England tours & Ireland tours : Guaranteed Airport Transfers.

What does ‘guaranteed airport transfer’ mean on our England tours & Ireland tours?

This is one of the most important aspects of your vacation but with many tour operators there is a lot of small print and conditions about who gets an airport transfer. When you arrive in Ireland or Great Britain you have had a long flight & are jet-lagged. The last thing you need is ‘small print conditions’ for getting to your hotel!

This is our small print ………….

We will pick you up at the designated arrival airport on arrival day no matter where you buy your air ticket, no matter what time your flight arrives [Even if it is hours late.] & take you to the hotel. After a Jolly Good time we will get you to the designated departure airport on departure day. In London that includes both Heathrow and Gatwick airports. All airport transfers are INCLUDEDin the tour prices.

That is the end of the small print. Details follow …

• We INCLUDE & guarantee EVERYBODY an airport to hotel transfer on arrival day in Ireland & Great Britain no matter where you buy your air ticket. Most tour operators will only pick you up at the arrival airport if you buy your air ticket through them. Invariably the airfare costs MUCH MORE through the tour operator than buying direct through your travel agent or online. A recent example for MIA-ORD-DUB r/t for March 2012 was over $1,000 per person (Yes one thousand!) more through the tour operator than online! A cab from Dublin Airport to your downtown hotel is only $45! Go figure! When it comes to buying your air ticket we want you to get the best deal so we will collect you at the arrival airport wherever you buy your air ticket knowing that you have a few extra bucks in your pocket to have a good time. Need some advice? Although we don’t sell air tickets (Yet!) we can certainly point you in the right direction for the best deals & the best routes. If you are not internet savvy get your kids/grandkids to book your tickets online for you ….. not forgetting to retrieve your credit card! It is also worth a few $$$ to get a travel agent to book your tickets. More info..
  
• We INCLUDE & guarantee EVERYBODY an airport to hotel transfer on arrival day in Ireland & Great Britain no matter what time your flight arrives. Most tour operators will only pick you up at the airport on arrival if you arrive at your scheduled time or during the morning only. For example if your flight is delayed by a few hours and you arrive mid-afternoon then you often have to make your own way to your downtown hotel even though you have paid for the transfer in the tour price or airfare supplement. If your flight has been delayed a few hours it usually means that you have had an horrendous journey, are very tired & just want to get to your hotel. In your hour of need your tour operator has deserted you right at the beginning of the tour! WE WILL BE THERE waiting for you and will further make sure you get sufficiently ‘fed & watered’. Last September we were still at Glasgow Airport at 8.30pm waiting for a delayed flight.
• On your arrival at the airport most tour operators will consolidate transfers to downtown so you will have to wait maybe 2-3 hours for other flights to arrive. Our policy is a maximum 1 hour wait although it is usually much less.
• We INCLUDE & guarantee EVERYBODY an hotel to airport transfer on departure day in Ireland & Great Britain.
• In London on departure day some tour operators will include a transfer to either Heathrow or Gatwick but not both airports. Your cheapest flight maybe using the one not included. In London we INCLUDE an airport transfer to both Gatwick & Heathrow Airports.
• On departure day there are frequently group consolidations for airport transfers meaning that you may be taken to the airport 6 hours too early or worse at a later time that puts you under pressure for your flight. In fact departure day arrangements can frequently ruin a great vacation! With Jolly Good Tours you go when YOU want to.
• Most tour operators take you to Gatwick and Heathrow Airports by road in the London rush hour! These journeys can take 4 hours and 2 hours respectively (or more). With Jolly Good Tours you go by the Gatwick Express train (30 minutes) or the Heathrow Express/Connect train (15 – 30 minutes). Where would you rather be?
• Arriving a day early or leaving a few days later? Although we can’t guarantee this for operational reasons if you arrive a day early and we have someone around we will do our best to pick you up free of charge so just ask. Likewise we can probably arrange an INCLUDED unassisted airport transfer after the designated departure day meaning we will arrange necessary tickets etc. for no extra charge but you would bravely have to do the journey on your own!
• Finally the worst possible way to start any vacation/tour is to take a convoluted flight routing just to save a few $. This is an actual example that we came across at Shannon Airport a couple of years ago. An 80+ year old couple who bought their air ticket through the tour operator were routed Denver-San Fransisco-Toronto-London Gatwick to then transfer unassisted and at their own expense by ground transport to London Heathrow to catch a flight to Shannon, Ireland for an 8 day tour! Absolutely jaw-dropping! I say they were 80+ but after that journey they may well have been in their 50s just looking 80+.
• There really is no need to fly like that. One stop is the most you should consider. Never take a route that requires ground transport between airports. London Gatwick to London Heathrow and v.v. is an absolute nightmare and although we have never done and have no intention of doing it we imagine that changing airports in New York is just as difficult. DON’T DO IT! Also never take a flight that gives less than a 3 hours connection at London Heathrow.
  

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Your INCLUDED transfer to Heathrow Airport is by Heathrow Express/Connect Train. It takes just 15-30 minutes.

Your INCLUDED transfer from Dublin City Center to Dublin Airport is by the 747 Express Bus sometimes.

Your INCLUDED transfer by The Gatwick Express Train takes you to Gatwick Airport in 30 minutes.

When using Manchester Airport we transfer downtown by the Manchester Airport Express train in 17 minutes.

Our more leisurely Ireland tours use other forms of transport for the airport.