This was published 1 year ago
Traveller Letters: Don't complain about the A380, blame the airline
The Airbus A380 superjumbo is still one of the most comfortable planes for economy passengers, argues one Traveller reader.Credit: iStock
SUPER JUMBO
Louise Burley's recent letter about her experiences flying Emirates Airbus A380 (Traveller Letters, August 13) may have missed the point in regard to Michael Gebicki's article in relation to the aircraft. No doubt she found her recent experience flying Emirates underwhelming as I also did last month. However the aircraft itself features the most comfortable economy class aircraft now in service. The seats are among the widest, the seat pitch is one of the greatest, aisles are wide, toilets are not narrow. Try that with, say a Boeing 787 economy class or an Airbus A350 economy class, both of which do the Australia- Europe run. Plus the plane is rather quiet which is about the only thing the 787 can match apart from mood lighting.
Ronald Loncar, Macleod, Vic
RATING EMIRATES
I can only agree with your correspondents' comments about Emirates. I am certain the airlines have a long way to go until they return to the pre-COVID "normal". I recently flew business class with Emirates to Europe and back. At the beginning of each flight a flight attendant would engage with me with the well-practised patter that she was there to look after me and would seek to make my flight as enjoyable as possible. 'Terrific', I thought, until each time I found that I never saw them again. Emirates in-flight catering used to be something special. Nuts have now replaced canapes with your drinks, vegetables are overcooked, sandwiches from the bar are almost inedible, with cheese now offered in canteen-style as slivers on a small plate. Priority baggage took one and a half hours to arrive at Melbourne airport and by the time we had emerged from customs the limousine driver had left. Travel has quite a way to go to return to former days. Maybe it never will.
David Greenwood, Balwyn North, Vic
LETTER OF THE WEEK
BIG ON SMALL
In reference to Michael Gebicki's column (Traveller, August 13), we have twice enjoyed really small ship cruises. As part of a round-Australia, six-month journey, we went with just 29 other passengers aboard "True North" from Broome to Wyndham. This two-week journey was extraordinary as we explored parts of the Kimberley coast otherwise impossible to access and learned so much, aided by lectures each evening before meals, usually featuring fish caught by some of us. We've also sailed from Petersburg, Alaska, in a converted prawn trawler, up the Inside Passage. The boat could take 12 passengers but there were only eight of us aboard "Sikumi", along with four crew. Again this small vessel was able to take us up to the face of glaciers, to islands where we could swim in thermal forest pools, to kayak among icebergs, and to have close encounters with wolves, bears, seals, sea lions, whales, eagles, plus great fishing. We heartily recommend such small ship cruises.
Jane Pollard, Leura, NSW
MONOLITHIC INCONVENIENCE
We just returned from a marvellous week at Uluru which we could not fault, until we got to the airport there. We arrived two hours before a scheduled flight and takeoff that was two and a half hours late, with the time spent in queues. It had multiple impacts, especially for older people and international visitors with interconnecting flights. With staffing reduced by COVID, the remaining employees did their heroic best but the chaos has a systemic root. Resort transfers disgorge intending passengers all at the same time. Airlines schedule departures close together. Result? Catastrophic bottle-necks with old-style check-ins adding to the problem. It's time for a holistic review.
Rob and Chris McGregor, Cabarita, NSW
YOU LITTLE RIPERTON
Don't forget Brewster Bay (Traveller Letters, August 13) by the incomparable Minnie Riperton. A beautiful love song replete with squawking seagulls for that on-the-harbour feeling.
David Andrew, Paddington, NSW
BIG TOWN AMERICA
There are two excellent songs by female performers that perfectly capture the feeling of being in the urban areas of LA and New York: Natalie Merchant's Carnival, a melancholic song about wandering around New York, and Sheryl Crow's All I Wanna Do that captures the banality of LA's urban environment.
Scott Mendham, Surry Hills, NSW
THEY BUILD YOU UP…
Upon noticing my frequent flyer points with Qantas had disappeared I inquired about what had happened. To my surprise, they answered the next day and kindly offered to reinstate the points if I could provide some evidence of a booking in a certain time period, which I duly did the next day. That was 10 weeks ago. I've done weekly follow-ups. Only once did I receive a reply asking to provide a number so they could call me. The call never came. I think we are breaking up.
Tony Carne, Kensington, Vic
DO THE RIGHT THING
Lee Tulloch (Traveller, August 13) highlights that the increasing unpredictability of weather is challenging our ability to plan holidays that rely on a particular season or climate. The irony that most travel is contributing to climate change was not lost on me. Perhaps the answer is for more of us to engage in sustainable travel and, where possible, to travel locally. There are some beautiful places to explore at home that could absolutely use our tourist dollar. Let's have fun supporting them and our planet.
Amy Hiller, Kew, Vic
WAITING - THERE'S MORE
Like Christine McMenamin (Traveller Letters, August 13), I also had a flight booking to travel from Melbourne to Copenhagen in September, 2020. Mine was a direct booking via the Thai Airways Melbourne office, booked and paid for on February 3, 2020. After waiting for two years, they offered me a travel voucher for the full amount. I am planning to travel in December on a different itinerary which is more expensive. The travel voucher covers only part of the payment. My online booking was confirmed and I was told to contact the Thai Airways office to complete the transaction. I have been calling them daily for four days and have emailed them twice, to no avail. I even went to their office on Collins Street in Melbourne but it was closed. After five working days, I got an email saying my booking has been "auto cancelled" and the fare is no longer available. The next available fare is $840 more expensive.
