Consolidated thread about Ex-DUB and other Ex-EU travel.

Don't stress! The problems at Calais haven't been affecting Eurostar, just the vehicle shuttles, and there are other ways to get to LHR (albeit not as cheap).

When you check in with BA at BRU they'll give you your boarding passes for the VS flight and check your bags through. I've done exactly the same - all I'd say is it's worth stopping by the VS transfer desk in T3 flight connections or the concierge desk in the Clubhouse just to confirm you've arrived and check your bags are in the system ok. But all should be fine.

You should be fine short checking bags on the way back. There've only been a couple of reports of agents refusing - neither at MIA - and the worst case scenario is they'll demand a fee for doing it but the ex-EU savings mean you'll still easily come out on top.

I've been checking UC fares DUB to east coast USA in September & whilst BA is showing at around £1,300 return in CW, Virgin UC is around £2,300 whichever destination I enter?! Have VA closed this loophole? Any help would be appreciated

Check from CPH. I got £1225 fares a week or so ago to NY.

I've been checking UC fares DUB to east coast USA in September & whilst BA is showing at around £1,300 return in CW, Virgin UC is around £2,300 whichever destination I enter?! Have VA closed this loophole? Any help would be appreciated

It depends on your dates. It could be that if you were looking to fly in early September that the advance purchase periods have started to drop out of the system

Again it is not a 'loophole' to be closed it is airlines offering (or not) fares to different markets to encourage passengers to fly with them rather than another airline.

I've noticed too that airline X appears not to offer a fare from say DUB but does from AMS and airline Y does the reverse.

And you should check e.g. AMS, CPH, FRA and BRU as well as the deals do change depending on dates and destinations.

Don't stress! The problems at Calais haven't been affecting Eurostar, just the vehicle shuttles, and there are other ways to get to LHR (albeit not as cheap).

When you check in with BA at BRU they'll give you your boarding passes for the VS flight and check your bags through. I've done exactly the same - all I'd say is it's worth stopping by the VS transfer desk in T3 flight connections or the concierge desk in the Clubhouse just to confirm you've arrived and check your bags are in the system ok. But all should be fine.

You should be fine short checking bags on the way back. There've only been a couple of reports of agents refusing - neither at MIA - and the worst case scenario is they'll demand a fee for doing it but the ex-EU savings mean you'll still easily come out on top.

I was thinking - hoping - along the lines you mentioned, that doing online check in from BRU will mean I get boarding passed right through (and yes, checking with the VS transfer desk seems like a plan). What isn't so clear is when I try to check in online to come back. The first (only!) flight will be VS, but when I input the PNR on Virgin, I get a message to say it doesn't match anything. Which is puzzling and worrying in equal measure. It's definitely the PNR Expedia have me, and I also have one for BA. I've tried inputting middle names too, as I think this could be an issue, but it makes no difference.

I suppose I could just do the old-fashioned thing and check in at the airport when we come home....

catsilverworld did you input your FC number when booking through expedia? If so you might find the booking on your account 'my future flights page' already. If not, then give VS FC a call and ask them to look into it and see if they can send you an e-ticket email.

As Bretty says, the only way I can access my ex-EU flight is via the future flights link, and even then it only shows up as the very first leg on BA, only once I click on that do I see all 4 sectors and have the ability to change seats etc. as normal

Exactly so Seany. I can see the flights on my account, but if I input my booking ref, it doesn't recognise it, so I assume from that it won't let you manage the flight that way either?

Have you got more than one booking ref from Expedia? Mine has three as follows:

CONFIRMED
British Airways ***92K
Virgin Atlantic ***2NS
Expedia Booking ID ***92K

The BA code matches the Expedia Booking ID, although the flights were booked by Expedia with VS as that's who the payment was made to on the credit card statement.

Going to 'Future Flights' in my FC account gives me the link:

BA833 Dublin (DUB) to London (LHR)...

That then lets me manage the VS portion of the journey, and shows the Booking Ref at the top of the page as the Virgin Atlantic ref, and I can also get to it using that ref on search form.

If I log into my (newly created) BAEC account, I can manage the BA portion of the journey using the BA/Expedia ref and can also see the VS flights on there. It also shows my baggage allowance for each flight as being 3x32kg bags as well as the following notice highlighted in yellow:

If you do not check your bags through to your final destination, you may incur multiple and/or additional baggage charges.

