The HfP chat thread – Wednesday 19th May

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• James says:

  19 May19 May 07:28

  Can the free NHS lateral flow tests be used when returning to the U.K. from Portugal?

  • Andrew says:

    19 May19 May 07:32

    I don’t see how as they can’t be verified or certificated – waving a plastic stick at them with a negative mark on arrival probably won’t work.

    • TGLoyalty says:

      19 May19 May 08:02

      Well you get a text.

      • Tracey says:

        19 May19 May 08:20

        The text is based on whatever you tell it, totally on verifiable, not worth the paper it isn’t written on..

        • TGLoyalty says:

          19 May19 May 08:43

          Yep and home tests can’t verify who actually used the swab yet are allowed for all sorts.

  • abc says:

    19 May19 May 08:35

    The government website explicitly says they can’t: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-testing-for-people-travelling-to-england

    • Pete M says:

      19 May19 May 09:40

      Qured is the closest/cheapest you’ll get to the NHS lateral flow tests. They are the same thing, but verified over video.

      • kitten says:

        19 May19 May 13:07

        could you imagine being the person who verifies these over video?!

        • Pete M says:

          19 May19 May 14:45

          I’ve dealt with two and they were both good – one more thorough than the other! But very friendly and pleasant.

• Anna says:

  19 May19 May 07:35

  A couple is being featured on the BBC news for having 2 different holidays booked for the same 10 days in case they can’t travel abroad. Clearly the programmers who think this is some kind of marvel don’t read HFP!

  • Navara says:

    19 May19 May 07:59

    It was also a feature on the local news in Cornwall last night interviewing local business owners implementing new booking terms so a cancellation will be charged in full.

  • David D says:

    19 May19 May 08:00

    Only 2 concurrent holidays booked, how amateur!

    • Anna says:

      19 May19 May 08:12

      I know, complete lightweights!

    • Super Secret Stuff says:

      19 May19 May 09:05

      I’ve only one uk holiday booked. Do I even read HfP, let alone contribute?! 😲

      • Anna says:

        19 May19 May 09:08

        One UK one? Or just one in total? If the latter, you may need some kind of intervention 🤣

        • Super Secret Stuff says:

          19 May19 May 09:49

          One uk holiday in total, none abroad 😢

          Not convinced the risk and hassel is worth it for us. * runs for cover *

        • Super Secret Stuff says:

          19 May19 May 09:51

          Actually two holidays if you count me booking a hotel for the weekend near Gatwick so I can go on the booze in Brighton

        • Anna says:

          19 May19 May 10:25

          They all count, Super Stuff. But you should really have bagged something refundable for next Easter or early May bank holiday or you’ll be getting your HFP membership cancelled 😂

        • Rob says:

          19 May19 May 10:27

          We have nothing booked beyond May Half Term week at the moment. I think we’ll end up winging it at short notice. Promised by daughter I’d take her to New York for a couple of days at the end of term if that opens up but that’s the extent of our planning.

        • Super Secret Stuff says:

          19 May19 May 13:08

          @Anna hahaha, I am planing to book a nice hotel for the long Jubilee weekend on points as soon as they go on sale! However, didn’t see any interesting deals for the early May Bank Holiday so passed on that

          @Rob I think we are on the same wave length here! Might wing it, might not

        • The Savage Squirrel says:

          19 May19 May 13:16

          With the number of people who have multiple bookings, do the smart HfPers in fact have zero bookings, in the confident knowledge that all the late cancellations of refundable deals will means some mega-deals and points availability to all sorts of things opening up for those able to travel at short notice? 😀

        • Super Secret Stuff says:

          19 May19 May 14:44

          @SS it does stand to reason that there will be a host of short notice deals available once people start getting freaked out by another variant and cancel things. Further, hotels need the money after the year they’ve had.

          Not to go too far and call myself smart, but so far I’ve only had to cancel one international holiday since it started and I’ve had 2 UK holidays in that time. Also, I am sitting on a travel zoo voucher for the Manchester Indigo and 110,000 melia points bought on the gift cards

        • Super Secret Stuff says:

          19 May19 May 14:45

          Wish there was an edit button.

          I’ve had 2 U holidays since covid started and got 2 booked. Plus the travel zoo and melia options

• Matthias says:

  19 May19 May 07:44

  I signed up for the Amex Biz Plat 100k deal in late March – but have just received the ‘standard’ 40k bonus for spending 6k. Does anyone l know if I will get the extra 60k bonus once I’ve spent another 4k, or have they accidentally put me on the standard scheme?

  Thanks

  • Olver says:

    19 May19 May 08:35

    I had the same issue with the gold, the easiest would be to contact support and they will fix it, although you do have to push for it a bit and have them escalate the case.

  • Rob says:

    19 May19 May 08:39

    You were approved after April 9th and put on the standard scheme. Call centre can adjust but you might as well spend the £10k first because there is nothing they can do yet except take the 40k away.

