# Thumbs up for Monarch & The Airports



## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Having flown with all of the regular airlines that operate their shuttle services between the UK and Spain I have come to the conclusion that my favourite is Monarch. I loathe and despise Ryan air I would only use them in an absolute emergency following on from numerous problems with them in the past. EasyJet are fine but I really like the service delivered by Monarch.

We are all very quick to criticise airlines but I wanted to give Monarch a big thumbs up this year and of course both Manchester and Alicante airport's.

Every Christmas I either return to the UK to see my elderly mother or she comes out here and this year the plan was that she came here. I was due to fly back to the UK to collect her because she is severely disabled and usually needs somebody to come with her but when my passport was stolen a few weeks ago I was unsure if I would receive the replacement in time and to be frank I didn't want to go to the expense of an emergency travel document. Unfortunately those that I would normally call upon in the UK to fly with her were unable to do so on that particular day that her flight was booked and so I telephoned the airline to ask their advice.

They assured me that every day countless disabled or elderly people fly alone and that they would offer her an absolutely outstanding service and care for her every step of the way. I also contacted Manchester airport who gave me details of a taxi company for elderly or disabled people.

To cut a long story short the taxi company were excellent and went into her house collected her and her baggage and took a right up until the check-in desk and she was successfully checked in. I pre-booked legroom seat to ensure that she was comfortable throughout the flight. The staff at Manchester airport – both the airport staff and the airline staff were exceptionally attentive to her and apart from leaving her for 30 minutes while she had a drink and something to eat they remained by her side throughout. They bought it onto the aircraft and ensure that she was comfortable and settled and then the airline staff regularly checked up on her throughout the flight – asking if she needed the toilet or any assistance etc.

Upon landing at Alicante she was met by a member of staff from the airport who collected her from the aircraft, collected her luggage and then brought her to the arrivals lounge where she met us. On her return next week the taxi company have even offered to do some shopping for her in advance so that her fridge is not empty.

I've always known that the airports offer assistance for elderly or disabled people but I did not realise that they offered the full level of service whereby such people can travel completely unattended and I have to say that both airports, the taxi company and the airline did an absolutely outstanding job caring for her – even ensuring that she had toilet stops before boarding the plane and what she got off in Spain.

So if anybody is worried about travelling alone who is elderly or suffering from a disability please don't be – particularly with this airline they offer an excellent service. Likewise, for those of you that have elderly relatives in the UK I cannot speak highly enough of the service offered by the airline and the airports. Flying back to the UK to collect mother and then flying back with her to take her home can get expensive. Likewise, if a member of family or a friend does the same on my behalf it does get expensive with parking, car hire where necessary and of course the flights. On her first flight I actually paid a nurse to travel with her and the whole thing cost a fortune but now after this exceptional service she will be able to travel more often and so I thought I would post this little thread just to give credit where it is due and say thank you to the airline and the airports for a job well done


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

steve_in_spain said:


> Having flown with all of the regular airlines that operate their shuttle services between the UK and Spain I have come to the conclusion that my favourite is Monarch. I loathe and despise Ryan air I would only use them in an absolute emergency following on from numerous problems with them in the past. EasyJet are fine but I really like the service delivered by Monarch.
> 
> We are all very quick to criticise airlines but I wanted to give Monarch a big thumbs up this year and of course both Manchester and Alicante airport's.
> 
> ...


they are amazing, aren't they? 

