Organising weekel EU commute

[Spacecadet]

Expat, how easy is it for you to get to City Airport? Most efficient airport in my experience although flights from there may be expensive.

If its an easy train ride there then WHS

[expat]

Post your experiences if you try the ferry, I quite like the idea myself if they have bar / disco with the ladies and the drinking.
And is it possible to get a cabin to one-self at a reasonable price?
Could be a groovy party ferry (GPF), who knows?

Check www.stena-line.co.uk.

Typical car price £129 one-way, plus £26 single cabin. Cabin comfy with shower etc. £10 more for more flexible ticket. Return is a bit cheaper than 2x single.

I believe they have social stuff but I go for dinner, wine, and bed with a book.

I like the fact that the travel time is not wasted (I'm getting some sleep), and I arrive in NL in time to do a full day.

[Pondlife]

Pondlife's top tips.

Find an airport as close to home as possible that KLM uses.

Fly out Monday. The 4:30am get up is a bitch but you do get a full Sunday at home. Oh, and start drinking earlier and go to bed earlier (or sleep on the plane)

Leave your washing kit in your flat/hotel so no need to carry liquids and you can fly with hand luggage only. Personally I check mine in cos I can't be arsed to wheel it along.

Fly back on Thurs day evening and work in your dressing gown on Friday. Don't make any plans for the Thursday night apart from making sure the missus has a bottle of red at room temp or a nice white in the fridge.

Whilst at the airport on a Thurs make dinner reservations for Friday night.
The call will be free because of all the compensation phone cards you get from KLM due to their delays.

Ideally get her to pick you up from the airport on the Thurs. That way you can turn up stinking of booze and whinge about what a hard week you've had.

It's a tried and tested system that I've had in place for ages.

Note (v. important): Do not get into the habbit of buying presents at the airport as this will become expected. Much better to turn up slightly drunk.

HTH

[NotAllThere]

... I want to spend time at home with my partner. ...
PS the following are not available:
retire
work close to home
live close to work
work less

How about move partner closer to work, then you wouldn't need to go home.

( I had a terrible commute this morning. I missed the connection, so it took me 30 minutes to get to the office instead of 20. I think I'll leave early to compensate ).

[expat]

Expat, how easy is it for you to get to City Airport? Most efficient airport in my experience although flights from there may be expensive.

I have used it and I agree. A tad expensive but if it just means booking more in advance I'd do it.

It's not great to get there: walk to station, train to Euston, 2 sections of tube, DLR (bizarrely you cannot get from Euston to any DLR station in a single tube journey). And the flights are a bit early for my taste. But I do like the airport.

[sasguru]

Hmmm seems to me the easiest solution is to turn your non-variable Bedfordshire residence into another different constant. There's always ways to get round strong typing you know ....

[expat]

Pondlife's top tips.

Find an airport as close to home as possible that KLM uses.

Fly out Monday. The 4:30am get up is a bitch but you do get a full Sunday at home. Oh, and start drinking earlier and go to bed earlier (or sleep on the plane)

Leave your washing kit in your flat/hotel so no need to carry liquids and you can fly with hand luggage only. Personally I check mine in cos I can't be arsed to wheel it along.

Fly back on Thurs day evening and work in your dressing gown on Friday. Don't make any plans for the Thursday night apart from making sure the missus has a bottle of red at room temp or a nice white in the fridge.

Whilst at the airport on a Thurs make dinner reservations for Friday night.
The call will be free because of all the compensation phone cards you get from KLM due to their delays.

Ideally get her to pick you up from the airport on the Thurs. That way you can turn up stinking of booze and whinge about what a hard week you've had.

It's a tried and tested system that I've had in place for ages.

Note (v. important): Do not get into the habbit of buying presents at the airport as this will become expected. Much better to turn up slightly drunk.

HTH

Thanks. I'm already there on all of this except

Find an airport as close to home as possible that KLM uses

There isn't one, in real terms. Heathrow is 40 miles but I have to allow over 3 hours from the door to the gate, whether public transport or car.

[Moscow Mule]

...2 sections of tube, DLR (bizarrely you cannot get from Euston to any DLR station in a single tube journey). ....

Eh? Walk to bank branch of Northern Line, get on, get out at Bank, walk to DLR.

[expat]

Hmmm seems to me the easiest solution is to turn your non-variable Bedfordshire residence into another different constant. There's always ways to get round strong typing you know ....

Well, yes, you are noticing that if that is a given then the choices are constrained. The explanation is kind of irrelevant to the discussion, but it is worth noticing. However, it is not easy to change, and more importantly I might well not like the result if I did.

[expat]

Eh? Walk to bank branch of Northern Line, get on, get out at Bank, walk to DLR.

Sorry, you're right. OK, it's not so bad then. Still unpleasant, like I get a London commute AND a flight.