Birmingham International Airport - 2008

Advantages: Big enough to get the destinations, small enough to care
Disadvantages: Complex road system to get there

...There's a theory that says every opinion on a site like Ciao is valuable and so we should post as much as we like on whatever topic takes our fancies. However, Ciao don't actually reward an opinion once there are already a bunch on a given topic. So this won't earn me a penny - even with the special bonus. Double nothing is ...... er.... nothing. But since there hasn't been a review of Birmingham International Airport for several years, much of the information on Ciao is outdated and well overdue for an update. So pennies or no pennies, here are my thoughts on BHX. When I was a kid, I loved going to airports - any airport, it didn't matter - it was all just so exciting. Strange exotic people, big shiny shops and lots of static electric shocks from the nylon carpets - there was nothing quite like it. But as I grew up the whole...

koshkha 11.02.2008 · Read review
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Review of Birmingham (BHX)

Botanical Birmingham

Advantages: Plenty to see, a relaxing escape from the city.
Disadvantages: Expensive for a one-off visit. Disappointing restaurant.

...Every city need its green spaces. The architecture may be spectacular and the shops fantastic, but finding a place to escape the traffic and bustle is a necessity for most city dwellers. Picture Birmingham and what do you see? The Bullring, New Street Station and Spaghetti Junction would be the first things that come to my mind. Although I've never lived in Birmingham itself, I worked there for several years. During that time I went to the Botanical Gardens regularly, but for the purposes of this review I will focus on my most recent visit which was August 2008. A Brief History Celebrity gardeners are not a new phenomenon. In the nineteenth century J.C Loudon was an influential writer on gardening and became part of London's high society. He designed the Birmingham Botanical Gardens in 1830 to provide a place where keen...

JoannaPiano 31.10.2008 (02.11.2008) · Read review
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Review of Birmingham Botanical Gardens

Extra Night On Holiday

Advantages: Very modern and clean, excellent food and staff
Disadvantages: None that spring to mind

...We stayed here for one night in December 2007 before flying to Mexico from Birmingham international airport for christmas, we have started doing this recently as it adds another night to your holiday really. We live in blackpool and normally fly from Manchester but this was the only flight we could get on as we booked last minute and annoyingly we had to take of from Birmingham and land in Manchester to refuel as the runway at Birmingham is not long enough for a long haul flight to take off fully laiden with fuel!!! Anyway this is my review of the Novotel situated on Birmingham International Airport, opposite the main terminal building. Facilities And Services Some of the facilities at this Novotel include: Restaurant, Bar, 24-Hour Front Desk, Newspapers, Non-Smoking Rooms, Rooms / Facilities for Disabled Guests, Elevator...

johnny040676 28.05.2008 · Read review
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Review of Novotel Birmingham Airport, Birmingham

Limited Facilities, Nice Enough Airport

Advantages: good location for northern Poland, quiet, small,
Disadvantages: very limited shopping and catering

...Gdansk Airport (officially named Lech Walesa Airport) is located in the village/suburb of Rebiechowo within about a half hour's minutes drive from most areas of Tri-City (many outlying suburbs will be closer, though). Public transport links are good to Gdansk itself, but much worse to Gdynia or Sopot. Licences taxis are widely available and would normally cost something in the region of 60PLN plus, but this vastly varies depending on where you actually going. The airport has served international flights (to Scandinavia and Germany) for years now, but has became much more busy in the recent years (and in particularly with an advent of cheap flights in the form of Ryanair and Wizzair) In addition to several daily commuter-type flights to Warsaw, decent connections to Germany (including Frankfurt, Bremen, Hamburg and Munich...

magdadh 16.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of Gdansk airport

Alicante Airport

Advantages: Good location, decent amenities
Disadvantages: Can't think of any

...I use Alicante airport for my annual break in Spain and find it is convenient and fairly easy to use. It is situated just outside Alicante on the Costa Blanca, around 46.5km from Benidorm. It is within driving distance of Valencia, around two hours and 179km. Arrivals You would probably fly to Alicante if you were staying in Benidorm, Torrevieja, Altea, Calpe, Moraira or Teulada. It is popular with budget airlines such as Easyjet and Bmibaby and there are flights from many regional airports in the UK such as East Midlands, Liverpool, Bristol, Newcastle and Stansted to name a few. There are around ten car hire companies who operate out of the airport including the big names like Avis, Europcar and Hertz, these desks are located in the arrivals hall and can get busy at peak times. There are also local car hire companies who...

tor0908 16.07.2009 · Read review
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Review of Alicante Airport

chicago airport

Advantages: Gets me from A to b efficiently
Disadvantages: It's an airport!