I don't use a wheelchair all the time, although I do sometimes on bad days or if I know I'm going to be out & about a lot, need sticks - but I do book wheelchair assistance at airports - getting around an airport with bags & sticks is impossible & if they changed the departure gate I'd stand no chance - & the distances often involved are just too great for me

I have to say I've never yet managed to book a wheelchair in advance through Monarch, although with SqueezyJet it's simple - but that has never caused a problem - at all airports there is an 'assistance point' for disabled before you go in, so as long as you can be taken that far you're fine - you just use the intercom & someone will come & get you & you will be accompanied all the way to the plane

if my daughters are travelling with me I don't need to be accompanied, because they can push me - but the assistance staff, especially at Alicante, check up on you several times to make sure you don't need help


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> they are amazing, aren't they?
> 
> I don't use a wheelchair all the time, although I do sometimes on bad days or if I know I'm going to be out & about a lot, need sticks - but I do book wheelchair assistance at airports - getting around an airport with bags & sticks is impossible & if they changed the departure gate I'd stand no chance - & the distances often involved are just too great for me
> 
> ...


They really are fantastic. With Monarch I telephoned them after the booking to request the extra assistance although I think it is something you can do online but they were so tentative – they asked me exactly what my mum needed and obviously I presume it's the airline in my case that liaised with the airports but they really were lovely. I think it's nice to see now that the airlines and airports on making these arrangements for disabled passengers. I wasn't aware that you could just request on arrival so that's useful to know – thank you. What did make me smile was when the young girl from Alicante airport came through the gates pushing mother and dragging her suitcase behind and when we went running over the girl politely said to mum in broken English "is this yours?" It was a little like collecting a child from school – she wanted to make sure that she was leaving mum with the correct people and not just some granny kidnappers that happened to be lurking around in the airport LOL

10/10 and 100% to the airline and both airports – extremely delighted


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

We've always used Monarch in preference to other airlines. BA I've never used for the trip to Malaga although I've heard they are also very good but whenever I fly, Monarch are always cheaper than BA.


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

thrax said:


> We've always used Monarch in preference to other airlines. BA I've never used for the trip to Malaga although I've heard they are also very good but whenever I fly, Monarch are always cheaper than BA.


and frankly no more expensive than the likes of ryanair or easyjet... maybe sometimes a little but what you see is what you pay and whenever i have done comparisons right through to checkout stage I find them on par with the others so why pay for 2nd best when you can go with a proper airline that don't charge to check in, do dinners, and even give you a newspaper on boarding lollane:


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

xabiachica said:


> they are amazing, aren't they?
> 
> I don't use a wheelchair all the time, although I do sometimes on bad days or if I know I'm going to be out & about a lot, need sticks - but I do book wheelchair assistance at airports - getting around an airport with bags & sticks is impossible & if they changed the departure gate I'd stand no chance - & the distances often involved are just too great for me
> 
> ...


But how do you get on the plane??
At Bristol the passengers have to go up the stairs (Easyjet, only airline that does Madrid Bristol). There's never an airbridge at the Bristol end.


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Pesky Wesky said:


> But how do you get on the plane??
> At Bristol the passengers have to go up the stairs (Easyjet, only airline that does Madrid Bristol). There's never an airbridge at the Bristol end.


Probably use one of those high lift vans then!


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

I agree Monarch have a very good customer care policy, especially with elderly or infirm people.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Pesky Wesky said:


> But how do you get on the plane??
> At Bristol the passengers have to go up the stairs (Easyjet, only airline that does Madrid Bristol). There's never an airbridge at the Bristol end.



there's a lift - sort of a big cherry picker

the one at Alicante is closed in with seats - I've used those at Luton, Gatwick & Stansted & they're more like forklifts - literally a 'fenced' open platform !!


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Thanks for the info people!


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Another thing that I should add to this which I forgot in my original post was something quite generous that Monarch offered me… When I first call to enquire about my mum they told me to go ahead and book the flights as normal and then either reserve the special assistance online or call them on the lady gave me her name and extension number and was extremely helpful. For the comfort of my mum I paid for extra legroom seats which was a relatively small expense and enabled me to select the seat that had extra legroom close to the Isle and very close to the toilet so I was happy to pay this.

When I called them back however to arrange the special assistance they told me that for future reference if I was to obtain a letter from her doctor stating her disability and the fact that she needs extra legroom they will then recalled this on her file and provide leg room seats to my specification – for example an isle seat close to the front of the plane at no extra cost on every flight that she books.

