Summer Tier Points – Once more with feeling at Dublin Airport

Once more with feeling at Dublin Airport – Summer Tier Points

In this… epic.

• When will I learn to jump on a fare?
• Wednesday Afternoon.. off to the airport
• EI273 Birmingham to Dublin Airport
• Into Dublin for some Donuts. And Pokemon
• The Travelodge in Swords, Dublin Airport
• Pre-Clearance fun at Dublin airport, 51st and Green Lounge
• AA291 Dublin to New York JFK – Business Class
• A Manhattan Char Siu Adventure
• Back in the Secure Area, Flagship Lounge and AAdmirals Club
• AA2652 New York JFK to San Francisco International – Transcontinental Business Class
• The Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport
• Do the BART into San Francisco, The Intercontinental Mark Hopkins, San Francisco
• Sausalito: Which ferry to take?
• Halfway across the Golden Gate Bridge
• Fooding around San Francisco
• The Crowne Plaza, San Francisco Airport
• Early start at San Francisco airport
• AA164 San Francisco International to New York JFK – Transcontinental Business Class
• The joy of terminal swaps, BA Pre-departure dining
• BA174 New York JFK to London Heathrow – Club World (Business Class)
• An Early Morning Change at Heathrow
• BA828 London Heathrow T5 to Dublin Airport – Club Europe
• Doughnuts and coffee shops – Exploring Dublin
• Once more with feeling at Dublin Airport
• FR666 Dublin Airport to Birmingham Airport
• 600 TP: Done

With the lovely @essiejosie dropping me off at T1 the first priority was to retrieve my bag from day-storage for the final leg to Birmingham Airport.

A short visit to the Excess Luggage Company – and €12 later – my rucksack was back with me. Perfect for the short trip upstairs to find out where Ryanair bag drops at Dublin Airport

Which way to the flight to hell?

For those who noted, I’m flying FR666… with Ryanair checking in at Row 13.

 
Dublin T1

Sure… pile on the bad luck metaphors – I love them

Using the bag-check system is pretty easy (with those lovely awfully designed Rockwell Collins Kiosks). With the bag underweight, a tag and receipt unhappily spat out.

M’kay… 

Tum tee tum

Confess and Agree sinner! 

Unhappy printer is unhappy.

Tagged and glammed. 

I self-tagged the bag and went to the bag drop – with the bag sent on its merry way.

That left me the task of  negotiating the sea of humanity that is Dublin Airport security.

That-a-way. 

Once more unto the breach dear friends. 

Queues. Queues everywhere. 

Another 15 minutes in queues and going through the processes, and I was done and dusted.

With me through security… (and a comfort break), was almost ready to face the flight home Whilst I had given myself plenty of time, the enemy was exhaustion – the lack of decent sleep was messing up with me.

Badly.

Etihad Airbus A330-200. 

I skipped past the lounges – mainly as 1) I had no lounge access on the ticket and 2) I didn’t want to spend my own money on lounge access – and fall asleep in the lounge.

Doesn’t matter today. 

I headed out and down to the 100 Gates – passing the shopping.

Off we go! 

Skip past the food…

Even more so…

Well.. did you???

Clearing the main shopping area, there’s a waiting area, as well as toilets and a restaurant upstairs.

And some damn good views.

British Airways Cityflyer E-170

Off into the glass tunnel I headed, destined for the 100 Gates, as my flight was now listed with a gate.

Gate 113. So, Flight FR666, Check in area 13, Gate 113. Anyone else want to pile on the bad luck?

Travelator!

You do not want to know how much at this point I considered curling up on the floor for a doze.

Arriving at the 100 Gates – yes, it’s set up as a Low Cost Carrier area, with minimal facilities and no jetbridges.

It’s also interesting to note one full-service airline was pushing back – and that is SAS who seem to be happy to lower their costs by going to the LCC pier at Dublin Airport.

SAS A320neo pushing back. Look at the size of those turbines…

So much for a legacy carrier eh?

I headed to the end of the pier to find my plane had not arrived yet.

This would be Ryanair’s legendary 25-minute turnarounds it seems.

This was not my plane.

Eventually, another Boeing 737 came into the stand. With the usual speed as the passengers were disembarking, passengers FR666 were being marshalled for boarding.

With Priority Boarding called, I blipped my boarding pass and headed downstairs.

Not long to the seat so I can doze off now…

NEXT: FR666 Dublin to Birmingham… and home.

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