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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 0:35:32 GMT 12
I popped into Hamilton Airport terminal today to kill some time before an appointment at the airport. I was hungry and thirsty so went to the cafe upstairs and asked for a steak pie and an L&P. I saw from the label that the pie was a hefty $4.50, but the drink didn't have a clearly marked price as far as I could tell. This was a small bottle, smallest in the range, I think 500ml. A standard small bottle anyway. The bloke asked for $9.00. I had a heart palpitation, and told him to put the drink back. There is just no way in hell I will pay $4.50 for a small soft drink, that is criminal. I could buy several litres of it ina supermarket and get change from that!
I went downstairs to the bookshop and bought a can of Coke there for $2.00. So the bookshop sells drinks at normal prices while the cafe extorts people. God onlyu knows what the alcoholic drinks cost at the cafe, but then I have never, ever seen anyone drinking there so i guess that means they are costly too.
It seems whichever airport you go to the food is a horrendous price and often dubiuous quality (like the pie today, it might have been great when it was fresh but it had been under the warmer a very long time I reckon). Why is it that airport cafes think they have the right to double or more the usual prices?
I guess now that airlines don't bother serving meals any more the cafes think they can rook hungry travellers. It really is something I hate about airports and I think such a thing is an embarrassment to travellers coming to our airports and getting fleeced.
In fact Hamilton Airport really needs to lift its game in my opinion. I usually just fly in or out (literally and figuratively) but today I had a decent look around there. Their garden borders at the entrance are a frigging mess - basicaly a half dead unkempt low hedge full of taller weeds. Considering this is the first greenspace visitors seewhen they arrive I think it's a disgrace. Especially as the airport is owned by five councils, some of which (Waipa and Hamilton for example) have very good gardeners and proud gardens - Cambridge's roundabouts and park gardens are always superbly kept. Why not our airport?
It will only get worse there too now that the airport land is being developed into an indutrial park, with several big warehouses already going up.
Also at the main entrance is the Airport hotel, who's gateway and roadfacing end, designed surely to be a showpiece part of the building, is obscured by a skip bin and a rust old shipping container. It looks tacky!
And considering that five local councils own the airport I think there should be something there that there that shows off what the region has to offer, a visitors centre with all the attractions and facilities highlighted, with booking for various attractions like Mystery Creek events, the Camjet or Hobbiton, etc., and films and other presentations of the region, and all that. All they have is a few brochures in a rack.
Lastly, considering the airport thinks of itself as an international airport, I cannot believe that in this day and age there is still no bus service to and from the airport!! There should be a service that can be used from the three major centres around it, Cambridge, Hamilton and Te Awamutu. It's staggering to think any "major" airport does not have a bus service of any sort! I guess the shuttle and taxi companies have bunged the right councillors on that one.
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Post by DragonflyDH90 on Nov 24, 2012 8:53:27 GMT 12
Do some letter writing Dave, newspaper, council, MP etc, see what response you get.
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Post by Bruce on Nov 24, 2012 9:26:23 GMT 12
Writing a letter to the airport company can be quite productive. A few years ago I was flying back to Hamilton from a conference in Dunedin (on customer service...) and had to stage through Wellington airport late afternoon. My flight arrived just after 5, and there would be a few hours wait before the onward flight to Hamilton. As that flight wouldnt be arriving until after 8pm, it was sensible to get some dinner whilst waiting. Unfortunately, it appeared at that time that all the cafes in the main concourse closed at 5pm, with only one place open, selling Coffees and tired sandwiches. There were lots of flights arriving and plenty of people around, but I had to resort to a packet of chips from a vending machine. Being particularly aware of customer service expectations after my conference, I wrote a letter to the Wellington airport company advising them of the poor customer service perception, and they wrote back admitting that I had a valid point, that hours of service had not been properly defined with the concession holders, and that they would be negotiating this with the vendors. They sent a voucher for a free meal as well, but as I dont go through Wellington very often, I never got a chance to use that before it expired. Since that time however, when I have been in Wellington on SAA business, I note that cafes in the terminal are open quite late into the evening. Complaining does work!
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 10:15:17 GMT 12
My sister is at this moment googling the prices of shuttles to get to the airport for a flight on Wednesday, and has just informed me that a shuttle from Cambridge to the airport is going to cost her and Mum at least $30.00 each for a ten minute drive from Leamington. If it were just one person in the van it's $50.00 a head. If they get ten people book it will cost a total of $70. How the hell does that work?
Parking the car there is $20 a day. A bloody rook.
The closest you can get to the airport on a regular bus service is the Cambridge to Hamilton bus, both ways six times a day, which will drop you at Tamahere on SH1 for $5.30 each and you have another 5.5km to go down Airport Road to the airport. The 100 Km/hr zone country road is not good to walk down (I know as I did it yesterday to get to the airport) especially at the Narrows Bridge area which is very dangerous. Anyone with luggage would never conceive the idea. Why don't they run a shuttle to meet the Cambridge bus, perhaps on prior arrangement?
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Post by ErrolC on Nov 24, 2012 10:29:19 GMT 12
My sister is at this moment googling the prices of shuttles to get to the airport for a flight on Wednesday, and has just informed me that a shuttle from Cambridge to the airport is going to cost her and Mum at least $30.00 each for a ten minute drive from Leamington. If it were just one person in the van it's $50.00 a head. If they get ten people book it will cost a total of $70. How the hell does that work? The cost of driving the van to and from the airport is basically the same regardless of the number of passengers. The price charged reflects this (as well as other factors). If most most get picked up by friends, or have a vehicle available at the airport there might even be no shuttle passengers from a particular flight? What's the standard taxi fare then?
