How do people from the UK deal with the long flights?

[matt_taylor1985]

I've been going to Florida for many years and still do. Now I find that the flight doesn't bother me, but when I was younger it used to feel like a lifetime and I would be bored out of my skull.

So for all you brits out there, how do you and your family cope?

 

[aurora1982]

Long story but...

I have a bit of a fetish for American supermarkets (yeah, I'm weird) so DBF and I did a big trip to Publix on our last trip. It's not only good for picking up cool, and incredibly cheap, souvenirs for family like jars of PB&J (in the same jar!), Kraft cheese in a can (joke present for dad, a Fast Show fan - "If you like cheese... you'll love squeezy cheese") and also the medication...

In the UK it's impossible to buy useful over-the-counter drugs in bulk - they won't sell aspirin or paracetamol in packs of more than twenty, because they reckon you'll use them to top yourself! Plus, over-the-counter sleeping pills are so much better than British ones (has anyone noticed any difference when taking Nytol???).

So anyway, we bought bulk bottles of Advil - "that'd be enough to kill a horse!" piped up my dad - and this wonderful sleeping tablet called easysleep.

That did the trick just perfectly - one of those just before boarding and you can snooze for most of the trip, and wake up refreshed when you land. Just remember to fill in all the little card things as soon as you board, or you'll be in trouble at the other end!

My uncle is a seriously nervous flier, and swears by Valium and a large whisky, but I wouldn't recommend it...

ETA: Obviously none of this is helpful if you have children. Unless you don't mind what they get up to while you're happily sleeping...

 

[minnie2000]

I would love to know what an average ticket price - Orlando to England - is these days.

We are considering a trip to the UK next summer. I had a little sticker shock yesterday when I looked up tickets!

For the last few years, we've paid about £400 - £500 per adult, and its a little cheaper for the kids. I've tried getting prices for next year and they all seem to be £800 plus We don't think we'll be going next year, unless there is a sale on air tickets

 

[lac628]

OK, this may be a dumb question, but why is the flight longer going to Orlando than it is going back home???

 

[aurora1982]

I always thought it had something to do with the Trade Winds, but I really don't know.

Don't worry - a genuinely dumb question is, when looking at the tickets, asking why it only takes 8hrs one way and 16hrs the other (he was looking at local times, bless him)

 

[TheDisneyMagic]

OK, this may be a dumb question, but why is the flight longer going to Orlando than it is going back home???

The tail winds are always in your favour flying back towards the UK or Europe so this takes off sometimes a good hour of the flight.

 

[Ilovewishes]

Fly Virgin!

I'm with you on this one! After flying with Virgin for the first time, I won't fly with anyone else! And we don't even have kids!

With the films, games etc, the time just flies by!

 

[matt_taylor1985]

We booked in July, for the 25th of September and paid about £370 per person.

 

[aurora1982]

Are you flying direct, Matt?

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

The tail winds are always in your favour flying back towards the UK or Europe so this takes off sometimes a good hour of the flight.

Its less to do with winds, and plenty to do with landing fees, aircraft turn rounds and passenger handling times.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Sometimes its better to look at Virgin Atlantics prices rather than Virgin holidays, same plane same airports :lookaroun

 

[dazzer68]

pack my ipod, books,bottle of water, asprin, in hand luggage, settle in for a nine hour flight with all these, use on board entertainment, sleep at the beginning of flight, then when i arrive we stay up till local time of about 11/12 pm then go to bed and ready for the florida sunrise to get to the parks.
im another 'virgin'devotee, have flown a few airlines but virgin are the best (apart from emirates but they dont go that way round!).
didnt book through virgin tho , jetsave much cheaper that virgin!?

 

[aurora1982]

The Emirates lounge is what I believe heaven to be like

 

[matt_taylor1985]

Are you flying direct, Matt?

Nope, this time we're stopping off for an hour or two in Newark, which I don't mind cause we're travelling with kids so it'll give them a chance to get off and stretch the legs.

