News and opinion about villa holidays

Favourite villa of this week (and perhaps for some weeks to follow) is Villa Serena in Chateauneuf de Grasse, South of France. (more…)

I catch a lot of no frills flights and
it would be good if our suffering passengers got their heads together
to praise and scorn as appropriate. Firstly the big beasts Easyjet
and Ryanair need separating, and that is simple. Their websites are
equally friendly, (unlike their staff) but not as good as BA.

Thereafter the differences are sharp.
Somehow Ryanair has gathered up ground staff and cabin staff who are
especially and uniquely illiterate. The Ryanair airport
announcements are a polyglot gabble in bossy tones and
incomprensible. Easyjet learnt from GO! (whom they bought from BA)
to speak slowly – and how to deal with grumbling passengers.
Ryanair allegedly charge cabin staff for their jobs by way of making them pay
for ‘training’ – rather in the style of doorman at Claridges –
and the staff allegedly resent that. And it shows.

So you can choose between the noisy lot
and the quiet lot. Both will offer amazing deals – and half the
deals are deceptions. But both say it is cheaper if you book early –
and both mean it. And keep to it

The smaller no frills are hugely nicer
– they are mostly spin offs from established airlines (example
German Wings from KLM) and know what they are doing. Any new ones,
which are starting from scratch, are best left alone.