… I have a vat of coffee and an internet connection to see if that’s possible. Feel really sorry for 2500 people at Monarch coming to work today. Most of them entirely blameless 🙁

We’re still going to try and get away. Might have to go to Heathrow now. Considering Croatia so we can still do a day trip to venice, verona similar reasons, or something else entirely Copenhagen, Stockholm, even as far south as Lyon. Anybody had a spectacular city break for 4/5 nights they’d like to share?

Did consider New York if we can get a cheap deal and / or sort a VISA.

Eurostar?
https://www.skyscanner.net/transport/flights-from/uk/171003/171007/cheapest-flights-from-united-kingdom-in-october-2017.html?adults=1&children=0&adultsv2=1&childrenv2=&infants=0&cabinclass=economy&rtn=1&preferdirects=false&outboundaltsenabled=false&inboundaltsenabled=false&ref=flights_seo_landing_page
Iceland came up when I searched UK to anywhere 🙂

Have you thought about going to an actual travel agent?

Edit again
Barcelona? Hear it’s so nice it will bring a tear to your eye this time of year
https://www.skyscanner.net/transport/flights/lond/bcn/171003/171007/airfares-from-london-to-barcelona-in-october-2017.html?adults=1&children=0&adultsv2=1&childrenv2=&infants=0&cabinclass=economy&rtn=1&preferdirects=false&outboundaltsenabled=false&inboundaltsenabled=false&qp_prevProvider=ins_browse&qp_prevCurrency=GBP#results

Feel for you. We flew Monarch to Croatia 3 weeks ago so feel a bit like we’ve dodged a bullet. We were actually headed to Ljubljana in Slovenia, but spent 24 hours in Zagreb. I’d recommend either or both (3hr scenic train apart) for a city break.

My colleague went to Split for a few days recently. Absolutely gorgeous, with lots of nice day trips to national parks nearby. Nice weather, too.

Car/Eurostar/Airbnb/stab a pin in a map of Europe and head that way..

Solved.

Liked Bologna a lot. Better than Verona IMO though most of the northern Italian cities are worth a visit.

Bologna is probably an hour or so on the train to Venice.

Verona also gives you a day out in the Italian Lakes if you hire a car. Malcesine is nice.

How about Trieste? Got some Slovenian prettiness on your doorstep plus Venice daytrip.

I have thought about a travel agent. Except the last time we went, it was a rubbish experience. I appreciate there are more than one 😉

Thanks for other recommendations…

Lisbon?

@bikebouy that’s my kind of thing but since it was our 20th anniversary celebration so quite rightly my better half kind of wants something romantic and a bit planned.

Bologna we’d not considered. Been to Lisbon a couple of years ago. It’s just finding a flight out there. We can get to Venice cheaply (Ryanair – fire/frying pan comes to mind) so I’ve just called the hotel we were due to say at and asked them to let me know the rates…

Thanks again to everyone contributing. Really useful stuff.

Where were you meant to be going originally?

We flew to Madeira with Monarch on Saturday, flying back next Saturday.

Looks like this might be the better position to be in than a last minute cancellation.

Venice.. I’d rather deal with this than being on hols right now. Hope you get back without too much hassle.

If you want something planned then maybe take the cash and find an independant travel agent for an hour.
Write down budget, likes/dislikes and take an open mind 🙂 Probably a lot of monarch accom waiting for people

I’m just back from Lisbon, never realised before what a beautiful city it was, so impressed I will definately be going back. And this time of year the weather was amazing 8)

Jet2.com do Venice city breaks

If you’re still set on going to Venice, fly with easyJet and stay at Hotel Delfino in Mestre, just on the mainland. Will be cheaper than staying in the old town. 15 & 45 bus goes direct from airport & stops outside the hotel.
You’ll need to use local bus to get into the old town but it’s only €3 return

Sorry you’ve had your plans messed up, but there are an amazing number of beautiful cities within a couple of hours flying of the UK.
Budapest, Prague, Athens, Rome, etc., etc.
I’m sure you’ll get something sorted, have a great time.

Thanks all. Interestingly the Hotel we were due to stay at has emailed to say they’ve already been paid. We’d really like to go where we originally planned although I’ve now got a long list of places we’d like to go next.

Ryanair are doing very cheap flights. What I don’t know is if we take them, will we get them refunded as part of the ATOL agreement? It’s £90 so I’m kind of tempted to book them and worry about it afterwards!

We’re off to Lisbon for a concert later in October. Have heard nothing but good about it. Apparently, it’s the Malverncestershire Sasquatch’s favourite European city – if that’s anything to go by. 🙂

I’ve never been – but the Airbnbs were el cheapo (well, very good value anyway, compression to recent experiences in France) and for a man of your means, you could stay somewhere palatial for a few days.

Weather should still be grand.

Best of luck anyway – bummer to have this happen – had cancellations with Ryanair but at least they’re still flying.

We try and do a city break a year (with kids). Out of Venice, New York, Paris & Lisbon, Venice was our favourite but Lisbon a close second.

Did consider New York if we can get a cheap deal and / or sort a VISA

Might be missing something here but you don’t need a visa, and the ESTA is done on line and ‘instant’

Unless you’re ‘foreign’ or have been somewhere didgy (my work colleague visited Iran, now can’t get an ESTA)

[edit – didgy – sorry, went a bit Crabtree there for a moment – meant dodgy]

ESTA takes up to 48hrs – mine took 36 over the 4th July weekend (and I’ve had one before) so it’s not automatic these days

Well I can recommend a beautiful Wine Chateux in Eperney for an overnight luxury stop then continue down to Lugano and stay in a super smashing (i can recommend) Hotel over looking Lake Lugano..