So when she does return home I will ask the doctor to write a letter which I will email to them – all of the airlines especially Ryanair charge for every possible extra little luxury and of course if you want the luxury of an extra legroom seat then it's understandable that you pay a little extra for this but I think the fact that they offer this completely free of charge to anybody who really needs it is a superb token of their goodwill and the type of company that they are


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

steve_in_spain said:


> Another thing that I should add to this which I forgot in my original post was something quite generous that Monarch offered me… When I first call to enquire about my mum they told me to go ahead and book the flights as normal and then either reserve the special assistance online or call them on the lady gave me her name and extension number and was extremely helpful. For the comfort of my mum I paid for extra legroom seats which was a relatively small expense and enabled me to select the seat that had extra legroom close to the Isle and very close to the toilet so I was happy to pay this.
> 
> When I called them back however to arrange the special assistance they told me that for future reference if I was to obtain a letter from her doctor stating her disability and the fact that she needs extra legroom they will then recalled this on her file and provide leg room seats to my specification – for example an isle seat close to the front of the plane at no extra cost on every flight that she books.
> 
> So when she does return home I will ask the doctor to write a letter which I will email to them – all of the airlines especially Ryanair charge for every possible extra little luxury and of course if you want the luxury of an extra legroom seat then it's understandable that you pay a little extra for this but I think the fact that they offer this completely free of charge to anybody who really needs it is a superb token of their goodwill and the type of company that they are


actually with Easy Jet I've always been given an extra legroom seat for free whenever I've booked assistance in advance


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## 111KAB (Aug 3, 2012)

*Monarch comment*

Having suffered a 26 hour delay on a Monarch flight earlier this year (PMI > BHX) I feel there is 'another side' to their operation which should be mentioned. The ECJ ratified a ruling in October this year in that any delay over 3 hours should be compensated for by the airline. 
There is a clause in the ruling (Sturgeon) which negates the requirement for compensation in the case of extraordinary circumstances which is generally thought to cover aspects such as the volcanic ash, fog, snow etc ie matters beyond the airlines control. Monarch however are rejecting any claims where a technical problem on their aircraft occurs saying that it is an extraordinary circumstance. The CAA have indicated that the Monarch response is not valid however they (the CAA) have no legal jurisdiction powers to force the airline to pay up. Consequently if you face a delay in excess of 3 hours with Monarch Airlines it appears the only way to resolve matters is to take the airline to court.
From reading through various reports etc it appears EasyJet and BA recognise their obligations, Ryanair less so but Monarch, First Choice, Thomson and Thomas Cook are bottom of the list with Monarch coming a miserable last.


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

111KAB said:


> Having suffered a 26 hour delay on a Monarch flight earlier this year (PMI > BHX) I feel there is 'another side' to their operation which should be mentioned. The ECJ ratified a ruling in October this year in that any delay over 3 hours should be compensated for by the airline.
> There is a clause in the ruling (Sturgeon) which negates the requirement for compensation in the case of extraordinary circumstances which is generally thought to cover aspects such as the volcanic ash, fog, snow etc ie matters beyond the airlines control. Monarch however are rejecting any claims where a technical problem on their aircraft occurs saying that it is an extraordinary circumstance. The CAA have indicated that the Monarch response is not valid however they (the CAA) have no legal jurisdiction powers to force the airline to pay up. Consequently if you face a delay in excess of 3 hours with Monarch Airlines it appears the only way to resolve matters is to take the airline to court.
> From reading through various reports etc it appears EasyJet and BA recognise their obligations, Ryanair less so but Monarch, First Choice, Thomson and Thomas Cook are bottom of the list with Monarch coming a miserable last.


 what I can only speak from my personal experience but what I will say is that most of the other airlines either have a premium rate telephone number will insist on contact by email where as monarch have local rate numbers and their customer service to me has always been excellent. There are always going to be times when things don't go according to plan and people have problems but fortunately I have not yet been in a position with this company to have to make a complaint. Hopefully I never will!

