The HfP chat thread – Sunday 10th October

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• Simon says:

  10 Oct10 October 08:56

  Hi does virgin Atlantic price promise like BA

  • ChrisC says:

    10 Oct10 October 08:59

    This got asked a couple of days ago as well.

    No they don’t.

  • Jonathan says:

    10 Oct10 October 09:53

    When you buy Economy tickets for Virgin Atlantic anywhere but themselves, it’s often hard to know what type of ticket you’re being sold, since they’ve got three types of tickets, and I think Economy Delight is one the harder ones to find via 3rd part ticket selling agents.

    Virgin Atlantic’s Economy tickets are as follows:

    Light – T

    Classic – O

    Delight – V

    Delight nearly always the best option out the three classes listed above, unless you’re hardly carrying anything on your travels !

• S879 says:

  10 Oct10 October 09:06

  Trying to book tickets with Etihad using Etihad credit. Used Amex promo code and need to pay a few hundred by Amex. However, it is not showing the option to pay via travel bank credit. Someone here said they were able to do it. I want it to use the travel bank credit and pay the remaining by Amex. If I go via travel bank option to search, it doesn’t allow me to put the promo code. What am I doing wrong?

  • Ali M says:

    10 Oct10 October 09:22

    amex promo?tell me more pls x

    • S879 says:

      10 Oct10 October 09:29

      It’s the 10% off code discussed here, not any new offer on Amex cards. Someone said they used their Etihad credit with the discount code and paid a small amount on Amex. It’s only showing me the option to pay via Amex on the payment screen so perhaps I need to click somewhere but can’t see.

      • Andrew says:

        10 Oct10 October 09:46

        It’s less than a 10% discount as it’s only off the base fare – makes it about 5% discount.

        • S879 says:

          10 Oct10 October 09:47

          True but for 4 people its coming up to just under £200 so ideally, if I can get the discount, I’d like to.

  • Dominic says:

    10 Oct10 October 10:05

    Hello – I managed to do it. Are you trying to go directly via the link or using the Amex code?

    Trying to replicate how I did it but having some issues logging in atm… I have a feeling either the Amex special link worked, or the promo code, but not both. Took a few attempts.

    • S879 says:

      10 Oct10 October 10:21

      Thanks. Please do update how you did it. I have tried to it by inputting code manually where it says promo code. I also then tried to do it via following a link but each time at the payment page it says this is the payment option for your promo code. Did you put a promo at a later stage?

      • Talay says:

        10 Oct10 October 15:01

        I don’t see how this is possible. I have (wish I didn’t) travelbank credit.

        For simplicity, the price is £1000, you put in a 10% off code, now the price is £900. When you go to pay, you can’t split payment type and to get the offer, you have to pay by Amex, which precludes using travelbank.

        I am happy to be corrected but I think the person saying they paid with joint Amex and travelbank was perhaps confused or didn’t have enough travelbank to pay it all. I certainly don’t see any dual pay options.

      • Ravi says:

        10 Oct10 October 15:17

        Promo code is entered at the very beginning and travel credit on the last page.

        • S879 says:

          10 Oct10 October 17:30

          I tried everything and yes, you can’t use both. Gave up and just used the travel credit and paid the remaining balance with Amex. Yes, you put the promo code at the beginning Ravi but then it doesn’t give you the option to pay by Travel Bank at the payment page.

• Kwisstan says:

  10 Oct10 October 09:06

  I managed to bag one of the AA flights from Casablanca. I have an overnight at the start and the end of my trip (March). Does anyone have a recommendation for a hotel there? Full 24 hours each end, so should be enough to explore a little

  • Jonathan says:

    10 Oct10 October 10:12

    There’s not a lot to see and do there, (aside from visiting the big Mosque) trust me I was there 3 weeks ago !
    It’s probably better to use a hotel that’s right near the airport since it’s a 45 minute taxi journey to the airport to the city

    • Kwisstan says:

      10 Oct10 October 10:33

      Thank you. Will look over the options.

