Manchester Airport. How can it be so bad?

[CrutyRammers]

I see the old "vip meet and greet" service which actually means "rag the arse off your car and leave it in a muddy field, then disappear" thing has happened again: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/newsmanchester/holi.... Not the fault of the airport of course. I can't imagine using one of these services though, it's not like this is the first time it's happened.

[surveyor]

CrutyRammers said:

I see the old "vip meet and greet" service which actually means "rag the arse off your car and leave it in a muddy field, then disappear" thing has happened again: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/newsmanchester/holi.... Not the fault of the airport of course. I can't imagine using one of these services though, it's not like this is the first time it's happened.

oh gosh here we go again.

Manchester airport have an official Meet and Greet service. This I have used lots, and found it exceptional.

I would not use a different meet and greet of a comparison site! Especially when cheap means trouble...

[rustyuk]

surveyor said:

CrutyRammers said:

I see the old "vip meet and greet" service which actually means "rag the arse off your car and leave it in a muddy field, then disappear" thing has happened again: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/newsmanchester/holi.... Not the fault of the airport of course. I can't imagine using one of these services though, it's not like this is the first time it's happened.

oh gosh here we go again.

Manchester airport have an official Meet and Greet service. This I have used lots, and found it exceptional.

I would not use a different meet and greet of a comparison site! Especially when cheap means trouble...

We arrived back to Manchester about 3 years ago and waited with one of our party for his car to arrive from the meet and greet. It never did as it seems one of the members of staff decided to use the car as his own personal transport and had written the it off.

Meet and Greet denied liability too as they said the staff member had stolen it.

[mickyh7]

I used Drop and Go in the Airport, a very clean
well lit, multistorey with ample staff.
Faultless and Professional. And a great price.
I wouldn't use the Cowboys in their off site fields and knackered minibuses again!

[paulguitar]

rustyuk said:

We arrived back to Manchester about 3 years ago

Still waiting for your bags?

[Carl_Manchester]

LOL

[rustyuk]

paulguitar said:

rustyuk said:

We arrived back to Manchester about 3 years ago

Still waiting for your bags?

We flew into Birmingham on Saturday and there was left baggage everywhere in arrivals. Chaos on the way out too.

Munich at the other end wasn't much better.

[AB]

Mum and Dad flew out of T2 this morning and it was painless. 45 mins from drop off to lounge. Fingers crossed it's the same for us next week.

[Sheepshanks]

AB said:

Mum and Dad flew out of T2 this morning and it was painless. 45 mins from drop off to lounge. Fingers crossed it's the same for us next week.

Meanwhile TUI had a 'mile-long' check-in queue: https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/great...

[surveyor]

I think it entirely depends on terminal and whether a wave of flights is due out..

[Carl_Manchester]

The one year I have to fly Tui as well, i hope the missus does not see that story, I will have red ear for the next 6 weeks.

[snuffy]

surveyor said:

CrutyRammers said:

I see the old "vip meet and greet" service which actually means "rag the arse off your car and leave it in a muddy field, then disappear" thing has happened again: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/newsmanchester/holi.... Not the fault of the airport of course. I can't imagine using one of these services though, it's not like this is the first time it's happened.

oh gosh here we go again.

Manchester airport have an official Meet and Greet service. This I have used lots, and found it exceptional.

I would not use a different meet and greet of a comparison site! Especially when cheap means trouble...

Indeed. There's the airport's M&G service, which you book via the airport's website, and then there's a load of dodgy ones for people who want to save a few quid (and it as a few quid as well).

It's like people who go on a cruise and use the "Park on my drive" sites. Why bother ? We've used the official one at Southampton; You drive almost to the ship itself, you get out, they scan your number plate, take your bags away and someone else drives your car away to park it. Or you park a few miles away on someone's drive, most likely with no insurance, and then piss around getting to the ship in a taxi, and then the reverse when you come back, all to save yourself about 50p when you have just spent maybe a couple of grand (or more) each on your holiday.

[captain_cynic]

snuffy said:

, and then piss around getting to the ship in a taxi, and then the reverse when you come back, all to save yourself about 50p.

I didn't think it was possible but you've managed to make cruising sound even less appealing

[snuffy]

captain_cynic said:

snuffy said:

, and then piss around getting to the ship in a taxi, and then the reverse when you come back, all to save yourself about 50p.

I didn't think it was possible but you've managed to make cruising sound even less appealing

That's why you use the "park right by the ship" option.

[andy43]

Sheepshanks said:

AB said:

Mum and Dad flew out of T2 this morning and it was painless. 45 mins from drop off to lounge. Fingers crossed it's the same for us next week.

Meanwhile TUI had a 'mile-long' check-in queue: https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/great...

As I understand it the new T2 conveyor belts don't like carrying suitcases.
They were fine during testing but some idiot started letting passengers back in after covid.
Top tip for T2 - don't take hold luggage.

[Rollin]

No issues this morning. 45 mins from drop off to bar /council

[Monkeylegend]

Rollin said:

No issues this morning. 45 mins from drop off to bar /council

Not really surprising, those that are going away for the easter weekend/week have already gone and will just be waiting now for their baggage, so you would maybe expect a lull.

[Prolex-UK]

Still working smoothly?

Off on 11th may

Flight leaves at 6am

Er indoors thinking of going there tomorrow ....

[Rich Boy Spanner]

I worked at Manchester Airport for 15 years (at it, not for it), after 12 at Heathrow, and am still in the aviation industry. There are a lot of reasons for the problems. 1) The great aviation race to the bottom. The price war. Cheap tickets are funded in part by airlines paying less to airports and their handling agents. So handling agents open up check-in later and use less staff. Less baggage handlers. And all paid less, less benefits and often with zero hour contracts. So they got other jobs. 2) Working at airports is rubbish. You have to get to the remote staff car park up to an hour before you start work, to get on a packed bus, to then go through staff security, and a lot of this at 4am. 3) Nobody wants to work airport security. See also item 2. 4) The arrivals delays at passport control are entirely down to the government, specifically border force. 6) MAN is quite seasonal and has a massive summer spike, but they can't get the staff to cover it any more.
I don't know a single person who still works there. The last left 6 months ago and all are far happier working elsewhere.

It's also a very varied experience. I traveled 4 weeks ago and had a security queue of nearly 2 hours (it stretched into T1 arrivals). But on return I got from aircraft, through passport control and outside in less than 10 minutes, I did another trip 2 weeks ago and there was no security queue worth mentioning, though the Easyjet and Emirates queues for bag drop were massive. Thankfully I needed neither.

[PushedDover]

Prolex-UK said:

Still working smoothly?

Off on 11th may

Flight leaves at 6am

Er indoors thinking of going there tomorrow ....

Just flew out of there this morning at 11:40 to Bilbao.
(I did the same journey 3 weeks ago)
T1was not bad - except for the mouth breathers blocking passage to the likes of Security.

It was only allowing Fast Track through the Departures A, and diverted me to Security B downstairs. Great. was only 5 minutes if that and on my way.

No probs there at all today.


(back again to fly Mykonos on the 7th. will report back)