I think one thing that should be taken into account when reading any surveys is that monarch are much smaller airlines in terms of the numbers of passengers they carry compared to Ryanair and easyJet. With this in mind there are bound to be far more instances of problems with the other companies by the sheer nature of the facts and figures. Any survey can be subjective and if you survey 1000 people you may just happen to survey the 1000 people out of 1 million people who've received excellent service from Ryanair and survey the 1000 people out of 1 million people who've received bad service from Monarch – there will always be issues of bad service from any company that on the whole I like the way their business works, I like their business model and I remember one instance when I was stranded by Ryanair and EasyJet at Liverpool airport trying to get back home due to snow a few years ago and in the end I managed to get myself to Manchester airport and got onto a monarch fight and bearing in mind when I walked through Manchester city centre searching for a taxi I was wearing jeans and a T-shirt because it was literally a three-hour stop in England and I was the only person around because of the snow – when I got to the airport the monarch staff not only found me every hour to give me updates on my flight but they also ensure that I was warm, comfortable and brought me a hot drink LOL – I must have looked a right state after three days of being stranded in wearing the same clothes!

I'm not saying that incidents don't arise and that sometimes every company can get things wrong but I do sometimes take a sceptical look on surveys of this nature. I also feel that the Ryanair business model has very much given people the feeling of "you get what you pay for" and therefore people have generally lower expectation from them than they do from the likes of monarch. This is also reflected in survey opinions.


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## Calas felices (Nov 29, 2007)

A couple of years ago, we were booked on a Monarch flight out of Alicante at 11pm. For reasons beyond their control (we found out later someone had committed suicide and the local police had grounded all flights), the plane didn't arrive until 3 am. We were moved to the end of the terminal out of the way of the cleaners and the ground staff (not Monarch) took a delight in turning off all the self service machines so that we couldn't get a drink/snack etc. They also turned off a number of lights in the terminal including the toilets before they went home. 

When the plane turned up, the crew had managed to rustle up some food and provided hot drinks for free. We were also met at Luton where taxis had been arranged to get us home. Finally Monarch refunded 75% of the fare. Superb service - I think they changed the ground crew providers at Alicante soon after.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

111KAB said:


> Having suffered a 26 hour delay on a Monarch flight earlier this year (PMI > BHX) I feel there is 'another side' to their operation which should be mentioned. The ECJ ratified a ruling in October this year in that any delay over 3 hours should be compensated for by the airline.
> There is a clause in the ruling (Sturgeon) which negates the requirement for compensation in the case of extraordinary circumstances which is generally thought to cover aspects such as the volcanic ash, fog, snow etc ie matters beyond the airlines control. Monarch however are rejecting any claims where a technical problem on their aircraft occurs saying that it is an extraordinary circumstance. The CAA have indicated that the Monarch response is not valid however they (the CAA) have no legal jurisdiction powers to force the airline to pay up. Consequently if you face a delay in excess of 3 hours with Monarch Airlines it appears the only way to resolve matters is to take the airline to court.
> From reading through various reports etc it appears EasyJet and BA recognise their obligations, Ryanair less so but Monarch, First Choice, Thomson and Thomas Cook are bottom of the list with Monarch coming a miserable last.


Yup. You get what you pay for.
I used to fly to the UK regularly, at least once a week, on business. I would NEVER choose any other airline than BA. I had to be in a particular place at a particular time and punctuality was important. There was also the issue of cheap flights to Prague and stag parties. Not pleasant sitting for two hours with drunken chavs. That was never a problem with BA.

Now I fly less frequently to visit family and friends and pay for my own flights so I usually look for the cheapest which means EasyJet. No way will I fly Ryanair. But there are differences between budget and scheduled in terms of the whole flight experience. But surely that's to be expected?


