Air Passenger Duty/Tax rises

[Spitfire]

Travel is to become more expensive by the looks of it. The UK imposes rises on the 1st November 2010, the further you fly, the more you pay.

Might be worth a read for those that travel...........

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/f ... 043892.stm

Seems to be a strange move as it has been tried in Holland and then they scrapped it as they reckoned they lost more than they generated.

These taxes could add a fair additional chunk to a ticket by the sound of it.

Will it affect you and whether you travel?

What do you think? I know there a quite a few readers/posters that fly back and forth from the UK.

Added a poll too as it would be interesting to see if it would change how we operate our travel habits.

Edit - There are other taxes on the way too, like the US charging a $14 entry fee on arrival etc. Doesn't sound a lot but they all add up, especially if it's a family.

[Big Boy]

Does that mean I'll get a Rolls Royce service when travelling to Thailand from Heathrow; while those travelling to Paris will be treat like 3rd class citizens? I think the answer is that we'll all be treat like 3rd class citizens, irrespective of how much we pay for service at the airport.

[STEVE G]

Yes, it's not worth much to travel through Heathrow, I did it twice last year and the place is a disjointed nightmare of old and new terminals vaguely linked by a circuitous bus system.

[usual suspect]

With the introduction of these taxes..IF it has an effect on the numbers of passengers traveling..
..will Tour companies & indeed the Airlines themselves have to lower prices to keep people flying..??
(Emirates doing MAN/BKK for less than £550 this month is roughly the same price as 3-4 yrs ago)
Is this a tax implemented to lower numbers of tourists holidaying abroad, & to try keep stocks of the humble pound
within good ole Blighty..??

[margaretcarnes]

Even higher fares would hurt for sure, but I wouldn't travel to the LOS more than once a year anyway - just might stay longer to get VFM and book further in advance to try to get the best deals.

For those who don't have the flexibility there does seem to be an upsurge in cruises already by UK tourists. Not my cup of splosh but a lot of people like the all in deal (well almost - apart from shore trips which can add up.)

[Governor]

I used to travel in Business Class, I would now have to pay £170 in tax for this privilege against £75 for economy, which is still too high but I doubt that the UK Coalition Government will change it as it's seen as a cash cow,

The fact that Belgium and the Netherlands have dropped the tax as being self defeating seems to have escaped them. Germany has introduced a similar tax but I believe it's under £40 for a long haul side destination.

If I wanted to fly to Europe I would fly into and out out of Schiphol probably using a budget carrier if I wanted a trip to the UK.

[STEVE G]

In my opinion the government is abusing the fact that the UK is an island and it's not as easy to drive across a border to another countries airport as it is in continental Europe.
I suppose you could get the Eurostar to Paris or Brussels.

[Khundon1975]

I thought the UK government were looking to introduce a tax on the plane rather than the passenger, in the hope that airlines would be forced to fill all the seats to reduce the carbon footprint.

Whether this lowers the ticket tax cost to the individual, remains to be seen.

We fly a lot, short and long haul, but this hike in tax won't change our plans.

[PeteC]

Ugggghhh. Reduce the carbon footprint by loading the plane to the gills with passengers and cargo, probably +- 2% of the MGW (Help Steve ). Average fleet age worldwide is what, about 9 years? No thank you. If I have to fly in an older plane, I'll be very grateful for at least 25% less than MGW. Pete