Super-commuting between Rotterdam and London

[Guest222]

I've read about super-commuting.

I have some job opportunities that would mean I would fly from Rotterdam (where I live with my wife and three children) to London once a week to stay one night. I would basically fly out early on Monday morning, work two days (staying overnight), then fly back the next evening.

I would basically utilise this time to work extra hours on Monday evening in the London office that I can take back later in the week (e.g., Friday afternoon).

My wife fully supports it as I'm only going to be away 1 night out of 7 each week, and I can manage the time (as mentioned above) to maximise the efficiency of work hours versus time spent at home.

The commute is reasonable. The check-in times at Rotterdam and London City Airport are 20 minutes before departure, and both airports are very close to the endpoints (Rotterdam airport is a bike ride from my house, and London City Airport is a bike ride or short Tube journey from the office). On a perfect run, I could literally be door-to-door in 2 hours, which is not that different to a commute I've had with jobs in the country I live in (Netherlands).

Cost-wise, it's not much. I can get a return flight for £150 or sometimes less depending on dates, and sometimes I can even optimise it with a combination of plane and Eurostar (which is just over 3 hours London to Rotterdam). Accommodation I can get for £50 give or take.

The reason for doing the above is to capitalise on more interesting and financially better options in London that are not readily available in the Netherlands. And also because I prefer the UK work culture to Dutch work culture. My wife has a good job in the Netherlands that requires her 3 days in the office, so moving to London is not an option at this stage (it may be in the future).

What are people's opinions on super-commuting, and WWYD in the above situation, obviously knowing that our personal preferences may be different?

[ladymuck]

Key for me would be whether I could expense the cost of living away from home.

[Guy Incognito]

I commuted from London to Glasgow weekly for three months once.

Be prepared for a lot more flight delays than you thought possible.

[TestMangler]

I 'commuted' Glasgow to Bristol for 2 years, but it was all paid for by client. TBH it was remarkably easy.

[lecyclist]

I commuted from Europe to Brighton every week for 4 months, flying to either Luton or Stanstead depending on ticket price, then either travelling through on the sunday night by train to Brighton, or staying overnight near the airport and leaving at 0600 the next morning. I got well acquainted with Travelodges and Premier Inns during that period, depending on my flight arrival times.

In retrospect, it was pretty disgusting. But you do what you need to do. Trying to increase your rate and marketability for future roles, and simultaneously not getting divorced.

[Lance]

it's tulip.
Did 9 months in France. the entente was not very ******* cordiale at the end of it.

[SueEllen]

In regards to the London end. Use a bike it is more reliable.

[lecyclist]

"Super-commuting" reminds me of the ending of Collateral, with Vincent waiting to die as his New York subway train goes around and around. Travelling and dying inside.

[WTFH]

It's doable.
Expect flight delays and passport control will be a pain - even if you have two passports, you need to use the same one for leaving one country as you use to arrive in the other.
Be prepared to pay for flight upgrades/flight changes to suit the times that you arrive early, or get delayed due to meetings or traffic.
If your contract is based in the UK, then just make sure your UK tax affairs are in order.
It may be worth while having a bike in both countries to allow cycling at both ends and potentially some spare clothes left in London, but be aware that a sunny morning doesn't mean a sunny evening.
Get something like a Tumi Alpha Bravo backpack so nothing goes in the hold. You can get a change of clothes into it along with computers, paperwork, travel plugs, power banks, etc

For the first few weeks, and when planes are on time, it can be OK. It gets very tiring very quickly, which will have an impact on your life outside of the trips. And then when you learn the big difference between the shortest possible time to get from home/office to plane and the normal/actual time it takes. So if you think you will finish work at 6pm and get a flight at 6.30, I'd book an 8pm flight as the normal one, then if I arrive on time for an earlier one, I pay for an upgrade.
You also learn to be the friendliest, politest, most helpful person when talking to the ticketing staff at the airport, and how to remove all metal/electronics from you as you run for security.

It is a useful way to keep your BA Gold card.

And then you'll start to refer to getting on a plane as boreding.

[northernladuk]

Your last thread went south because you went over the top with the detail which did seemed to read that you've got a clear decision and then you ask what we would do and it was very clearly explained it's not point asking what we would do. It's your life, you've made it very clear it works so what are you trying to get out of the thread?

You'll get a lot of anecdotes that are no use to you, the thread is likely to go south because your inability to make a decision is striking and is this actually anything more than just waving your willy?