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Sometimes there's no choice, either economically or with the flights that the companies offer.
I fly Easyjet because of both of these reasons. If Iberia for example, flew Mad Bristol I probably wouldn't be able to afford it even if I wanted to!
I have to say one thing I like about Easyjet is that I've never been late arriving. We always take off late (in November an hour late) and manage to arrive on time or early (yes, even taking off an hour late!?!?)
So everyone looks for something different in their airlines; some want an economic price, some want them to look after their mum and some want nice staff and it looks like between Monarch, BA, and Easyjet we've got it covered. Any votes for RyanAir?


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Pesky Wesky said:


> Sometimes there's no choice, either economically or with the flights that the companies offer.
> I fly Easyjet because of both of these reasons. If Iberia for example, flew Mad Bristol I probably wouldn't be able to afford it even if I wanted to!
> I have to say one thing I like about Easyjet is that I've never been late arriving. We always take off late (in November an hour late) and manage to arrive on time or early (yes, even taking off an hour late!?!?)
> So everyone looks for something different in their airlines; some want an economic price, some want them to look after their mum and some want nice staff and it looks like between Monarch, BA, and Easyjet we've got it covered. Any votes for RyanAir?


I agree to some extent about EasyJet. I found the problem wasn't lateness but cancellations of flights - presumably because they were underbooked? I had three such cancellations in a couple of months. The other problem I found was that when flights were cancelled because Prague Airport was closed you had to make another booking yourself with EasyJet and try to get your money back - not an easy undertaking. With BA you were automatically rebooked on the first flight and overnight accommodation offered if necessary.

BA isn't always the most expensive option....you can take one piece of hold luggage free, no charges for booking with credit or debit card. They have frequent seat sales and in the summer the price difference between BA and the budgets is narrow.


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

OK, here goes nothing.

Ive flown with Monarch, Flybe, Ryanair and easyjet once as well as Thomsons when they used to do the Coventry Valencia flights. I fly back quite regularly and have been doing so for 6 or 7 years.

My choice of all of them would be Ryanair, and I''l tell you exactly why

Firstly, with hardly any exception they are always the cheapest, and sometimes by a large margin

Secondly, I have not had problems with them because I stick to their rules. OK, you may not like their rules and I accept that they often keep check they are being followed more than many airlines, BUT if you stick to them you dont have a problem.

Most of the people I hear (not all) complaining about them do so because they broke the rules and got pulled up on it. They had to pay €30 for a case in the hold because it was too big for the cabin, or something like that. Ryanairs charges are not much different to anyone elses

Monarch, I just flew with. To be able to book in on line I had to reserve my seats, and for that I had to pay. Ryanair dont do that for instance.

Some of the people who moan about them I discovered havent even flown with Ryanair, but just assume they dont like them or have heard someone else moaning about them!

So overall I have to say Ryanair get a bad press, but at the end of the day you get what you pay for and my experiance of them is very little different to flying with Monarch!


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## agua642 (May 24, 2009)

I agree Ryanair has no trills! But yes stick to the rules and alls good


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

It's a few years now since I have needed to go jetting about the place (we've been here four years) and I have never travelled Monarch or Squeezyjet. My experiences with Ryan were mostly negative, and that was when they had the plus of flying to Granada. One thing I recall from the arrival/departure boards was that the most frequent carrier with late arrivals/departures (some big-time) was Monarch.

When I was flying around Europe on business (clients were booking the flights and picking up the tab - first class), I was on BA, Lufthansa, Air France, Iberia, Swissair and Lauda Air and always found that BA were best, followed closely by Iberia. Air France were flexible in changing flights for me when the client's ataff in Paris had seriously understated the size of their job. Lufthansa couldn't even serve their meals on time and getting one's dinner just as the pilot is lining up for his approach to Frankfurt is not a good advert.

Got caught in a particularly nasty October storm on one occasion and flight from Amsterdam was delayed by 4 hours with arrival at LHR after the tube had finished so was put up in a hotel at Heathrow (BA's expense) since I was flying out again at 1300 to Vienna - by then, the storm had got to Austria - couldn't land at Vienna nor Basle, ended up at Geneva. Wait an hour then forwarded by Swissair to destination.