As Doomwolf says Expedia provides booking refs for each airline in your itinerary so you should be able to manage both VS and BA bookings in full on the BA & VS sites using the respective booking refs. The Expedia and BA refs are always the same.

[honey lamb]

As Doomwolf says Expedia provides booking refs for each airline in your itinerary so you should be able to manage both VS and BA bookings in full on the BA & VS sites using the respective booking refs. The Expedia and BA refs are always the same.

Beat me to it, James!

Still can't get reasonable costs on Expedia, can anyone recommend other sites?

Still can't get reasonable costs on Expedia, can anyone recommend other sites?

I used booking.com recently

And I've used ebookers.

Still can't get reasonable costs on Expedia, can anyone recommend other sites?

I used booking.com recently

oops, memory going with old age! mine was ebookers as well.

Apologies if this has been asked before.

Does my hold luggage have to do the whole journey from Dublin?

Thanks.

You can check-in your luggage at LGW no problem.

We did the same trip this year. As you are changing airports you will have to collect your bags when you land at LHR and recheck them in at LGW the next day.

Steve

Have you got more than one booking ref from Expedia? Mine has three as follows:

CONFIRMED
British Airways ***92K
Virgin Atlantic ***2NS
Expedia Booking ID ***92K

The BA code matches the Expedia Booking ID, although the flights were booked by Expedia with VS as that's who the payment was made to on the credit card statement.

Going to 'Future Flights' in my FC account gives me the link:

BA833 Dublin (DUB) to London (LHR)...

That then lets me manage the VS portion of the journey, and shows the Booking Ref at the top of the page as the Virgin Atlantic ref, and I can also get to it using that ref on search form.

If I log into my (newly created) BAEC account, I can manage the BA portion of the journey using the BA/Expedia ref and can also see the VS flights on there. It also shows my baggage allowance for each flight as being 3x32kg bags as well as the following notice highlighted in yellow:

If you do not check your bags through to your final destination, you may incur multiple and/or additional baggage charges.

Yes indeed doom. I have three ref numbers (Expedia, BA and VS) and can see the flights on my FC account, so can view seats and so on, but what I find puzzling that is that if I input the VS ref number into my FC account, it doesn't recognise it. Weird.

By flying out of and into DUB instead of LHR I am saving about £4500 for myself and my folks.

EK have a service direct from DUB-DXB... very handy for any going east wanting to avoid the fun overcharge of flying from LHR or LGW.

EK have a service direct from DUB-DXB... very handy for any going east wanting to avoid the fun overcharge of flying from LHR or LGW.

Thanks for reminding me about that Joey. My next planned OZ trip to and fro Adelaide in J comes out at £2383 ex Dublin, £3554 ex Heathrow.

[honey lamb]

EK have a service direct from DUB-DXB... very handy for any going east wanting to avoid the fun overcharge of flying from LHR or LGW.

Thanks for reminding me about that Joey. My next planned OZ trip to and fro Adelaide in J comes out at £2383 ex Dublin, £3554 ex Heathrow.

Also, look at Etihad ex-DUB if going east and transit in Abu Dhabi rather than Dubai.

Will do HL. I am gold on EY and also have EK miles to spend!!!

So the last few days I've been planning a trip to the US. I've been checking several destinations on several airlines from several airports.

Tonight I was playing on google flights and plugged in Chicago but forgot to change the start point to DUB but left it as LHR and I was shocked when the price came up and it was £1.1k flying various DL/VS combinations.

I was expecting it to become even cheaper If I changed the start point to the usual suspects but it didn't. It was still cheaper to fly from LHR.

I couldn't book it on-line on VS (indeed the fare I got wasn't even showing) but I could on the DL and Expedia websites so I used Expedia. And given the trip involves a couple of internal flights I earn extra miles and TPs too


So it goes to show that as well as checking the ex-EU options it does sometimes pay to check the price when flying from LHR.

And you should always check the ex-LHR fare anyway so you know if you really are saving anything once you've accounted for positioning flights etc. A couple of the options I was considering actually saved very little when totalling all the costs up and one was actually more expensive!

Just to add I've gone for DL flights as the timings (especially outbound) were better for same day travel to LHR and on the return flying via ATL means a later arrival back which suits me better.