• Sharon says:

  10 Oct10 October 09:06

  Hi, with opportunities for collecting IHG points via creation closing in December, would converting Tesco clubcard points to IHG (via Virgin) be poor value?

  • DJ says:

    10 Oct10 October 10:07

    I think so, because that would be 1:1 from Virgin Red to IHG.

  • Rob says:

    10 Oct10 October 10:33

    Yes.

    100 Clubcard points (£1) = 250 Virgin Points = 250 IHG Points worth (assuming 0.4p per IHG point of value) £1.

    Alternatively 100 Clubcard points (£1) = £3 of Hotels.com credit

    • Sharon says:

      10 Oct10 October 10:40

      Thankyou

• The Streets says:

  10 Oct10 October 09:15

  @JDB yesterday you asked what ΡΑΝΤΕΒΟΥ could mean translated from Greek. If you say the word in Greek i.e. P is pronounced as an R and B as a V then it is Rendezvous..

  • JDB says:

    10 Oct10 October 09:54

    Top of the class! I now speak reasonably fluent Greek but was only just starting when I came across this, and most of the tourists had no idea. You missed the NT consonant combination being the D sound in Greek as Δ is a dth sound and while not in this word, another big one is ΜΠ which makes our B sound as the β is pronounced like a V as in this word. Maybe boring, but useful for those trying out a bit of Greek on holiday.

    • Colin MacKinnon says:

      10 Oct10 October 10:16

      English is pretty queer too!

      Per Oscar Wilde: “Any language in which ghoti is pronounced fish clearly has no pronunciation rules”

      • Chrisasaurus says:

        10 Oct10 October 10:22

        Dough
        Through
        Tough

        ‘Ough’ wears a lot of different hats!

        • RussellH says:

          10 Oct10 October 10:58

          You left out plough + borough for other sounds.

          Then there is the Scots hough (of beef), which always seemed to be pronounced the same as Haugh (as in the Haughs of Cromdale), with the same sound also found in Saughton (in Edinburgh).

          Which meant that I got very confused when I moved just south of the border, where a fairly common surname is Waugh (a local solicitor for one), but which seems to be pronounced woff…

      • JDB says:

        10 Oct10 October 10:23

        Yes, English spelling and pronunciation must make it a hard second language to learn well. My son speaks and writes fairly fluent Mandarin as we wouldn’t let him do the the easy languages he already spoke and the precision of the sounds/tones that completely change meanings seems extraordinary. The one they like to try on foreigners is that apparently the word for panda sounds almost identical to hairy chest!

        • John says:

          10 Oct10 October 10:55

          English is hard to learn because of phrasal verbs.

          Poor pronunciation and spelling in English don’t really hinder communication, think of all the people you interact with in daily life who have less than perfect skills. They only truly matter in situations such as trying to pass an exam for an English degree, doing a highly technical job or perhaps trying to make a good impression.

          It’s sort of similar with tones in Mandarin. As a foreign learner you obviously need to get them right according to Modern Standard Mandarin (the made-up language used by newsreaders and taught to everyone). What makes you sound weird or hard to understand is when you get the tones inconsistently right/wrong.

          For example in Sichuanese the tones are typically opposite to Beijingese, so it takes a bit of exposure and getting used to before you can easily understand it, however a foreigner being inconsistent with tones sounds a bit like someone saying one word in Received Pronunciation then shifting to Geordie for the next, then Glaswegian for the same word.

          Anyway, panda has the same syllables as chest hair but the contours are completely opposite.

      • Rich says:

        10 Oct10 October 12:30

        There once was a fellow from Slough
        Who had a terrible cough
        He was feeling quite rough
        His head felt like dough
        But in the end he pulled through

    • RussellH says:

      10 Oct10 October 11:07

      But these are presumably just the rules of spelling modern Greek, so once you learn them they become second nature. And because the letters are not roman, the complete beginner knows that. It is harder for those who had to learn even the tiniest bit of classical greek, where β did = B and Δ did = D.

