Fly me to the moon, or Flybe to Newquay, but not many stars to play with.
Series: Trip: Christmas 2015 - my first northern hemisphere Christmas
- My first Northern Hemisphere Christmas
- Flying to the UK in business is never cheap at Christmas, unless . . .
- Skyteam Lounge, Sydney – the living wall is only just clinging to life
- Vietnam Airlines – Sydney to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Hey, that A330 is a 777!
- Airport Hotel Transfers – a luxury that is worth it
- Intercontinental Asiana – Staff attention make it a little gem in Saigon
- What should an airport lounge be all about? Vietnam Airlines Lounge – Saigon
- I was a 787 virgin. And now I’ve taken the whole 9. Is it a dream – liner?
- Fly me to the moon, or Flybe to Newquay, but not many stars to play with.
- Off to the Northern Lights – Heathrow Terminal 2 – Priority Pass / Premium Plaza Lounge
- My first ever extreme cold weather flights and de-icing. Scandinavian Airlines London to Tromsø via Oslo
- What do you do when someone is already in the room you have been assigned? Clarion The Edge Hotel, Tromsø, Norway.
- The chase to see the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) from Tromsø, Norway
- Skyteam Lounge Heathrow – Terminal 4. I was a bit disrupted.
- Vietnam Airlines London to Ho Chi Minh City, for some R ‘n R, and an urban break
- Not all Hotels are the same – Intercontinental Asiana, Saigon – the second time around
- HCMC – Saigon to everyone else
- Vietnam Airlines HCMC to Sydney
I have the very good fortune to have a partner who has relatives that reside in Newquay in Cornwall. That means, that each time we go to the UK, we invariably spend a few days down west (its kind of down a bit and a long way to the left of London.
We have transported ourselves there in many different ways (bus, car and plane), and flying there on Flybe is the shortest and sharpest way to get there.
However, the experience is not always elegant. For a start Flybe flies out of Gatwick, which I possibly like less than Heathrow. Flybe doesn’t belong to any alliance, although you can earn British Airways Avios, although these are not available to Australian residents – unless you have a UK address.
Flybe does have a lounge network, but just none in either London Gatwick, or Cornwall Airport Newquay. So instead, this is where we waited – the gate holding pen:
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| What’s wrong, it has seating, drinks, snacks, and artwork? What a lounge! Go Gatwick! |
Flybe is moving to all jet aircraft, but ours was a jet prop Dash-8.
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| Our purple liveried Dash 8. The skygate is a bit irrelevant really. |
I don’t think anyone would claim these aircraft as their favourite, but they are serviceable, and I have often travelled on QantasLink in one between Sydney and Canberra in Australia.
The purple livery is eye catching, and the model is low cost, although the service is reasonable.
It’s a small plane, with a small interior, so inevitably a bit squishy:
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| Flybe Dash 8 – squishy and low cost, but OK. |
We were on a 12:55pm flight, so were hungry for some lunch, not to mention a drink. Hey, we were on holiday!
Drinks and snacks were available for purchase with the selection outlined in a brochure titled ‘Refuel’ – well some were – unfortunately most healthy or hot options were not available:
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| Flybe’s inflight menu – for purchase. |
I’ll spare you all the glossy photos, and just give you the price list:
. . . and a sample snack box.
Unfortunately all the vaguely healthy options like sandwiches and soup were not available. Only this more-like-kids-food snack box was. Still when you’re hungry, you’re hungry. And they had wine.
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| That healthy combination of hi-salt, hi-fat, hi-protein, hi-sugar treats you usually give to kids. Except for the wine. |
That just about sums it up for the London Newquay flight. Short and sharp (1 hour 10 minutes), and the most comfortable and quickest way to get to the surfing capital of Great Britain.
Just a couple of other tips:
- The airport at Newquay is small and regional. It has a reasonable cafe, but not much else.
- The car hire offices are small and often only staffed by one person, so expect to wait if there are a few people off your flight collecting vehicles
- When you leave – beware Flybe baggage nazi’s. They will weigh both your carryon and your checkin – and if one is over – you will need to move things between cases, or abandon possessions. Be warned.
- Rick Stein maintains businesses in Cornwall, and one in Australia, not to mention travelling for his cooking shows. You may run into him at the airport (no VIP section). Say hi – he’ll probably have a chat.
Flybe prices range depending on day and season – but expect between £30 to £65 per sector.
The coast around Newquay seems to be a bit of a haven for British chefs – with some excellent restaurants (often specialising in seafood) if you’re prepared to travel. Try Outlaw’s (although the restaurant at St Endoc hotel where we went is now closed) or Paul Ainsworth as well as the range of Rick Stein options.This was our special occasion menu at Outlaw’s – sure was better than plane food:
More stories from this trip
- Northern Hemisphere Christmas
- Trip Planning
- Skyteam Lounge – Sydney
- Sydney to Saigon
- Airport to Hotel Transfer
- Intercontinental Asiana, Saigon
- Vietnam Airlines Business Class Lounge – Tan Son Nhat International Airport
- Saigon to London in 787-9
- Flybe to Cornwall
- Priority Pass Lounge Gatwick
- SAS to Tromso
- Clarion Hotel Tromso – what to do when someone is already in your room
- Chasing The Northern Lights
- Skyteam Lounge, Heathrow Terminal 4
- London to Saigon
- Intercontinental Asiana, Saigon – 2nd time round
- Saigon Highlights
- Saigon to Sydney
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