Lauda had an aircraft that was giving serious problems and I had the misfortune to get stuck for five hours at Vienna and again arrived at LHR after the tube had stopped - British Midland, who were acting as Lauda's agents at the time, arranged for a Taxi to take me all the way home to Southend


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

Sorry – I'm starting to sound like a broken record but earlier this evening I took a friend to the airport in who has to return to the UK for a couple of weeks and she was also flying with Monarch. She had her suitcase which was laden with things because she was going back to sort out a funeral and she also had a maximum sized hand luggage plus a big handbag. I've always known Monarch to be more lenient than the likes of Ryanair who charge for everything and even get aggressive in their tone but I couldn't be more surprised well at the check-in desk the bag was weighed and was a little bit overweight but nothing was said and then manager came running over from Iberia who are the handlers at Alicante for Monarch and they said that the flight was very full and also because one of her items of hand luggage was big it would be probably more convenient for my friend if she wished to put it in the hold and although she was not obliged to do this and was very welcome to take it on the flight they offered this at no extra charge despite the fact that a hold baggage was already overweight. She said that she had her laptop inside it in another bag and wanted to take that on to the plane with her and they allowed her to carry her laptop along with her handbag and still allowed her to check two bags in at no extra cost. So from them another big thumbs up because if this had been another airline they would have charged to a fortune.


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## Bobndebs1959 (Jan 13, 2013)

thrax said:


> We've always used Monarch in preference to other airlines. BA I've never used for the trip to Malaga although I've heard they are also very good but whenever I fly, Monarch are always cheaper than BA.


I used BA last year to Malaga, and I must say I was hugely impressed with them, although I am not normally their biggest fan!!
22KG Luggage Allowance, complimentary drinks and meal on board and all for £113 each LHR to Malaga amazing!!
I have not tried Monarch to Spain, only long haul, but after this report will certainly give them a go!!lane:

Cheers


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## Lolito (Aug 25, 2012)

I always use my own private jet... lol! 

It is good Ryan is doing Alicante/Humberside.... such a small airport but leaves you at your door in the UK. 

In 23 years flying, I never had a problem with airlines... only once with KLM in Amsterdam coming back from Venice, but they provided hotels, food, a change of clothes kit (underwear, tshirt and socks, plus toiletries) and I loved it! 

Maybe I am just lucky!


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## el romeral (May 8, 2012)

I have always liked Monarch and used to use them whenever I could - especially when they had direct flights AGP - ABZ lane:. 

These days the flight times to LGW do not always suit me so well, so am usually forced to use EasyJet for my >10 return trips a year to Norway via UK. I was all in favour of EasyJet's new seating and boarding procedures until now. I travel alone and decided not to pay for a seat this time, checked in online only to find they have assigned me a middle seat D - hate sitting there between 2 strangers. There was no way I could go back in and pay for a selected on either . 

Next time if I do not pay for a window or isle seat then I will try checking in at the airport and haggle for a non middle seat. Sorry for rant :focus:.


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## Megsmum (Sep 9, 2012)

steve_in_spain said:


> Sorry – I'm starting to sound like a broken record but earlier this evening I took a friend to the airport in who has to return to the UK for a couple of weeks and she was also flying with Monarch. She had her suitcase which was laden with things because she was going back to sort out a funeral and she also had a maximum sized hand luggage plus a big handbag. I've always known Monarch to be more lenient than the likes of Ryanair who charge for everything and even get aggressive in their tone but I couldn't be more surprised well at the check-in desk the bag was weighed and was a little bit overweight but nothing was said and then manager came running over from Iberia who are the handlers at Alicante for Monarch and they said that the flight was very full and also because one of her items of hand luggage was big it would be probably more convenient for my friend if she wished to put it in the hold and although she was not obliged to do this and was very welcome to take it on the flight they offered this at no extra charge despite the fact that a hold baggage was already overweight. She said that she had her laptop inside it in another bag and wanted to take that on to the plane with her and they allowed her to carry her laptop along with her handbag and still allowed her to check two bags in at no extra cost. So from them another big thumbs up because if this had been another airline they would have charged to a fortune.


