Firstly if you were following of my travels around Scotland and can’t wait for the hotel reviews, you may want to check out my Forbes article. The hotels I stayed in were the Kimpton, Isle of Eriska, Marmalade and Waldorf Astoria. Full reviews will follow in due course.
In this post:
The Best Luxury Hotels In Scotland With Spa Facilities
There are so many majestic landscapes and things to do in Scotland that it can be hard to narrow down where to visit. Choosing a hotel first can narrow things down.
New Amex offers including £100 off travel
Some good new deals have appeared on American Express for most people so check your cards:
- £100 back American Express travel when you spend a minimum of £300. I just used this to book a hotel, but you can also use it for flights. Amex has special discounts on some business class fares, such as Qatar and Emirates, so it is always worth checking. Amex Platinum cards to be used by 23/10/23
- Firmdale hotels (includes Ham Yard and Charlotte Street hotels in London) £100 back when you spend £500+ on room spend only to be used by 31/8/23. British Airways Amex.
- Relais and Chateau hotels £200 back when you spend £1000+ on room stays by 20/10/23 (includes Cliveden and The Vineyard at Stockcross) British Airways and Platinum Amex
- Peninsula hotels £100 back when you spend £500+ by 24/11/23 (must include accommodation) British Airways Amex.
Don’t forget you can combine the hotel offers with using our luxury travel agents GTC to get extra perks such as upgrades and breakfast.
Heathrow cries poverty over CAA pricing
Heathrow has reported a loss for the first half of 2023, blaming a lack in passenger numbers, and has again blamed the CAA for cutting passenger charges. The loss of £139 million is half the previous loss.
I would be interested to see what has happened to the retail space rents since the UK government stupidly decided to abolish tax-free shopping, unlike virtually any other major country. I can’t believe that the high-end shops are doing nearly as much business as before, particularly as China is still only just returning to travel. So I’d like to know if they are still paying the same rent. However, I have noticed a number of new shops on my visit today, Orelbar Brown and Rituals which are probably less influenced by whether they are tax-free or not.
The airport saw 37 million passengers in the first half of 2023, which included some of the busiest days on record. Heathrow said that “We are giving great passenger service, with almost all passengers waiting less than five minutes at security as the summer peak gets underway.”
The airport says that overall passenger numbers remain consistently below pre-pandemic levels, and the cost of living crisis could cause an issue for the rest of the year. That seems to be the opposite of what airlines are saying, such as in the IAG accounts where forward bookings are looking consistent, although all airlines acknowledge there is some uncertainty ahead.
The airport still says they are planning to make £3.7 billion of passenger improvements, which will include the replacement of the Terminal 2 baggage system and streamlining security in all terminals. I assume they mean the new scanners which they have been given until June 2024 to implement by the UK government.
The airport is still appealing the passenger charges set by the CAA, though they say they have enough revenue to cover the next 24 months without any dividends. The average maximum price per passenger will fall by about 20 percent from £31.57 per passenger in 2023 to £25.43 per passenger in 2024 and will remain at that level until the end of 2026. This is around 90p less per passenger on average compared to the initial price cap proposed.
John Holland-Kaye will step down as CEO (finally!) in October after nine years. Thomas Woldbye, the current boss of Copenhagen Airport, will take over from John.
CAA gets tough with airlines that don’t pay
The UK government had pledged to give the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) more teeth to act in passengers’ interest. While we were part of the EU, the CAA’s responsibilities and powers were reduced as much of the legislation came from Europe regarding UK aviation.
Now, the CAA is already getting its teeth stuck in by taking on low cost airline Wizz Air.
Following complaints from customers that their rights had not been upheld when flights were cancelled or delayed, the regulator has been in contact with Wizz Air over recent months. There has been a rise in court judgements in the UK recently against the airline as frustrated passengers try to recoup their losses.
The airline’s failure to offer substitute flights to allow passengers to reach their destinations when their flight was cancelled was one of the key issues. Under EU regulations, if the airline can’t offer one of their own flights to get you to the destination within a reasonable period after they cancel your flight, then they must offer you a flight on another airline if one exists. I always advise doing your own research before contacting an airline in this situation so you can be prepared to fight for what you need. Wizz Air and other low cost airlines are often pretty good with standard EU261 compensation as everything is automated. However, once you start to get into more complex issues it is often a frustrating process.
Wizz Air has responded to the regulator and agreed to make adjustments to its passenger communications, policies, and practices. The airline has also agreed to review claims it received for care and assistance (usually hotel charges) after flight disruptions, transfers where replacement flights were via different airports, and replacement flight costs.
This will make sure passengers who made claims to Wizz Air in the past, but had their claims incorrectly rejected, will receive the money they are legally owed.
The action by the regulator will cover claims made for flights due to depart from or arrive into a UK airport on or after 18 March 2022. No action is needed on the part of passengers to ensure these claims are reviewed. Passengers whose flights were due to depart from or arrive into a UK airport before 18 March 2022 can also request for their claims with the airline to be reopened, as long as their flight was no more than six years ago.
Paul Smith, Joint-Interim Chief Executive at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said:
“This enforcement action sends a clear message that airlines must meet their obligations to passengers when they cancel or delay a flight. We will not hesitate to step in if we believe that airlines are not consistently doing this.
“Passengers have every right to expect their complaints and claims to be resolved quickly and efficiently and to be treated fairly by airlines, in line with regulations. We made it clear to Wizz Air last year that the way it was treating passengers was unacceptable.
“We will continue to watch the situation closely to check that passengers receive what they are owed and that Wizz Air’s policies have improved, so that consumers have a better experience if things go wrong”
Further information is available on the UK Civil Aviation Authority website
