The clever airport trick that gets you free drinks and snacks
A MUM has revealed how passengers can use a simple trick to get free drinks and snacks at airports across the country.
With the summer holidays in full swing and lots of families jetting off abroad, long waits at airports, ferry terminals, and train stations seem almost inevitable.
But there’s an easy hack that could help you out if your flight is delayed by more than an hour.
You can get a free pass for up to four people at loads of airport lounges, if your mobile phone provider is O2 or your broadband provider is Virgin Media.
All you need to do is register your flights in advance using a link on O2 Priority.
You’ll then be sent a LoungeKey Pass voucher by email or text message to use if your outbound or inbound flights are delayed.
There are no roaming fees with O2, so you can use your minutes and data in most European countries for no extra cost.
And, if you’re a frequent flyer, you can claim one SmartDelay code a month on O2 Priority.
At some airports, you can choose to use the voucher to take £15 off your food and drink bill instead of accessing a lounge.
For example, if you fly from Gatwick’s south terminal, you can get £15 off your bill at the Grain Store Cafe and Bar.
Some bank accounts and credit cards also include entry to airport
lounges as a perk, so it’s worth checking if you’re jetting off on
holiday.
I’ve always wondered what having lounge access would be like and actually found out when we missed our connection at Amsterdam
Central train station.
We were running for our train to Center Parcs Zandvoort when the doors closed just before we got there.
Facing a wait on the platform with all our luggage and three tired children was less than ideal, but then my husband spotted the lounge for international and business passengers just next to us.
We had no idea if our Interrail passes entitled us to entry, but a quick chat with the lady on the desk inside and we were in, without having to pay a fee.
It was ideal to have somewhere warm to wait and the freebie drinks certainly helped revive everyone after a long and tiring journey.
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The boys were happily tucking into their first Chocomel of the trip – a Dutch chocolate milk drink that they declared delicious.
Meanwhile, my husband and I paid a small surcharge to enjoy an alcoholic beverage to celebrate the start of our travels.
The lounge was fairly small with just a couple of business travellers
using their laptops.
It was certainly better than waiting on a bench on a cold station platform, trying to keep the kids occupied while wondering when the next train would arrive.
Generally, for free access to the International lounges at the
train stations in Amsterdam, and Rotterdam, you need a first-class international ticket valid for that travel day, or be of certain loyalty schemes, like Thalys or Eurostar.
Other passengers can pay €6 per hour for access, so our visit would have cost €30 for the five of us.
If you’re wondering whether lounge access is worth it, I think having
comfy seats, air con, free refreshments, and WiFi access makes all the difference.
While luxury lounges might add to the cost of your trip, if you make the most of the freebies on offer, you could end up saving on buying food and drink at airport prices.
Meanwhile, these parents use snacks to entertain their kids on flights.
And this traveller shared a hack to avoid spending money on water.