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Post by sparrow on Nov 24, 2012 11:06:13 GMT 12
Not much of a help to you, I guess, but I fly quite a bit, in fact flying back to Dublin in about 12hrs, and over here anything airport related is horrificly expensive. The food and drink in European airports is extortionate, as is travel to and from them, if you're a tourist(locals usually know better buses and routes). Reading your post reminds me of what I say everytime I get back to NZ, the place is getting more and more expensive. There's been a few UK newspaper articles I've read lately that say NZ is pricing itself off the market, and I couldn't agree more. I'm here on a lovely island, Fuerteventura, only 4hrs flying time from Ireland, and it's a lot cheaper than NZ, so, as people have said to me, "why would we fly the best part of 2 days to pay as much, if not more, than we do at home?"
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Post by corsair67 on Nov 24, 2012 11:44:03 GMT 12
Airports have the market cornered, so they know they can get away with charging whatever they want! The Taxi and Shuttle Bus companies also get stung by the airports for a fee everytime they enter/exit the airport too.
Food/drink is generally always more expensive at airport cafes, and they are probably paying a very high rent just to be there.
I was appalled when I had to pay $5 to leave Hamilton airport a few years ago - especially when I considered that I was already paying for the 'luxury' of flying from the airport in my airfare, as Air New Zealand would be paying Hamilton airport landing charges.
Just wait until airport owners find a way of putting toll road charges on the entry into the airport!
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 12:54:09 GMT 12
Hamilton still has the $5.00 departure tax, Palmerston North which was the other regional airport famous for their tax has only recently dropped it. The tax at Hamilton was installed to pay for their new terminal upgrade some years ago. The local ratepayers have already paid heavily into that and the runway extensions so get tripply stung when they use the airport.
Errol I believe a local taxi from Leamington to the airport is about $50.00 to $60.00 too. the thing that gets me is the shuttle might charge my sister and Mum $60.00 and they'll also pick up two others on the same trip and charge them $60.00, and so on. But if you have ten people, the flat rate of $70.00 applies.
It is very well to say most people get others to drop them off, etc, but as with everything if there was a decent cheap transport service many people would use it rather than bother their friends and family. Hamilton Airport does not offer any alternative.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 12:56:05 GMT 12
Hamilton Airport needs a McDonalds, that is what it really needs. They don't ramp their prices up just for being there like others do.
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Post by corsair67 on Nov 24, 2012 13:13:17 GMT 12
Hamilton Airport needs a McDonalds, that is what it really needs. They don't ramp their prices up just for being there like others do. Yeah, but then the airlines would have to up the airfares to cater for all the obese children taking up two seats on the plane! ;D
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 13:18:22 GMT 12
Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch have McD's and their airfares are always much cheaper than Hamilton's though!
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Post by corsair67 on Nov 24, 2012 13:35:49 GMT 12
Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch have McD's and their airfares are always much cheaper than Hamilton's though! Hmmmmm, I can see a 'useful' Ph.D research topic in that!
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 13:36:51 GMT 12
Sponsored by Ronald?
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Post by corsair67 on Nov 24, 2012 13:40:04 GMT 12
Of course! ;D
"new research finds that McDonalds leads to cheaper airfares and more flights from airports that have a McDonald restaurant on site....." ;D
Even more interesting is the fact that Sydney airport has Hungry Jacks, McDonalds and several other fast food chains on site, and that airport has even more flights and even more cheaper airfares to choose from!
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Post by alexjc on Nov 24, 2012 18:16:52 GMT 12
The Cafe at upstairs at Hamilton is famously bad for prices!!! Problem is that you can't by coffee anywhere else landside. As much as I like the 'new' terminal, you can clearly see all is not well. There is an abandoned cafe near the main departure gate, but HIAL want far too much rent for it (and I'm under the impression that the cafe upstairs rents it to keep it dead?). A couple of drink and light snak vending machines stand next to it. As for the departure tax, it needs to go, many believe the sale of 'Titanium Park' land should be covering this. As for cheaper flights - there are two factors missing here...Competition and A320/B737 aircraft! And that will get you your Maccas!!!
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 18:20:24 GMT 12
The vending machines do not display any prices, so I am not keen to chuck in coin after coin till i hit the jackpot magic number.
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Post by alexjc on Nov 24, 2012 18:35:19 GMT 12
I'm tempted to do a Letter to Editor at the Waikato Times...Problem is that it's been done before... I'd re-open the downstairs cafe booth as a snack bar and coffee without the food, but there may not be enough passenger traffic? Need to bring back 'Origin Pacific"
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 24, 2012 18:36:56 GMT 12
With the industrial estate about to be open with loads of workers then maybe a new cafe will be a good idea to cater to them?
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Post by alexjc on Nov 24, 2012 18:50:22 GMT 12
BP and Caltex have been sniffing around the Airport preferies and Shell did have an option on land (I use to work for ShellNZ) next to the failed 'Powerbeat' factory at the start of the 2000s boom. I'd say the western Rukuhia side of the airport is were I'd build a cafe first. The growth of CTC will see to that. But in saying that, Titanium Park is going to be huge especially when the new airport entrance and approach roads go in.
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Post by kiwithrottlejockey on Nov 24, 2012 19:04:56 GMT 12
Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch have McD's
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