Calis Beach and Fethiye Turkey Discussion Forum
Flights, Airlines and Airports => Flights to Dalaman and Turkey, Airlines and Airports => Topic started by: Ray1951 on June 27, 2013, 10:29:24 AM
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Had an e-mail from friends who returned to the UK yesterday via Dalaman Airport. They have enjoyed many happy holidays in Calis and this time was no different UNTIL they got to the airport. They said that the check in procedure was horrendous and left many people terrified that they would miss their flight. My friends said that delays when you arrive are annoying but they can accept that BUT not the fiasco that ensues at check in for going home. They said that this situation has really put them off and doubt wither they will come back to Turkey through Dalaman Airport.
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When we arrived around 9pm last night the airport was empty. Straight through with not a queue in site.
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they can accept that BUT not the fiasco that ensues at check in for going home.
What fiasco? Did they miss their flight?
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I think the stress of thinking you may miss your flight is enough! Our arrival was delayed considerably at Dalaman last Saturday but when you have 2 weeks ahead of you it's annoying rather than stressful. Being held in a huge queue when you can see the time ticking away to your flight, well I may call that a fiasco too as we have to check in with plenty of time and spend most of it queuing - especially at Dalaman with the extra security on arrival.
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We flew out of Dalaman to return home end of half term in June, and were advised by our regular Taxi driver Hasan that he needed to take us early as it was gonna be really busy round about the time of our flight, we thought that it was just an excuse as he had a pick up !! but agreed to leave half an hour earlier, thankfully.
We went through check in , passport control no problem just the normal times we did notice that there were four Thomas Cook flights all seemed to be leaving at similar times to various uk destinations but thought nothing about it.
We were flying with Onur air and did think our gate was quiet getting near boarding time, as we were boarding another passenger told us they were way back in a queue at passport control and the Onur air staff had gone down the queue asking if there were any passengers on that flight and brought them to the front of the queue, ( I know it shouldn't have been necessary) we left right on time, quite a good service from Onur we thought.
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If there is a delay in check-in, you're not going to miss your flight.
They're charter flights after all. They'll hold the plane until everybody has checked in.
If you're stuck in the passport queue, you'll just walk up front and tell them that your flight is about to depart.
Quite often the airline handlers will look for its passengers because it is more hassle and much more time consuming to offload luggage.
Annoying...yes
stress....maybe
fiasco...no
in my opinion at least.
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And no different to Heathrow, Edinburgh, Gatwick at times...
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Ok, so maybe not a complete failure so fiasco not the correct term. Ridiculous and possibly incompetent springs to mind whether Dalaman or any other airport. Why, oh why do we have to spend so long In queues? It's hardly a rare occurrence and gets worse at peak periods. Maybe they should charge more for flights and airport facilities so they can have more check ins, security staff etc.....NOT!!
Dutchie, you must be very chilled if queuing almost to boarding time doesn't stress you. I would be very stressed >:(
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I worked in the airport during five years so it really doesn't stress me.
Especially not in Turkey. They're rather flexible here :)
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If there is a delay in check-in, you're not going to miss your flight.
They're charter flights after all. They'll hold the plane until everybody has checked in.
Not always there case. There was a consumer program on TV recently whereby a group of passengers stood in the check in queue for an hour and a half, questioned staff, were told no problem and when they got to the check in desk were told 'too late'. If that can happen in Manchester just think what could happen at Dalaman. We queued 80 minutes for our Easyjet flight home in May and passengers at the back of the queue were getting very worried and irate. Complaints fell on deaf ears. The plane took off on time with all aboard I presume, but it WAS a fiasco.
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One of the reasons I hate charter flights. Hence I often fly via Istanbul.
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When we came back in September the queue for check in took so long (with 2 desks open, one was dealing with someone with excess baggage and the other checking in a disabled passenger and the other 20 people in their party) that we were the last people to board the plane >:( In an attempt to avoid this we went to Dalaman very early and were there half an hour before check in opened - and we were 3rd in the queue!
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We flew home yesterday but the airport was ok. We got there just before mid-day and went right through security etc. There was quite a long queue for checking in (Easyjet) but fortunately we could join the shorter queue for speedy borders.
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When we came back in May (25th, so not the busiest time of year) easyJet to Manchester, A2B picked us up very early and we got to Dalaman about 3 hours before flight time! Check-in desks were listed on the boards but of course they were still checking in previous flight!! So, we sat down and waited a bit until other people came and started to form a queue for our flight and we joined in. Great, we thought, near the front of queue - shouldn't be too long here. Wrong!!!
I have no idea what was going on at the desks but we were in that queue an hour before being checked in, and don't forget we were near the front, and I understand that some passengers were waiting 2 hours. As far as I know no-one was left behind but perhaps that was only because there was a 25 minute delay anyway!
Last year, same time of year, we'd queued again for over an hour in one of two queues when , just as we got to the front of ours the girl at the desk packed up and left!!