      My “favourite” spelling annoyance is the sz combination found in Polish and Hungarian, where in Polish it is a type of English SH sound, while in Magyar it is the plain English unvoiced S.

  • Phil W says:

    10 Oct10 October 11:59

    My wife, who is Polish, was an English teacher and speaks English fluently, believes English to be the easiest language to be conversant in. However, it’s the last 25% that gets you to fluency that is extraordinarily difficult. As mentioned above, she also puts that down to phrasal verbs.

    • Alan says:

      10 Oct10 October 16:55

      Ah, very interesting insight 👍👍

• manilabay says:

  10 Oct10 October 09:40

  Bit confused with the BA website… My TP collection year ends on 8 October, but it doesn’t seem to have reset for the year yet (as of today, 10 Oct). Any idea what this means? I’ve a Euro Biz flight next week so clearly want the points to go into my new/current TP collection year.

  • ChrisC says:

    10 Oct10 October 09:45

    My experience is that the date change isn’t instaneous and like TP posting takes 2-3 days to update/

  • AJA says:

    10 Oct10 October 12:08

    Dont worry your flights next week will go into the new TP year. They post based on date of departure.

    The TP reset will show up either tomorrow or Tuesday. It’s just slow to update because it fell over the weekend.

    • manilabay says:

      10 Oct10 October 13:42

      Ahhh I see – thank you both 😀

• YC says:

  10 Oct10 October 09:44

  Anyone tried the stregis Rome? There’s a decent healthcare rate and stacks with Amex offer. Slightly worried about it’s location, is it a bit dodgy at night near the train station?

  • Paul says:

    10 Oct10 October 10:07

    how do you obtain a healthcare rate?

    • Simon says:

      10 Oct10 October 10:21

      Hjh promo code on Marriott site for Europe ,U.K. , Middle East Africa , valid till 31 Dec this year

    • TGLoyalty says:

      10 Oct10 October 10:24

      Work on healthcare and book using HJH rate code

    • Jonathan says:

      10 Oct10 October 16:33

      Not accusing you of anything nefarious here but I’ve used HJH rate quite a few times & without fail been asked for photo ID at check in.

      • BP says:

        10 Oct10 October 21:17

        I’ve used it twice and never been asked for ID. My wife works in healthcare so we do qualify.

  • Nathan says:

    10 Oct10 October 10:25

    The stregis is on a nice quiet street around ten minutes walk from the train station and is much nicer than the area right next to the station.I have walked both those areas on my own late at night many times and never encountered any problems.
    Enjoy your time in Rome it’s a wonderful city.

    • YC says:

      10 Oct10 October 13:23

      Thanks good to know

• Can says:

  10 Oct10 October 09:47

  Anyone has an idea why the default room occupancy is 1 adult in Hilton app? How can I change it to 2 adults and a child?

  • Anna says:

    10 Oct10 October 09:53

    Why would it not be, Hilton doesn’t know how many of you are staying?! Tap on “1 room, 1 adult” and you can input the required numbers.

  • John says:

    10 Oct10 October 10:58

    As a member, you get 2nd guest stays free so you only need to book for 1 adult and 1 child. Some hotels charge more for more guests in the same room.

    My 2yo happily sleeps in our bed so I don’t book for a child at all, nobody has said anything so far. Need a King size though

    • Save East Coast Rewards says:

      10 Oct10 October 11:41

      In some places there’s a city tax or tourist tax which might be charged per person so even if the hotel is not charging for the extra guest the bill might still be a bit higher. Of course if you really want to avoid paying this you could make sure the other person stays away while you check in/out but then you’d be listed as only one for breakfast

  • Can says:

    10 Oct10 October 15:30

    Sorry I was not clear

    @Anna I meant changing the default family size in the app from 1adult to whatever to save half a second 🙂

    @John in that case do you get two breakfast as a gold/diamond

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