Klm

[andy222]

They are doing some cheap flights just after christams. But they go to china first. Anyone been to Guangzhou airport? And do you know if you can leave the airport there to have a look round between connecting flights?
Thanks in advance.:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[Bluebirdjones]

When I did the KLM / Guangzhou "stop-over" some years back, it consisted of a few people leaving the plane, a horde of old Chinese ladies swarming down the aisles with dusters & rubbish bags, and then a few passengers getting on.

The rest of us passengers weren't allowed off & just sat there for about 45mins.... then the plane roared off down the runway.

I got the distinct impression that KLM had bought a landing slot there, and was just going through the motions of using it....... perhaps to preserve the licence..... and purely looking at it as a potential future long-term strategy.

[stevewool]

what do you call cheap

[irishman12]

andy -i think its klm to guangzhou and then china southern to manila? approx 7 hr layover? however when i did a search lhr -manila Departure Wed 26 Sep 12 - Return Thu 11 Oct 12 it shows dept lhr 4.10pm arrive amsterdam 6.35pm -dept ams 8.40pm arrive manila 6.15pm ,mentions 1 stop -but like bbj said this would only be approx 1 hr -so wouldnt be allowed off plane .

[andy222]

Its £714 return but thats from birmingham. 9 hour wait for the connection flight on the way back. december 30th untill 19th Jan. Arrrive at Guangzhou at 14.35 and depart at 23.55. Thanks for the input guys appreciated.:xxgrinning--00xx3:
Your correct Irishman the flight going is no problem. Its the return flight thats the longest 28 hrs.

[irishman12]

did u book that? i checked those dates now and doesnt show 714 -maybe already gone cheapest now is 746 for dec 31-jan 21 ,are usure the stop in guangzhou is 9hrs for those flights -it dont show on search

[andy222]

I didnt book mate looks like its gone now.:doh

[rusty]

We used this route in our recent trip, starting at Newcastle. When we first booked, both stop overs in china were only about 2 to 3 hours, but a month before out trip we were told the flight from Manila was changed to an earlier time and now we would have the 9 hour wait. :yikes:

on the way out we found that the airport was very basic, after leaving the aircraft we had to queue at an immagration desk, even though we were only transfer. Once at our depature gate there was only a couple of small shops and places to get a drink or food. It was also expensive as a coffee and bottle of water was about £8.

Knowing that we had a longer wait on the return journey and we had our kids, aged 9 and 3, we were not looking forward to the long wait.

After arriving at China again on the return leg, before we queued at the immagration desk I went to the China Southern information desk as i had a question about making sure we had kids meals booked on the flight. When at that desk i asked the lady if there was anywhere in the airport we could go as we had a long wait, to which the answer was no. My next question was if it was possible to leave the airport, again the answer was no.

While waiting in the queue for immagration, the lady i asked was now comming towards me with some paperwork, she then said if the immagration officer would allow us to enter, then they would arrange a hotel room for us.

Luckily we were allowed and we were taken, free of charge, to a local hotel where we were able to rest, get a meal and relax before we had to go back to the airport. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

Not sure if we were given this as we had the kids but, as they say, if you dont ask you dont get.

[stevewool]

skyscanner has some good prices,

[Michael Parnham]

Try Philippine island connections (PIL) London, phone No. 01207592300 Iv'e had flights within the last couple of years for as little as £390 with KLM and £456 with Qatar, but I suppose its the luck of the draw when these offers are available. these flights were ex Manchester. My last flight was £605.

[irishman12]

rusty -thats immigration most airline that offer flights with stopovers longer than 8hrs -should provide free hotel/transfer and visa if necessary -unfortunately our stopover in dubai didnt go so smoothly -approx 3 hrs after arrival got to hotel -then after checkin and meeting some relatives for a short while -turned off lights for approx 1 hr before wake up call :NoNo:

[andy222]

skyscanner has some good prices,

Can they be trusted though steve?

[bigmarco]

Can they be trusted though steve?

I always use Skyscanner Andy. Quoting £598 from London on your dates at the moment.
I normally check every week.

[irishman12]

andy -skyscanner is just a comparision site -they will show what available flights /prices -when you find something you want to book -u will be redirected to other website like ebookers or skytours etc

[London_Manila]

FLYANDGO always beat any price on the net :)

Skyscanner is good as a rough guide but the best prices are not found on this site

Do your homework and find out what flights you want and the dates and give them a call = 0208 819 9752

pay by visa and then no added fees

[andy222]

Thanks guys some great info.:xxgrinning--00xx3:. I will book my flight the end of the month. I am restricted to flying from birmingham. As from a earlier post I made I did get stung once from a company that went bust. Thats why I am a bit wary now. I used crystal travel last time with no problems but you know what it is like we all look for cheaper options.:xxgrinning--00xx3: Skyscanner is £696 at the moment. I need to get to manila for 11.10am so that i can get my connecting flight.

[scott&ligaya]

I can second FLYGO used them to send Ligaya and the kids (Cathay via HK) and for my flight later in the summer. just got 23rd December to 13th Jan again with Cathay for £906. Ask for Victor, he is very knowledgable and will try his best , I even had a KLM flight almost booked direct on their website, called him and he managed to better it, and with my preferred carrier and a stop over in HK