The guy on the other desk said not to worry he would take one from one queue then one from the other!
At this point I had a bit of a strop and demanded to be checked in next as there were people in other queue who'd arrived long after us >:( It worked, but it could have backfired I suppose, but didn't think about that at the time.
We love Calis but just wish it didn't mean having to go through Dalaman on the way home!
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My solution is to travel with Easyjet and get everything you need into your cabin baggage, print off your own boarding card and go nowhere near check in :)
Not always possible or practical I realise.
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;D definitely not possible for a 2 week holiday I'm afraid, wish it was!
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No, but if you go for a week or less, try it - it makes Dalaman Airport feel like the best airport in the World :)
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It is when you're arriving! ;D ;)
But I take your point and might give it a try.
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I was amazed when a couple checking in told the girl on the desk that their hand luggage was somewhere else. The girl asked how many and was told 4 pieces but all very small.
I was even more amazed when this was simply accepted.
I can assure everyone that had they been next to me in the aircraft and had tried to put 4 items in the overhead lockers that the would have failed spectacularly.
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I think that it is unfair to blame Dalaman check-in.
Have a close look at the delays caused by your fellow travellers with their oversize/overweight cabin and hold luggage . None of whom have ever flown before and knew nothing of baggage restrictions.
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My solution is to travel with Easyjet and get everything you need into your cabin baggage, print off your own boarding card and go nowhere near check in :)
Not always possible or practical I realise.
We do that Scunner. We check in online and take our clothes in hand luggage. Monarch allow you quite a large piece of hand luggage weighing up to 10kg! Plenty for me, even for 2 weeks. I just do a wash half way through. Everything dries in no time in that heat. At busy times of year when the plane is fairly full they request that you check in your hand luggage anyway but they don't force you or charge you. We always do it because we don't want to be antisocial and the luggage lockers get very full. Gets you through the cues faster though and when the flights aren't full it saves waiting for luggage at the other end.
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and when the flights aren't full it saves waiting for luggage at the other end.
It does that even when the flights are full Suzz ;)
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Except when the flights are full we check it in so as not to be antisocial. ;D
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We flew out from Dalaman late on Friday,28th.
Entry to the airport and check in went well and fairly quickly but the security check before Duty Free and departure areas became a bit of a shambles. We each had a small haversack as carry on luggage and these had to pass through the scanner twice before were told to empty them.
The items of interest in my wife's luggage were two boxes of Turkish delight and a small one cell Maglite torch attached to one of the straps of my haversack seemed to totally confuse the security staff. This torch has been carried in this way to Turkey for the previous 18/19 years without comment.
My wife's passport was demanded and an entry made in the "naughty book".
The male security officer dealing with us was very agitated and constantly shouting at his colleagues and a seemed a bit detached from what he was actually doing with us.
I noticed at the other security counters that there was a lot of bag emptying going on.
Deliberate attempt to annoy or just an awkward shift?
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I think that it is unfair to blame Dalaman check-in.
Have a close look at the delays caused by your fellow travellers with their oversize/overweight cabin and hold luggage . None of whom have ever flown before and knew nothing of baggage restrictions.
I have no doubt at all that some of the delays are caused by fellow passengers, and not just people who have never flown before either but some who 'try it on' to get away with more luggage than they are entitled to. But still think much of the problem is down to staff on the desks.
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Our family flew home last night just had an email from my son he said it was a nightmare, queues booking in, queues at passport desk and queues at duty free they were there in good time but still pushed to board flight. His main grumble was inhospitable staff and no air con. Welcome to Dalaman. !!
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Personally I cant fault Dalaman check in. Last year I sold our apartment and we were bring what we could back to the UK. Most were in our cases but I accidentally did a REALLY STUPID thing and packed all my tools (power tools, basic tools and other things) into an item of hand luggage. At Security scanning I was taken aside and asked to empty my hand luggage and with my wife Angela rolling her eyes in the background brought all this stuff out. The Security guys were not concerned at all and suggested that I put these items into my main baggage. However, when we checked in we had already been over weight and got away with it and so I did not want them to check this (the total cost of the tools were about £25) so I just suggested that I leave the items there. Immediately the Security guys got concerned and several started shaking their heads. One left and shortly after the Captain of the plane that I was to fly in turned up. Despite my protests he demanded that I repack everything and that he would personally make sure that it went into the baggage on the plane. I was very pleasantly surprised by all this and am sure that if the same thing had happened at the UK end it would have been a different story!
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This is from the Dalaman Airport website
"Let us know your wishes and suggestions!"
Any information you will transfer to us carries utmost importance for to serve you better.
Please share your views, recommendations, criticisms and wishes with us.
info@atmairport.aero
:) :) :)
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Wow Happy Monday, good to read such a great positive post about Dalaman airport. Its not all bad then! Yet only last year, bit confused as to what's happened?