Sriyani Perera, Southbank, Vic
To mark the 15th anniversary of Traveller's launch, we recently invited readers to share their thoughts on the future of travel over the next 15 years. Here are some of your responses.
PEACE OFFERING
My travel dreams for the future take me to…a peaceful and still independent Ukraine. I would spend a week exploring the capital Kyiv, including the Mariinsky Palace and Museum of Folk Architecture and Life. Oh, and the fascinating Museum of Ukrainian Diaspora, then the Monastery of the Caves – what a fantastic view of the city from the bell tower. I take a high-speed train to Lviv, and spend a whole day at the ginormous National Art Gallery there. At a home-based cooking class I learn how to make delicious borsch, dumplings and more. Then my new Ukrainian friends guided me through the historical Privoz Market in Odessa.
Brenda Mattick, Newcastle East, NSW
ALL CHANGE, PLEASE
The next 15 years will bring massive changes in every aspect of our lives, including our climate and our commitment to it and the multitude of species we share it with. I hope more and more of us decide to more carefully explore and enjoy the beauty and variety of our own glorious back yard. And, maybe, occasionally, take one fabulous, long wander.
Lesley Walker, Northcote, Vic
EMISSIONS POSSIBLE
Future travel will be climate guilt free. Owing to international emission targets, it will be impossible to book any form of travel or accommodation that is not carbon neutral or offset by law. And this will be vital, as travelling through hotter and more disaster prone environments, will make travel more exhausting and risky. Eventually, as we learn to rebalance the atmosphere's CO2, landscapes will restore, weather will stabilise and our delight at venturing far and wide will flourish again.
John Clarke, Healesville, Vic
SINGLE MINDED
As an older, single, female traveller, my one hope for the future would be that more concession is made for people like myself who wish to travel for the love of the journey but find ourselves paying single supplements (for example, on a cruise) or the same rates as a couple (for example, for most accommodation). I know we are being overtaken demographically by the millennials but in the short time I have left to travel I would very much love to be able to afford to do so. The goodwill and loyalty garnered by travel industry providers would more than make up for the perceived financial loss.
Tracee Tromp, Clifton Hill, Vic
My hopes and dreams for future travel are that tours and packages will be inclusive of single travellers with the cited prices "per couple" and the horribly expensive single supplement abolished. I hope to join the various exciting tours on offer to destinations like Alaska, Scandinavia, Japan, cruising along the Rhine, or taking train journeys in Canada, and everywhere else that calls. I will no longer view the glossy advertisements as interesting wallpaper and instead eagerly sign on to what's on offer. One can only hope and dream.
Heather D'Cruz, Geelong West, Vic
LISTEN UP
How can the world travel better? Easy, ensure you have a good travel agent. Use carriers with good customer service before and after you travel (Qantas, are you listening?) Future of travel? Excellent. With more of us reaching retirement more players will enter the market and hopefully fill any gaps. But will we pollute the pristine areas we now value so dearly?
Lindsay Somerville, Lindfield, NSW
VIRTUALLY THERE
Imagine that it is 2037 and you are sitting in the comfort of your surround sound room at home. You have agreed with family and friends on your special holiday destinations anywhere in the world, cafés, art galleries etc. and can now enjoy an immersive virtual reality-based holiday, each using virtual wireless headsets connected to smartphones. No travelling to the airport, no long flights, perfect weather always, and no carbon footprint. Instead, you share your experiences of being together virtually for a memorable holiday.
Jenny McCready, Mount Waverley, Vic
PINING TO BE SUPINE
For years I've thought that surely the interior of a plane could be designed so that all passengers, including in economy class, can lie down. It must be possible. Recently I read that one airline is trialling this and thank goodness. It will revolutionise air travel when we can step off a long haul flight with the energy to tackle customs and find our way across a foreign city. Bring it on.
Pauline McCabe, Portarlington, VIC
HOMING INSTINCTS
I have been fortunate enough to visit many parts of the world over the last 45 years, some of them before they became tourist hot spots and now restrict access or charge a "tourist tax", a trend which may well continue. The extended COVID-induced travel ban and the subsequent, albeit now dwindling, hassles of overseas travel have somewhat dampened my desire for travelling abroad. Advancing age and declining health are playing a part as well. Luckily, Australia is not just an international traveller's dream destination. There are many places here that I have not yet seen or which I would like to see again. Naturally, I am also planning to venture further afield, preferably to less visited destinations, but I am not in a hurry to do so just yet.
Kirsten Walla, Vaucluse, NSW
REMOTE CHANCE
I have always enjoyed travel where I get to experience one place for a longer period rather than three countries in a week. Now that working from home has become a proven way for knowledge workers to ply their trade effectively, travel of the future may see more individuals and families choosing to transport their lives to new settings for extended periods. Six weeks in the Himalayas? Three months in the Auvergne? Working remotely in your normal job but immersed in a different culture is a fabulous, sustainable way to travel. All you need is reliable WiFi.
Maddy McMaster, Northcote, NSW
The Letter of the Week writer wins Hardie Grant travel books worth more than $100. For August, that includes Explore Australia 2022; Ultimate Road Trips USA & Canada; and World Cocktail Adventures. See hardiegrant.com
The Tip of the Week writer wins Lonely Planet books more than $100. Get under the skin of some of the world's favourite cities with Lonely Planet's ground-breaking new Experience Guides. Each guide lets the reader discover the unique personality of each city, with first-hand experiences from locals, off-beat day trips and a fresh outlook on well-known sites. RRP$34.99 each. See shop.lonelyplanet.com
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