(we do this trip every other year, its stunning)

Hope you sort something out, sure you will and it’ll be just as fabulous wherever you go.

how’s about….. Malaga?

The city itself is beautiful, lots of cheap flights, the surrounding countryside is amazing, the beaches wil be empty at this time of year and you can easiy avoid the tourist hell holes of Torre & Feunge. Heck I’m a complete snob and really quite likes the old town of Benalmadena.

ESTA takes up to 48hrs – mine took 36 over the 4th July weekend (and I’ve had one before) so it’s not automatic these days

Its generally instant. However DO NOT screw an esta app up. I stupidly checked the box for “Yes” when asked “Have you ever worked or attempted to work illegally in the Untied States of America” when completing the form on behalf of my 3 year old son. That took a month to sort out & they appear to only have one person answering the phones, the number for whom is completely obfuscated by bureaucracy.

We’ve decided we’re going to try and go to the hotel originally booked. With luggage etc flights are £150. No idea if we’ll get it back as another of my fabulous decisions was to buy holiday insurance without the cancellation option because hey airlines never go bust do they 😉

It’s a murky area between travel insurance, ATOL and credit card whether we’ll get the money back and it does mean schlepping to Bristol at stupid o’clock in the morning. And flying Ryanair assuming they’re actually bothering tomorrow.

Or we’ll just take a deep breath and book something else. As we’re not taking kids, it’s easier to pick dates.

ESTA varies per person how long and whether you agree to sharing your social media accounts. Some I know agreed and got instant. I didn’t and it took 24hrs, both did around the same time.

Skyscanner will let you search for the cheapest flight anywhere. If that doesn’t work then Belgium, Netherlands, NW Germany and of course France are all a relatively easy drive or train ride away

Thanks all. Interestingly the Hotel we were due to stay at has emailed to say they’ve already been paid. We’d really like to go where we originally planned although I’ve now got a long list of places we’d like to go next.

Ryanair are doing very cheap flights. What I don’t know is if we take them, will we get them refunded as part of the ATOL agreement? It’s £90 so I’m kind of tempted to book them and worry about it afterwards!

Remember you can fly to Verona as well if it’s more convenient (I think you can fly there from Brum). Less than an hour on the train.

We’ve decided we’re going to try and go to the hotel originally booked. With luggage etc flights are £150. 

I would do this

how’s about….. Malaga?

The city itself is beautiful, lots of cheap flights, the surrounding countryside is amazing, the beaches wil be empty at this time of year and you can easiy avoid the tourist hell holes of Torre & Feunge. Heck I’m a complete snob and really quite likes the old town of Benalmadena.

You are me. Most of the coast around Malaga is horrific, but we have stayed in the town itself 4 times now at the end of longer holidays up in the hills. Malaga is beautiful with very few (British) tourists there.

What is ESTA? I thought you could just swan into an EU country no questions asked? Never filled one in for going anywhere in the EU myself.

I would do this

Chances are OP will get his hotel as well as his flight fully refunded even if he stays in it, given the general Monarch carnage and confusion.

What is ESTA?

Sort fo Visa for the USA. Enables them to do pre-screening of visitors based on some bizarre paranoid criteria. If they could, I reckon Tump whould have you enter your head dimensions.

Chances are OP will get his hotel as well as his flight fully refunded even if he stays in it

That would feel pretty unethical. I’m pretty much at the ‘to hell with it’ now. We’ve been looking forward to this for months. I’m just going to book it with Ryanair and worry about the costs/refunds later.

We did look at flying to Verona but no flights left from Brum

It’s been like my own little therapy group in here. Thanks!

@hot_fiat thanks! Teach me to read the thread!

Sad news, the missus worked for monarch a few years ago.

Did 12 days in croatia in the summer…. loved split, hvar and bol.

If you’re struggling, you can always fly into Ljubljana in Slovenia and get a shuttle bus from the airport to Venice (Mestre)

Well just to finish up. After we booked the Ryanair Flights, the hotel got in touch to say ‘actually no the booking hasn’t been paid for after all’. And then told us what their rates were. Which were more than the cost of the holiday including the flights. Can’t cancel ryanair so started looking for cheaper hotels. Then asked politely if they could do us a deal as it was our anniversary etc..

Ended up getting the flights and hotel for about the same as Monarch so we’ll not lose out in the end. Obviously it’ll take blooming ages to get the ATOL insurance.

Still on the upside, we’re still going and we have a good list of places we should consider in the future from this thread. On the downside Ryanair 😉

@bikebuoy

Wine Chateux in Eperney

Can you put the name or details up here please, need a venue for a May trip.

Oh and enjoy Venice Alex – it’s Italy after all and will be lovely.

Thanks 🙂

I recently booked a short trip to Majorca as I couldn’t believe both myself and my wife could get there and back for £112. Now I understand why! 🙁

Not a great deal to lose, but including the non cancellelable hotel, car hire and parking, added up. So now going for a day longer, going out on Easyjet and coming back on Norweigan Air for £220 extra. Annoying, but feel for all the employees of what was I think, a good company to work for.

Every time I flew with Monarch I was happy it wasn’t easyjet or ryanair. Just seemed a different type of low cost airline. Friendlier, less commercial- maybe that was their problem. Well than and having 30 planes when the others had 300! They were great with bikes as well. Definitely will be a big loss – esp from Birmingham where we used them quite a few times.

Whatever frustration we’ve felt, it’s nothing to what the staff must be going through. We still get to go on hols and get the original cost back. You wouldn’t want to have to go and work for Ryanair would you? 🙁

Well, repatriation flight was excellent. Left ahead of schedule, nicer plane, in flight entertainment and drinks and snacks provided. No hassle at all