    • Matthias says:

      19 May19 May 11:07

      Thanks Rob. I received my card on the 6th of April and my first statement is 6th April to 5th May so very odd. But I will ring.

  • N says:

    19 May19 May 12:02

    this happened to me as well and my heart skipped a beat when they told me i’d been enrolled on the 40k bonus rather than the 100k one. however they said they will ensure the points get added once i spend the £10k. so just give them a call and explain it

  • The Savage Squirrel says:

    19 May19 May 13:19

    I’ve had the exact same issue as an operative cancelled my application and entered a new one (without my knowledge) in order to change some details on the application. Now 10k is spent, have pushed it up the chain twice via call centre and allegedly getting looked at this week by someone more senior, but will be into “throwing a strop” mode if they don’t sort it.

• ee says:

  19 May19 May 07:48

  Regarding Kimpton Charlotte Square – what are peoples views on whether it is worth a circa 15k points per night premium over the Indigo York Place?

  Am curious whether the wine hour is currently happening and whether the breakfast rate is negotiable in advance on points stays?

  • lumma says:

    19 May19 May 08:16

    Stayed there last week before the loosening of restrictions and I could get 1 glass of wine free via room service instead of the wine hour, so I’d guess they’ll have restarted it properly now. I didn’t get any sort of room upgrade as a platinum on a points stay.

    I didn’t bother with breakfast due to numerous options nearby that were far better value for money.

  • Anna says:

    19 May19 May 08:16

    Haven’t stayed at the Indigo but loved the Kimpton. We negotiated breakfast at the then per room price (about £17) but I noticed this had changed to pp by the time of our stay. Get any agreement in writing as they tried to charge full price and I had to produce the original email as proof.
    Wine hour was delivered to the room but I don’t know if the alcohol rules changed this week?
    Kimpton service was otherwise excellent, helped with restaurant bookings etc and there is a nice pool which I don’t think the Indigo has.

  • Rhys says:

    19 May19 May 08:53

    I reviewed it in 2019: https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2019/12/22/review-kimpton-charlotte-square-edinburgh-hotel/

    Remember Scottish restrictions are different to England.

  • Kai says:

    19 May19 May 08:53

    I hate the Indigo. Booked a suite which turned out to be in the basement, and service was no good. Not going to return.

    Kimpton is probably one of, if not THE best IHG hotel in the UK. Perfectly refurbished room, nice indoor garden, and good service etc.

  • Steve says:

    19 May19 May 10:26

    How points rich are you with IHG? Cash rate may be better if you have a spend £350 get £100 back on your Amex

  • Peggerz says:

    19 May19 May 13:06

    Kimpton is worth it.
    It is very central, a lovely Georgian building in the nicest square in Edinburgh’s New Town. Restaurants Aizle & Baba should both be open. Staff first class and pool etc in spa. Plenty of pubs and resto’s in the vicinity.
    Indigo York is central, with tram stop outside. Nice, but not a patch on Kimpton IMO. There are a good selections of bars and resto’s in Broughton Street area 2 mins away.
    Re the wine hour, that may now have returned at Edinburgh is in Tier 2 of restrictions.

    • ee says:

      19 May19 May 18:42

      Thanks for the feedback all. I’ll book the Kimpton and drop them an email. Think we deserve a treat after all this time!

      We’re still 50/50 about flying from LHR to EDI as my partner is unvaccinated. Am hoping she will become eligible early next week (she’s 34) which will just about give enough time for her to get some level of protection before we go. However we do have backup booking down south if need be!

  • Munch says:

    19 May19 May 19:43

    Stayed last weekend on points. Currently Spire Elite so upgraded to a premium room. Great room but no wifi signal and only lukewarm water so was upgraded to a suite for the last two nights. Service was excellent, enjoyed the Baba restaurant and offered the wine in our room. Recommend the Trainspotting (the film) walking tour in Leith – a bit “gritty” if you fancy an alternative type tour.

• Diydegsy says:

  19 May19 May 07:52

  BA have moved our business class flights to Mexico in June so that we leave a day later and come back a day earlier which I can accept but it means when we land in Heathrow we have a 5 and a half hour wait for our flight to manchester as there are no other flights do we have any recourse apart from not accepting the flights?

  • Matt says:

    19 May19 May 08:15

    Change your flights to other days – could push the whole trip back to another time. Or get a refund.

    • Diydegsy says:

      19 May19 May 08:22

      Hi thanks Matt but we can’t as we are already leaving a day later and it would mean coming back 2 days later which we can’t due to other commitments. It looks like BA are now just flying to Mexico City every other day now on their timetable.

      • Matt says:

        19 May19 May 12:31

        I was meaning postpone the whole trip to another time entirely, if you don’t have anything to tie you to June

    • Lady London says:

      19 May19 May 13:17

      +1 at this time, take the legal right which you now have as legally your booked flights have been cancelled so either take the whole thing as a refund or, if it was advantageously priced and you still want to travel there, exercise your right to move the whole thing to a much later date of your choice.