...Chicago airport. On a recent visit to san Diego, we had to have a stop in Chicago airport for a couple of hours...most of my travelling seems to be spent in airports! It was the busiest airport in the United States until Atlanta became the busiest and it was apparently voted best airport in North America in 2000...that's 8 years ago so i don't know which airport has been winning since then. The airport is 20 miles from downtown Chicago but since we weren't actaully going to Chicago we didn't actally leave the airport so I can't comment on the transport links. **The Terminals** Of course when stuck in an airport these are the places you see most often. There are 4 terminals and strangely enough these are Terminals 1, 2, 3 and Terminal 5 which is the International Terminal...whatever happened to number 4? All of the terminals are...

danielalong 23.10.2008 · Read review
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Review of Chicago Airport

APH 4 BHX

Advantages: Safe, secure.
Disadvantages: Hang on. Let me think....

...I had a couple of weeks off recently and managed to get an excellent late deal to Mallorca. We were going to fly from Birmingham airport, somewhere that I`d never flown from before but had decided that it might be a little bit easier than Manchester which I usual preferred. We had to decide whether to leave our car at home and travel down by a local minibus company or to drive there and park the car at one of the many car-parks available around the airport . As we usually run late wherever we go, we decided to use our vehicle to get there. So began the hunt for a suitable secure car park! I`ve used on- airport car parking before and paid through the nose for it. I`d also used of f-airport car parking,namely BCP at Manchester and was not duly impressed by them for a variety of reasons that I`ll not go into to here...

bwanamdevu 17.05.2003 · Read review
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Review of Birmingham Airport Parking

On The Doorstep Of Heathrow Airport

Advantages: nice rooms, convenient location, lovely pool bar
Disadvantages: Parking and food were a little on the expensive side

...I stayed at the Sheraton Skyline hotel near Heathrow airport in September 2007 before I flew out on my annual holiday. I booked this hotel because according to their website, it is literally on the doorstep of Heathrow Airport. Room Our room was located on the 10th floor but sadly the room overlooked the hotel car park but to be honest this wasn?t a problem because we weren't staying here for the view! Our room was very large, much bigger than I expected for the price I paid. The bed was extremely large, probably about 6 feet wide and very comfortable. It certainly left us both feeling like we had a decent nights sleep. The room also had two wardrobes, an office desk and chair and a lamp on either bed side table. There was also a fully stocked mini bar but to be honest the prices were so extortionate that we didn?t even bother...

TyBetts 12.07.2009 · Read review
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Review of Sheraton Skyline Hotel - London Heathrow Airport

A bridge too far in Birmingham

Advantages: Now unique in the UK - the only representative of the Hyatt
Disadvantages: Very average compared against the standards of this chain

...) and the room charges were pre-paid by credit card at the time of booking. This was refundable up to 48 hours prior to arrival. They sent an immediate e-mail confirmation of the booking. TRAVEL We travelled to Birmingham from the North East by rail and arrived at Birmingham New Street Station. Although the hotel is within walking distance (about 10 minutes across the pedestrian centre), the weather was wet and we took advantage of a taxi from the station (£3.60). The hotel is also within easy reach of Birmingham International Airport (either by train to New Street) or by taxi. The hotel operates valet parking. There is a bus stop for local services into the City and out to the suburbs outside on Broad Street. CONCLUSIONS I have become a dedicated Hyatt user for over seven years ? staying at various of their hotels in Florida...

Newfloridian 14.09.2003 · Read review
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Review of Hyatt Regency, Birmingham

Etap Birmingham Centre, Birmingham

Advantages: cheap, clean, friendly staff
Disadvantages: quite a walk from town centre

...Etap Hotels are another budget hotel chain created by Accor, the creators of hotel giants Ibis. This 250 room complex is situtaed in the centre of Birmingham and all rooms cost £35, whether its a weekday or the weekend. But for this price, don't expect luxury acommodation, as luxury is probably the worst word to describe this hotel. The rooms are clean and modern and sleep up to 3 people. In most cases, this is either a double or twin beds with a single bunk on top - not very glamourous but good for the money. You do get a television (complete with an array of English and European channels), but I can't guarantee that you'll get coffee and tea making facilities, as some rooms seem to be missing these. There is also no hairdryer or anything like that, but you can get one if pay a £10 deposit at reception - you will get this returned to...

jdeacon_162 11.11.2006 (12.11.2006) · Read review
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Review of Etap Birmingham Centre, Birmingham