confirm that is 2 x sets of skis for the return trip for £30, and she said yes it's all booked, the email just didn't get to you.

So we'll have to see what happens on Monday!

D

After all it is free

well thats a couple of extra apre skis beers then so fingers crossed

I took my own skis with Crystal/Thomsonfly last season. Paid an extra £30 for carriage at the point of booking. Skis weren't weighed but were checked in and collected separately...

I've sold my skis now so hiring this season...

I was told the reason they charge an additional handling fee for skis on top of the cost of the flight even though Thomsonfly, TUI, Crystal, etc. are the same company is that they have to pay the airport handling company (often Servisair) additional fees for loading and unloading special baggage. It's loaded last and unloaded first so it is possible that not all special baggage can be accommodated. There's a disclaimer about this somewhere in the small print. What's rubbish is that you only get your handling fee back from them, any other costs you have to claim on your travel insurance...

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And now I have the email confirmation - £14 for return flight. Cheaper than it used to be, strangely...

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

Deliaskis, £14?? you did better then we did then... We also booked with thomson but are being charged £30 return.

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But if you book with First choice - same company, same hgoldiay, same flight and same price, the cost is only £15..... wierd!

From the baggage FAQ http://www.thomson.co.uk/editorial/faqs/flights/luggage.html

You know it makes sense.

I just booked flights recently with Thomsonfly. However, as it was within one month of departure I couldnt book skis online. I rang the next day as per instructions and got two sets of skis on for £28.00 in total. I asked the question about weight and she said 25kgs for the standard luggage plus one set of skis per ski bag. snowHead

Means the Jagermeister will be ok on the way back.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Ive always paid £15 for snowboard bag It normally weights more then my suitcase as well! which is why Im happy paying it if you want to take an extra bag pay for it!! are you sure its is 25kg limit with thomsonfly flights been with them for the last 4 years and its always been 20kg. Not booked this year yet, doing a last minute deal.

A snowHead

anybody used monarch airlines and can give advice about this??

A snowHead

It is 25kg, but it's 20kg checked baggage for the hold and 5kg hand luggage.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Interesting, thanks all for your updates.

We got our tickets (booked thro' Crystal), and our tickets currently have one ski bag booked, at £30, with the proviso that the bag contains only skis and poles and must weigh less than 6kg.
(i.e. as per Thomson - and it is Thomson who we are listed as flying with). I suspect the difference is due to the confusion of different brands under TUI... and whether the flight is 'flight only' or part of a package.

I think what I'll do is see if I can get my 'big' ski bag as my sole bag - clothes & skis & boots under 20kg shouldn't be an issue. I could do without paying twice the going rate to take half as much stuff.

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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

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I have recently flown on a crystal holiday, I went to lengths to put my ski boots in my main bag, keep the weight below 20 kg by wearing & carrying 5 kg in hand luggage. My ski bag only contained skis & poles as per instructions. Similar rule now for Inghams. On both trips the check in staff at both ends had differing ideas what the rule/allowance is & they were allowing boot bags & skis on top of 20 kg allowance. I also saw several people successfuly check-in outsize ski bags taken all the owners luggage in one. So it is anybodies guess.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

It's interesting reading everyones different replies. It seems the charge for ski carriage depends on who you book with, whether it's Thomson, Crystal, or First Choice. The weight allowance however seems as if it just comes down to luck of the draw and if who ever is there at the time decides to weigh or check your ski bag!

After all it is free

Skibomb
would be interested to hear how you got on.
I ended up paying the £30 for crystal to carry my 6kg of skis/poles, and I'll be drinking less on the holiday to make up the difference!

I was VERY tempted to just go with one (ski) bag, filled to the 20kg capacity - my understanding is that I would be allowed 1 bag upto this weight, and whether it is 'oversize' or not, or what is in it, if it's within the weight limit, I could take it.
trouble is, I needed more thank 3kg of clothes....

good luck all,
h.

Has anyone been through Gatwick this year and had their ski or snowboard bag weighed? We are travelling with Thomson -charged the top rate £30 for a bag - and are hoping that we can sneak two boards into the same bag as this is double what we have paid in the past. I've normally taken my own bag, included bindings, boots, helmet (and clothing to pad the bag as bindings will otherwise likely be broken but the heavy handed servisair folk) - has anyone else successfully done this or been caught out and had to pay more if it contains two boards, even if under 6kg?

The small print on websites, in brochures and advised via email has not described the allowances clearly nor have they been exactly the same - very confusing and frustrating!

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

We went through Gatwick (with Crystal on a Thomson flight) the week before Christmas and they weighed our ski bags at check in. All of ours were around 7.5 to 8 Kg i.e. over the 6 Kg mentioned in the Crystal T&Cs but the check-in staff seemed happy enough. I guess they were on the lookout for people carrying 2 sets of skis in one bag, so if the bag weighs upwards of, say, 10 Kg or so, I wouldn't be surprised if they ask for some more dosh.

Help!!

Thomsonfly ski carriage

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