Connecting to Southampton Cruise Terminal, & Excess Baggage from Geneva
Hoping for a little advice from PPrune SLFers.
Mdme ExXB and I are joining her family for a 'cruise around the UK' leaving from Southampton in mid-August. I've been looking at the options of getting there (and back) and dealing with the likely excess luggage one of us will need - posh frocks, etc. I've been told I'll have to rent a tux, but I am resisting; not my style.
There are no direct flights to Eastleigh (SOU) from Geneva (Flybe has flights in the winter only) and connecting flights via CDG/ORL, JER, GCI etc - where I can get a quote are very expensive - I'm guessing sum-of-sector pricing.
So it looks like either Gatwick (Squeezy), or Heathrow (BA/LX).
Squeezy's excess baggage rules appear to say that you can pay for an extra piece, but don't get any extra weight above their 20kg. If you have extra weight it's CHF23 per kg. LX gives you 23kg but charges the same as Squeezy per kg. for more. BA, on the other hand, charges (the equivalent) of GBP25 for an extra piece up to 23kg.
All of the above allow pooling of baggage but a conservative guess is that the two of us will have a total of 55~60kg. BA, via LHR, is likely to come out the cheapest here. However, what have I overlooked? Is their a cheaper and better way to get the bags there? FedEx or UPS perhaps?
The choice on getting to the cruise port from Heathrow are by coach (cheap but as long as 5 1/2 hours) or a car transfer (expensive about GBP125 each way). Again, am I missing or overlooking something?
I wouldn't have chosen a cruise myself, but it is the M-I-L's 80th birthday, and this is what she wants to do.
Any and all advice will be rewarded with a virtual beer; or maybe six.
P.S. Can I avoid the Tux? Or will I be out of place?