Short Term Airport Parking Drop Off Costs 43 cents per minute!!! Alternatives ?

MrBillions on 28/11/2013 - 18:01

Went to drop the family off at the Melbourne Airport and stayed there for 1 hr 4 minutes which cost me $24 plus $4 for a trolley. So overall $28 or 43 cents per minute.

I find the (Melbourne) Airport parking outrageously expensive, inconvenient and not customer friendly. I'm sure Sydney or elsewhere is not any better. Probably even more expensive.

The free drop off is not suitable for a family with a baby as there is not enough room for fast drop offs and you must be lucky to get a spot, and if you do, then the attendant hurries you up and there is hardly enough time for a hug and kiss good bye.

There are no trolleys in the short term parking either and you have to walk to the terminal and go back again to get one.

I found this recent article http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-05/melbourne-airport-park… and it seems the fees have gone up even further since this article was written.

Do we really have a choice or any alternatives?

What can be done about this?

Outraged OzBargainer

Travel

Comments

  • pork chop on 28/11/2013 - 19:37
    +4

    The price we pay for privatisation.

  • [Deactivated] on 28/11/2013 - 19:49
    +2

    How does it take more than an hour to drop someone off at the airport? You could have parked for 30 mins for $6 which seems pretty reasonable to me.

    I park at Melbourne Airport weekly and I disagree about it being inconvenient and not customer friendly. Yes, it can be expensive but there are economical ways to do it.

    • MrBillions on 28/11/2013 - 22:45

      1 Infant, 1 boy running everywhere, 1 demanding wife, 3 heavy suitcases, about 50 people in front of the checking queue and once that was sorted then can you believe it, a queue from the ANZ Money Changer all the way to the Intl. Departure Gates. It was Mental Monday and 1 hr was a good run!

      • tigergal on 29/11/2013 - 11:52

        I see now that is the problem - you went into the airport. I have done the drop off successfully with such a load and it is possible and the attendants are ok about families taking longer.
        Our routine is hubby gets out of car and get the trolley at drop off zone and brings to car whilst I leave kids in car and take suitcases out of boot. We load suitcases etc onto trolley and then get the kids out of the car (I travel with up to 3 kids) and put youngest in sling and hope the runner stays somewhere close (harnesses can be warranted for airports).
        Hubby then does kisses and cuddles, drives off and I do the check in by myself and

      • RockyRaccoon on 01/12/2013 - 04:06

        Changing money at the airport could cost you more than the parking!!

        1. Use The Citibank Plus account on arrival at your destination, Also saves fees etc on trip etc which will more than offset parking costs
        2. If you need some cash before then go to the PO or even bank locally (in Oz)
        3. Also save on queue and time at Airport which reduces parking fee.

        Online checkin for some airlines, will sometimes give you faster checkin access with your bags

        1 demanding wife

        Wont go there LOL

        However as a true Ozbargainer if you can save with the above, there no reason you cant try to save even more by finding a cheaper parking strategy like others below have suggested.

  • littlecreatures87 on 28/11/2013 - 20:12
    +3

    Your not exactly just dropping them off if you spending over an hour there. Even in that 1minute drop off bay and hand shake and hug is good enough for our good byes!

  • cooldude123 on 28/11/2013 - 21:53
    +1

    You could try going to the McDonalds but it is a fair distance away, and I hear they've tightened up restrictions there, if you wanted to say goodbye to them over a meal or something, but as other posters have said, 1 hour and 4 minutes does seem a bit excessive.

    And trolleys are usually free from around the airport if you know where to go.

  • golfer dad on 29/11/2013 - 10:09

    I understand your stress as we have 3 kids (1 toddler)and been travelling a bit in the past 2 years. The best option is to unload the luggage & kids at the drop off. At most, you'll only need to wait 1 min b4 a spot opens up and the attendent will not hush you away as long as you are unloading. They only hassle people who are just parked there or taking their time saying goodbye and chatting. That way, you can go park the car while the rest of family line up for check-in. Easier and your park time will be shorter

  • JediJan on 29/11/2013 - 11:32

    We have dropped off passengers at the airport many times and never had a problem; never once had an attendant hassle us to hurry up either. The biggest drama I ever saw there was some taxi drivers getting into a little fisticuffs; no attendants about then either! Sounds like your real problem was the process taking just over the hour. Part and parcel of travelling with a young family I think. I have travelled with elderly as well as children and must say it does come down to some organisation on your part. I can sympathise with your dilemma, but what I do is drop them off at the designated zone (we usually take the wheeled suitcase varieties … plus walkers) and then take myself to park nearby (across the road, undercover parking). I am back within minutes. I agree it is expensive but, in your circumstances, I would drop off wife and baby with most cases (Seating nearby) … take the little "absconder" with you and go and park. (Although I don't like to see those harnesses I do believe they have their time and place and perhaps the airport fits that criteria). Check in really shouldn't take that long. We rarely take any hand luggage too (small bag for the iPad and papers only) and pay the extra $20 per person (for up to 20kg)for the rest of the luggage; no inconvenience to others also. Especially those who seem intent on stuffing absolutely everything in the overhead lockers. Spare a thought for the other travellers too. Last time we travelled a family sat near/next to us; the wife had the baby sitting on her lap reeking of urine with it's feet all over my clothing; no idea why she couldn't have found the time to bathe the baby before they arrived. It was an absolute nightmare for me; don't like to complain though. At least that kid that kept kicking the back of the seat the previous time wasn't there on that occasion! Perhaps it would be easier to take someone with you to help speed up the process; an extra pair of hands would be really useful. And $24/28 (for all that drama) was probably worth it for you to get a nice quiet break for a little while. Hope they (and you) enjoyed their holiday; sounds like you all needed it!

    Ps. At least you didn't leave your car under the "care" of Europcar. Could elaborate, but won't at this juncture. Thank your lucky stars! :o)

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