As the foremost provider of airport transfers and holiday taxis in and around the Sussex area, the Travelmasters team gets more than its fair share of questions from existing and potential clients about the services we deliver.
In order to save time for anybody with similar queries, we’ve put the following collection of questions and answers together. If your query isn’t listed here, or if you need further clarification prior to making your booking, give us a call on 0800 197 3818 and speak to a member of our team.
Airport transfers
These are the most common questions concerning our airport transfer solutions.
How far in advance do I need to book my airport transfer?
We have a large fleet of vehicles available and can normally accommodate last-minute bookings. However, if it is essential that you have a car available to take you to or from the airport, we would recommend that you book us early, ideally as soon as you know you’re making the flight. This means we can book you into our system and guarantee a car either at your door or waiting for you at Departures.
How far are your drivers willing to travel?
It’s your airport transfer, we will travel to the airport you need to get to! Being based in Sussex we are in easy traveling distance of three major airports – Heathrow, Gatwick, and Brighton City Airport. Naturally, much of our business involves transporting clients to and from these three international hubs. However, our dedication to our customers means that when we say we’ll provide an airport transfer, we mean it. Whichever airport you are arriving to or departing from, so long as it’s on the UK mainland, you will find a Travelmasters vehicle and driver available to take you. When you book your transfer, we will work out the cost of the return journey for you, so you will be well aware of the final fare before you set off.
How much do your airport transfers cost?
As with anything that involves a variable (in this case, the distance between your pick-up and drop-off points) it’s impossible to give a single answer that covers every possibility here. What we can say, is that our fares are among the most competitive in Sussex, earning us a reputation for fairness and value-for-money across the county.
When you call to book your airport transfer, a member of our helpful and experienced team will work out the cost of your journey, so there will be no unpleasant surprises waiting for you.
Do you charge per person, or per vehicle
All of our airport transfer fares are calculated per vehicle. The cost of operating one of our private hire vehicles does not noticeably change whether there is a single passenger or half-a-dozen. Naturally, if we are picking up people from multiple sites, there will be a slight increase in the fare as the driver will be making the distance between each pick up spot before taking all passengers to the airport.
Do you do multiple pick-ups and drop-offs?
We do. We understand that many of our clients – particularly those travelling on business – will be operating in a group, and that they will often want to share a car to and from the airport, either for convenience or to reduce expenses for the company. Our drivers are more than happy to deal with multiple passengers, though we will need to know all of their names and addresses at the time of booking. Not only does this allow our driver to plot the most efficient route to include all members of your party, it also means that they can adjust the pick-up times to ensure that you will all make it you the airport in time for check-in.
How many passengers can you take in a single vehicle?
We have a wide variety of vehicles on offer, depending on how many passengers are in your group. Our executive vehicles include people-carriers that can handle up to 8 passengers, including ample space for luggage. If you’re traveling in an even bigger group, say for a stag weekend or a wedding abroad, we can provide a coach or a minibus as a more cost-effective solution than booking a series of holiday taxis to handle your airport transfers.
Do you charge waiting times?
If we are picking you up from home or a hotel to take you to the airport, then each pick-up is allowed the first five minutes of waiting time for free, after which a surcharge will apply. This is applied in order to ensure that you make your flight on time, as any delays during pick-up can seriously impact on you reaching the airport in time for check-in.
When picking you up from the airport, we are more lenient as we understand you have to collect your luggage and so on from the carousel, so we will allow the first thirty minutes of waiting time, after which we will apply a surcharge.
When booking your transport from the airport, it’s important that you give us your inbound flight number. Our team constantly monitors the arrival times from our head office, so that our drivers don’t head off to pick you up until we know your plane is due to arrive in. This means that you will not be charge for delays to your arrival time that are out of your control.
How do your drivers deal with traffic jams, blocked roads, congestion, and other delays on the way to the airport?
All of our drivers are experienced and highly-trained professionals who have been involved in the private chauffeuring business for years. They know the Sussex area well, and are already familiar with those routes that regularly suffer from tailbacks, bottlenecks, and all the other frustrations of the open road. They have got their most popular airport transfer routes down to a tee, and know the best ways to make good time in a way that never impacts on the safety or comfort of their passengers.
What’s more, they also utilise quality GPS software that not only advises them of the shortest route (most of which they already know) but also updates with traffic conditions in real-time. As an added fallback, our drivers are in constant contact with our main office, who are monitoring the traffic, road, and weather condition updates, and who will alert our drivers over the radio of anything that is likely to affect their current journey.
Our top priorities on any outbound airport transfer are the safety of our clients, and getting them to the airport on time, every time. We take every reasonable measure to ensure that is the case.
Am I insured during my airport transfer?
Of course. All of our vehicles are fully comprehensively insured, meaning that our passengers benefit from full cover throughout their journey. From the moment you get into one of our vehicles to the moment you get both feet on the ground at the other end of your journey, you are completely protected under our insurance policy, should anything unexpected occur. The full terms and conditions of our insurance policy are available upon request from our main office.
Can I change my destination mid-journey?
You’re the boss, and of course we will try to accommodate any changes you need to make to your journey. Please be advised that any change may incur additional charges, particularly if the distance is greater than the fare previously quoted.
Additionally, Travelmasters will not be held responsible for any loss incurred as a result of you changing your destination at the last minute. This includes the risk of missing your flight by insisting on taking a detour to pick up another passenger who was not originally part of the booking.
How do I cancel a booking?
Simply give us a call, either at our head office or through one of our local telephone numbers. We understand that people’s transport needs are prone to change, and often at the last minute. As a courtesy, we ask that you give us as much notice as possible, so that we can open your existing booking to other clients.
Repeated cancellations with little to no notice may result in us being unable to assist you with your airport transfers in the future.
What sort of vehicles do you have on offer?
We have an extensive fleet of vehicles, including saloons, estates, multi-person vehicles, and people carriers, so finding one to suit your specific requirements should not be a problem. All of our vehicles are regularly maintained and valeted, so you can be sure that the car picking you up will be pristine inside and out. For more details, check out our vehicles page
I am traveling with small children. Can you provide children’s seats?
We can certainly provide children’s seats for your little ones. All we ask is that you inform us at the time of booking that they will be required, so that our driver can have them installed and ready to go at the time of pick-up.
We hope you find the answers you’re looking for in the above list. If not, call Travelmasters today on 0800 197 3818 and speak to a member of our team.