 

[luckyeye13]

Nope, this time we're stopping off for an hour or two in Newark, which I don't mind cause we're travelling with kids so it'll give them a chance to get off and stretch the legs.

Ah, yes, good ol' EWR. Hopefully, the queue for Immigration won't be terribly long when you arrive, as it does tend to move much more slowly than in Orlando. (If this does cause you to miss your flight, though, there are generally plenty of flights available to MCO to be rebooked to.) Since I work for the other big British carrier that hasn't been mentioned here, I have spent plenty of time assisting passengers in the arrivals area of Terminal B. If you arrive at this terminal, as plenty of Continental international arrivals do go there, you will have to hustle, since you will also need to take the AirTrain monorail to Terminal C and clear security there. However, if you arrive in Terminal C, you should have an easier time as you will only need to clear security after finishing with border control.

 

[pjulie75]

:ROFLOL:

Nope, this time we're stopping off for an hour or two in Newark, which I don't mind cause we're travelling with kids so it'll give them a chance to get off and stretch the legs.

Just remember to check in nice and early. We were flying home to Glasgow from Orlando via Newark with Continental and they double booked us!!!! We were returning from our honeymoon and they only had a seat for 1 of us to return, what a joke. They were going to fly one of us and put the other one in a connecting flight via Amsterdam. They had a sort of auction thing, to try and get someone off the plane, I was crying, doors were about to close and all of a sudden someone decided to take them up on offer, I was rushed on to plane and it took off home, stress stress stress:brick:Returning from honeymoon and we were put in different ends of plane until a nice family let us swap seats so that we could sit together:animwink:. I have flown with Continental quite a few times and have always had a pleasant flight but learned to check in early.

We have just booked with Virgin for next summer from Manchester, never flown with then so am quite excited, we have 5 year old twin girls, so hopefully they will be kept occupied. What do they get in their kids backpack?? Hopefully Virgin won't fold before then!!! I know a few people who were about to go with Travel City Direct and have lost their holiday, so sad.

 

[matt_taylor1985]

Ah, yes, good ol' EWR. Hopefully, the queue for Immigration won't be terribly long when you arrive, as it does tend to move much more slowly than in Orlando. (If this does cause you to miss your flight, though, there are generally plenty of flights available to MCO to be rebooked to.) Since I work for the other big British carrier that hasn't been mentioned here, I have spent plenty of time assisting passengers in the arrivals area of Terminal B. If you arrive at this terminal, as plenty of Continental international arrivals do go there, you will have to hustle, since you will also need to take the AirTrain monorail to Terminal C and clear security there. However, if you arrive in Terminal C, you should have an easier time as you will only need to clear security after finishing with border control.

I've flown to Newark before so I know what to expect.

 

[matt_taylor1985]

:ROFLOL:
Just remember to check in nice and early. We were flying home to Glasgow from Orlando via Newark with Continental and they double booked us!!!!

It should be ok. We've done that thing with Continental where you check in, so we already know what seats we have....as long as they don't get double booked :ROFLOL:

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

It should be ok. We've done that thing with Continental where you check in, so we already know what seats we have....as long as they don't get double booked :ROFLOL:

We've done the UK - Newark, get off, wander around, get bored and then get on your new flight with Continental before. At check-in at Newark and Orlando, Continental staff were bribing travellers to miss the flight with stop-overs and upgrades as they had too many travellers and not enough seats

 

[matt_taylor1985]

Like I say i've done the whole flying with continental thing before, and I haven't had any problems.

 

[Phonedave]

I have a bit of a fetish for American supermarkets (yeah, I'm weird) so DBF and I did a big trip to Publix on our last trip. It's not only good for picking up cool, and incredibly cheap, souvenirs for family like jars of PB&J (in the same jar!),

I have been an American all my life, and druing high school and college I worked in a grocery store (for 7 years). I have NEVER seen anyone buy that PB&J together in the same jar - never. I mean somone must, because we would order a new case of it every couple of months, but I never saw them. Maybe it was tourists

-dave