      If it was an avios booking you are *not* restricted to future dates when there are avios seats available : any seats being sold for cash in same class are yours at no extra cost to you.

  • Matthias says:

    19 May19 May 08:25

    What recourse were you hoping for? You could try and haggle for a few points in ‘compensation’, but I doubt you’ll get them (although no harm in trying) – not sure what else BA could offer?

    • Lady London says:

      19 May19 May 13:18

      no chance of anything extra on that size of gap

  • Harry T says:

    19 May19 May 08:31

    If they moved your flights by a day without your permission it counts as an involuntary cancellation. You therefore have the usual right to reroute or refund.

    • roberto says:

      19 May19 May 08:38

      The bigger issue could be the threatened lockdown in large parts of Mexico which would I guess get the whole country red listed.

      • Harry T says:

        19 May19 May 08:42

        Yeah, South America in June seems incredibly optimistic.

        • PerkyPat says:

          19 May19 May 09:33

          Mexico is North America, but your point stands. They are looking to have every adult vaccinated by October, so might be a good bet for winter sun.

  • mvcvz says:

    19 May19 May 08:35

    I live in mid-Cheshire, about 30 minutes drive from MAN. I almost never connect to LHR but simply drive down there and back. Saves all the endless waiting around for unreliable connections etc and only takes about 2.5 hours if traffic is favourable.

  • Anna says:

    19 May19 May 09:12

    BA are forever tinkering with the MAN-LHR schedule so don’t make any decisions based on that as you could move to different dates and still find you have a wait for your connection due to last minute changes. You can use the lounge time to get showered and catch up on some reading/work/watching YouTube (if you’ve got teenagers).

  • Andrew says:

    19 May19 May 09:33

    What do you *want* to do?

    The domestic flight seems a total faff to me at the best of times. It’s only 2 hours from Euston to Manchester on the train, and it’s just a 3 hour drive from Heathrow to Manchester if you get a clear run.

    • mvcvz says:

      19 May19 May 10:17

      The time from Euston to Manchester on a train is largely irrelevant, as in my personal experience aircraft tend not to depart from these stations. It’s the door-to-door time which is important. I can drive from my home to LHR and be in T5 within 2hrs 45mins on 90% of journeys. This is far quicker (and infinitely more pleasant) then schlepping to MAN for a connecting flight to LHR

    • Tim says:

      19 May19 May 11:36

      Euston isn’t Heathrow so not a very helpful comparison. I commute weekly to LHR from MAN and door to door (of my house to my hotel) it takes me 2hrs most of the time.

• Colin says:

  19 May19 May 08:42

  Not sure if mentioned yesterday… Vaccine QR codes on the NHS app

• KD says:

  19 May19 May 08:58

  BA Customer Service is really poor. I made a genuine mistake where I meant to book a flight last Monday at 10.22am for 12.15pm the following Monday but actually booked the 12.15 flight that was departing in less than 2 hours instead. Genuinely didn’t notice till I tried to book in on the morning of the following Monday. It was my mistake I know and I had to book another flight from Heathrow to Jersey as I had travelled from Scotland. I emailed BA customer service anyway because it was less than 2 hours from booking till departure and I reside in Scotland so it’s obvious it’s a mistake as I couldn’t have got the flight unless I was standing in the terminal and I imagined they’d say no but worth a try. It wasn’t the no that bothered me it was the copy and paste you had to 24 hours to rebooked and you were a no show so your flight was cancelled “please be rest assured I have spoken to the team and steps are being put in place to ensure this doesn’t happen again” they put steps in place to ensure I don’t make a mistake? A big long list of a copy and paste which bears no relevance to what I said means they didn’t even read it or care and that’s more annoying that a No.

  • Beardless Hipster says:

    19 May19 May 09:40

    Ryanair would pop up and say you could only get that at the airport.

• David says:

  19 May19 May 09:11

  I had my Virgin Atlantic flight cancelled recently (booked when it was 50% off on points redemptions). My understanding is that I can rebook it for some time in the future. Is there a certain date I need to book by? (E.g. does it have to be booked before when the flight was scheduled for, or within a certain number days of getting notified of the cancellation, etc)

  • ChasP says:

    19 May19 May 09:43

    I got a voucher for a new flight that has to be used by April 2023 use whatsapp and keep a record

  • Reney says:

    19 May19 May 12:19

    I got a refund, since I cannot keep the 50% points discount no point keeping the tax money with Virgin. I did check, they said I had to pay the extra miles if I book into the future.

    • David says:

      19 May19 May 12:39

      Surely that’s not right? Since they are the ones that cancelled, aren’t they supposed to allow you to rebook at a time you choose without having to pay anything extra (including any additional points)? Or am I making this up? Can someone please confirm

      • Travel Strong says:

        19 May19 May 12:42

        +1 David. Believe you are correct.

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