Good news
We have just booked our flights for Feb with monarch they came out cheaper than the others, and offered better times for us
lane:


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## t.w.h (Nov 13, 2012)

*Airports and Monarch*



steve_in_spain said:


> Having flown with all of the regular airlines that operate their shuttle services between the UK and Spain I have come to the conclusion that my favourite is Monarch. I loathe and despise Ryan air I would only use them in an absolute emergency following on from numerous problems with them in the past. EasyJet are fine but I really like the service delivered by Monarch.
> 
> We are all very quick to criticise airlines but I wanted to give Monarch a big thumbs up this year and of course both Manchester and Alicante airport's.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the comments on airports and Monarch. I work at Manchester airport and it's nice to get some positive comments. We try very hard to make sure all our passengers enjoy there experience through our airport and I agree with you about Monarch, they are very good indeed I always use them. Thanks again for the comments.lane:


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

t.w.h said:


> Thanks for the comments on airports and Monarch. I work at Manchester airport and it's nice to get some positive comments. We try very hard to make sure all our passengers enjoy there experience through our airport and I agree with you about Monarch, they are very good indeed I always use them. Thanks again for the comments.lane:


We flew back to take my Mum home to Manchester on 13th, another enjoyable flight, thumbs up for the pre booked meal, (Lancashire hot pot), and excellent service.:clap2:lane: 
Unfortunately we had to drive "down south' in a hire car, to visit children, and grandchildren, poor road conditions, snow, snow and more snow!!! then try to fly back from Heathrow yesterday  our flight was cancelled, then managed to get another flight with EJ which had to be de-iced, finally arrived back in Spain early ours of this a.m. so nice to be home again. 
I really like Monarch, and will use them whenever I can.


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## 111KAB (Aug 3, 2012)

Further to my earlier post regarding my Monarch delay I am in agreement that Monarch are a good airline and probably offer a better service than other budget airlines. Where they currently 'fall down' is their desire or ability to deal with their delayed flights and there is growing considerable evidence that they are failing to recognise current EU law with regard to delays. There are IMO two reasons for this, firstly their difficult financial postion and secondly the size/age of their fleet namely

*MONARCH* - 31 planes - average age 14.5 years - mainly Airbus but they have 3 Boeing 757's ~ 2 are 25 years old and the other 26 years.
*RYANAIR *- 305 planes - average age 4 years - all Boeing 737's
*EASYJET* - 190 planes - average age 4.6 years - mainly Airbus. 

Newer planes are more likely to be reliable and if a replacement is needed the ability to call on another plane/crew is easier for RA and EJ.


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## Bobndebs1959 (Jan 13, 2013)

111KAB said:


> Further to my earlier post regarding my Monarch delay I am in agreement that Monarch are a good airline and probably offer a better service than other budget airlines. Where they currently 'fall down' is their desire or ability to deal with their delayed flights and there is growing considerable evidence that they are failing to recognise current EU law with regard to delays. There are IMO two reasons for this, firstly their difficult financial postion and secondly the size/age of their fleet namely
> 
> *MONARCH* - 31 planes - average age 14.5 years - mainly Airbus but they have 3 Boeing 757's ~ 2 are 25 years old and the other 26 years.
> *RYANAIR *- 305 planes - average age 4 years - all Boeing 737's
> ...


Unless of course it is a Boeing 787 Dream Liner!!


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Bobndebs1959 said:


> Unless of course it is a Boeing 787 Dream Liner!!


They could alwasy drag out a few Belfasts, equip them with full double deck and carry about 300+ if I remember correctly (it was 40 years ago!)


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