Author Archives: Mosher

Vietnam flights booked

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The trip is coming together. I’ve just booked my hostel in Bangkok (I’m staying in the HQ Hostel, recommended by Honey from Couchsurfing.com) and also my flight to Ho Chi Minh City, and from Hanoi back to Bangkok.

I have a friend in HCM who I’ve not yet met and I’m hoping we can work out a 3-4 day moped-based trip to Dalat and back to HCM from where I’ll get another flight up to Hanoi. I would use the bus, as usual, but tim constraints make that difficult.

My main task now is to work out how to get to/from East Timor, and how quickly I can get to Ko Tao from Bangkok airport.

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Train ticket available

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National Express East Coast 43300 leads 43238 ...

Ride me for £9!

Due to flying from London, I now have a ticket from Kings Cross to Perth, Scotland available. I’d originally planned on heading back home for a few days, but the flights from Heathrow were far cheaper.

The ticket is on the East Coast Main Line, leaves Kings Cross at midday on the 29th of June and stops at Peterborough, York, Newcastle, Edinburgh and a few other places. Obviously, you can get off before Perth if you want.

Note that it’s only one-way. If you’re heading back to London, you’ll need to book that separately. I recommend thetrainline.com and to do so quickly before the prices rise again.

I’m only asking £9 for it – that’s what it cost and why I don’t mind flinging it away if it’s not going to be used. But better to be used by someone. Contact link on the right, or post in the comments if you’re interested. As it’s to be collected, you’ll have to get it off me when I’m in London, though – it requires my payment card and the booking number to get it out of the machine.

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Booked!

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Etihad Airways

Mmmm... comfy to fly in

Sweaty palms already, folks. I’ve booked my (return) flight to Bangkok and have pencilled in my other destinations in this little 2-month jaunt. I’ll be away for almost the entire of July and August, and hitting a few new places predominantly within countries I have already visited.

As ever, details are on the calendar (link always on the left of the main page)  and will be updated as and when I confirm flights and so forth. My main new destination, if I can figure out how to get there and away easily, will be East Timor. I’ve heard the diving’s amazing.

The basic plot is:

  • Go to Graspop with Marina and company
  • Return to London and set off to Bangkok the next morning
  • Work my way down to Kuala Lumpur, perhaps stopping off for some diving on the way
  • Meet up with the delectable Leah for a night before she flies to Oz
  • Somehow get to East Timor for a week or so
  • Meet up with Leah again in Bali and island-hope for 2 weeks until she has to head home
  • Work my way back to Bangkok to an eye operation (1 week stay in Bangkok)
  • A week or so in Vietnam to see somewhere new and to visit the Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation
  • Back to London, back to Scotland

I’m happy to say I’m flying Etihad again on the same schedule I booked at the start of the year. No, they’re not paying me. I’m just happy to recommend them as currently the cheapest deal going for the route I’m flying, and as the best carrier I’ve yet had long-distance. That’s personal experience speaking, not bribery!

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Almost there

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Just have to check a few dates before I book the actual flights, but I already have some destinations down on my Google Calendar. Those dates are as good as permanent.

With luck, I should be booking things and forking out actual cash (*sob*) tonight or tomorrow. Please feel free to take pity on me and send large cheques or PayPal donations. As ever, donations are rewarded with a postcard from wherever I’m going!

Tip – Cancellations

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Flight Ticket - PB240055

Don't need them? Cancel them!

This one’s definitely worth bearing in mind. I’m sure a lot of us book flights as cheap as we can get them. This usually means getting the ones that can’t be changed, upgraded, moved, altered or cancelled without a complete loss of the ticket cost.

Note those two words at the end: “ticket cost”.

As I’m sure you’re aware, a vast amount of the cost of a flight these days doesn’t pay for your seat – it’s taxes. And these – to some extent – can be claimed back should you cancel a flight, even if it’s a non-refundable ticket.

I just cancelled the return leg on my recent flights, due to flying back from Tokyo ahead of schedule. My original booking was with Etihad through Expedia, a return from Heathrow to Bangkok. The overall price was £402.90 of which £198 was tickets and £204.90 taxes! I called Etihad to cancel the return leg, and they told me to contact Expedia to organise a partial refund of the tax. As the girl on the phone said, I won’t get it all back but something is better than nothing.

Given that the return ticket only cost £50 more than a single, if I get £50 or more back then I’ve effectively not spent any more than I would have booking only the outbound flight anyway. The downside is that it can take up to three months for the refund to come through. I’ll try to update you folks with the final amount when I get it.

Still, a good one to remember. If you’re not going to use it, cancel it. You may still get something back into your bank account.

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