Flights from UK or Ireland who take pets?

There was a thread regarding bringing dogs over by plane from UK ,but never found out if it all worked out and if anyone can give information on flights??? Thanks

Only some airlines do and it will depend on where you are flying from as to which. I recently ( actually just last week...) flew my 2 cats from Glasgow - there is only one flight per week in the winter from Scotland that is suitable , which is TUI or Thomson from Glasgow. There will be more from Manchester for sure( which was the nearest alternative airport for me) and undoubtedly from London. It has to be a plane with suitable cargo hold for animals as they have to travel in the hold. I got a number of quotes from different specialist travel firms who can make the arrangements for you ( eg petair etc) all fairly eye-watering ( eg ranging between c £1100 to £1800 for two cats depending on if you needed them to supply crates, collect the pets the day before and do the checking etc ) but I'd accepted that as just the way it was, as flying was the only real option for me ( no way I could see the cats managing the long road trip.)

However by booking them directly with the agents for Thomson (aiapets.com) and just making sure I had sorted the paperwork (passports, vet check before travelling etc) and bringing them to check in at the airport myself it was a lot cheaper- £470 for the 2 of them. Also ultimately less stressful for them and me as I was with them til the last possible moment and picked them up at the other end at the earliest possible moment. ( The crates - sky kennels meeting airline requirements- cost me another £75 each. ) There's also a landing fee at Alicante which was c.80 euros. I was naturally a bit nervous but it all went fine. Had to check them in at 3.15 am at the cargo area, where their papers were all checked) then trot round to the passenger terminal to get myself on the 6.15 am plane ( same plane as the cats) . In Alicante had to go the cargo area which is a different part of the airport . It took about an hour and a half wait there and paying the landing/ processing fee and then that was that. They suffered no ill effect.I suggest you contact AIA pets and get a quote - the lady I dealt with was great. ( Katie Bowler, her email is [email protected]). They are agents for Thomson who will fly from several airports but may also do other airlines, she would be able to tell you what's possible from where you are travelling.

that's interesting,i had heard about the landing fee from others some had paid it some had not,
we flew our cat over m/cr to Alicante, via thomsons,this was a night flite as well, picked it up at cargo terminal with all papers checked soon after it landing around 45mins,but paid no landing fee,did you get a receipt for your payment?

GLASSMAN wrote:that's interesting,i had heard about the landing fee from others some had paid it some had not,
we flew our cat over m/cr to Alicante, via thomsons,this was a night flite as well, picked it up at cargo terminal with all papers checked soon after it landing around 45mins,but paid no landing fee,did you get a receipt for your payment?

Yes, I paid by card to the handling company and got a receipt. It wasn't a surprise, AIA had told me there was a processing fee due to be paid at Alicante. It might be that it depends on who is doing the booking eg if the fee is included in your overall booking so you don't pay at Alicante or if it is not included, so you do. I was told upfront that it was not included and they also told me how it was calculated - a base fee of c69 euros plus so much per kilo weight. Came in just under 80 euros for me. (They are very big, heavy cats!)

TBH I didn't care how much it was at that stage, just wanted the cats released... Main thing was the cats took the journey in their stride, and delighted to say they settled in here straightaway. They didn't even give me hard time, go in a huff or suchlike (which they have been known to do with vet visits...) Just straight out of crates to scoff food and start exploring their new home.

I contacted Aer Lingus regarding taking a Springer Spaniel dog from Dublin to Alicante. They quoted me £850 stg one way, just for the dog alone. My flight would be additional. Same again for the return trip I presume. So a return fare of well over E2,000. Nice!!!!!!

Rather than not going on the trip, or leaving the dog behind, I booked a return trip by ferry for me and the dog and the car from Cork to Santander for E880 in a 4 berth pet friendly cabin. I will then drive a further 8 hours to Quesada, but can take my time. While I accept that price is still expensive, but given that the dog will be much happier and less stressed, it will be a new experience plus I won't have to hire a car, its a far far better option for me than flying with Aer Lingus.

Incidentally, I met a few Belgians who drove down from Belgium rather than flying. 24 hours straight driving. That wouldn't appeal to me at all. The cost of flying a dog from Belgium is a fraction of what Aer Lingus are charging.

Old habits die hard for Aer lingus. (Their way of calculating air fares used to be , pull a number out of the air, multiply it by 10, add in a bit extra and that is the fare they seek to charge). They had a duopoly with BA on the Dublin London route until about 40 years ago. At the time they used to charge £300 for their cheapest flight, on the Dublin London route, which had to be booked 3 months in advance and had to include a Saturday night. And they assured us at the time that it couldn't possibly be done any cheaper. National Airline me arse - modern day pirates more like. Also average wages were well short of E100 pw in 1980

Rant over, but I'm sure this will strike a chord with some people here who will remember "the good old days" were not that good after all.

Murt totally agree, been checking out courier service from Ireland and would be cheaper going by UK, but now thinking of doing same as you. Thanks to all