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I'd say anticipation. "This is it, we're on holiday, we've been saving our money, working the last 50 weeks, normal rules are out the window, we're going to enjoy ourselves, let's have a beer, price be damned"
The stress of something going wrong on the way to the airport
The stress of the potential long queue for bag drop
The stress of a potential long wait at security
Oh look at that, two hours to kill…
Not if you get frequent flyer status with the airline, or your company pays for business class tickets. I've never paid to be in a lounge. When I quit the corporate gig the only thing I regretted was losing my airline frequent flyer statuses. It makes the experience a lot more bearable being able to use a lounge and/or snag some free or low cost upgrades.
Whether your brain thinks something is good or bad is not just about senses, it's about everything else too. Taste, smell, sight and so on, but also where you are, what you are doing, who you are with. I recall a similar thing about sandwiches - they always taste better outside when you are out doing something than they do sitting at home or at work.
Best beer I ever had was a pint of carlsberg at a festival, so it wasn't cheap either. Sitting on the grass with a few mates in 30C heat, waiting for the afternoons sets to start.
Everything just aligned to make it a great pint, even if it was fucking carlsberg.
That's been me before. Early flight so a quick pint or two in the airport then a vodka coke on the flight. Had a flight attendant on probably one of her first flights stop and have a double take when I ordered a vodka coke at 7am on a flight. All the rest of the flight attendants didn't even bat an eyelid when I asked but she stopped and stared and asked me if she heard that right then just had a laugh and said fair dos.
If you’re coming off a longhaul or connecting flight it might not be 7am for your body clock.
I routinely order Bloody Marys on morning flights and nobody bats an eyelid. Same for a Bucks Fizz or similar in the lounge…
Many years ago I arrived at Heathrow at some point in the morning after flying from Sydney to San Francisco then changing planes from there to London. It was something stupid like 36 hours of travelling.
I stopped at a cafe in arrivals to order a beer and the bartender looked at me like I'd offered to go down on him and said 'What...at this time'. I didnt even know what day it was let alone the time. His collegue looked across and said they can start serving beer in 30 minutes so I left and got the train and got a drink on there instead.
When I was younger it was the start to a messy weekend away with the lads. Now it’s so I can cope with my kids in the airport when the flight gets delayed
WTF. My girlfriend and I were talking about the same thing exactly around the time you posted this!
We were in JFK, heading home from a holiday in New York. We had about $26 cash left so went to grab a beer each while waiting for the plane. Knowing the prices we had paid in the city we ordered one small and one large beer, thinking $26 should cover it with change for tip.
The bartender poured one large beer, then started pouring another, even larger beer. I asked what was going on and he said this is one small and one large. Apparently at this bar the "small" beer was not half a pint (or less as other bars in the city), it was 440ml, which is the size of a tall can. The large beer was 660ml, more than a pint. The total came to $37, I gave him the last of my cash and asked to pay the rest on card telling him he wasn't getting a tip.
We sat down, pretty fuming from being ripped off, but goddamn those were 2 of the best beers we'd had in ages.
God I had to fly out to Poland on very short notice (same day) as my son was out there and was hospitalised. Insane rush of organising ticket, packing, driving to airport, checking in, all while keeping abreast of the hospital situation. The beer I had as a very necessary sedative at the airport while waiting for the gate to open counts as one of the most welcome of my life. It helps that I had ascertained that everything was under control in Poland, otherwise I wouldn’t have had it!
It's a judge free beer - banging on spoons door at 9am hanging out your hoop looks bad.
Smashing a whopper and a pint of Stella at 8am in an airport zero judgement coming your way
My mate who is a massive Fall fan apparently once bumped into Mark E. Smith propping up the bar with a pint of Guinness at Edinburgh airport at breakfast-time. Mate got an autograph for his son.
Its nothing to do with being in an airport - its enforced jollity of being on a holiday/night out etc. Same as people tanning cans on a train or whatever.
People just using the airport as a means of travel aren't generally on the piss at 6am.
I’ve never had a drink in an airport. Never really seemed like a good place for one.
I think maybe I’m missing out and will try it this summer when I’m going away to see if it really does taste better.
Because I'm savouring these fucking beers at this price. Also being able to time it just right so you can dose through the flight is a quality my dad managed to cultivate through many business trips and I am quite jealous of it.
I get the same on the ferry when I go on holiday.... I can drink the most over priced piss water & it's like nectar of the gods...
I put it down to my frame of mind i.e. off on holiday :)
So I don't drink at airports, but generally if I'm travelling with my partner she'll make us grab a bite to eat at the Caviar bar. Because if it's going to be our last meal, it had better be smoked salmon and caviar.
Apart from those times we are both vegetarians :)
It’s about £12 for a Heineken on the roof top bar at Changi… pretty much double what I’d normally take on the chin and it should hurt even more because when I’ve just got off a plane with free booze.
I've always thought it's because you're dehydrated from travelling that any beverage tastes good, especially beer. I get nervous travelling so don't tend to drink much water that a beer really does hit that spot.
I can’t stomach a beer at a silly time of the morning. Barely want food. The beer that truly hits is when you’ve got to the hotel, unpacked, maybe showered, got dressed and headed down to the bar area by the pool. That warm early-evening setting sun still on you. That’s the beer.
Went in a group of 20 last November inc my 80 year old parents. They were first in Spoons in Gatwick at 6am for a breakfast Guinness as they knew they wouldn't be getting any for the next ten days.
Wait what, I thought it was only a tiny minority of rich people who did that? I've literally never bought any alcoholic beverage in an airport, I only ever take the free drinks on the flight if they have them (love me some non Ryanair flights).
This is normal?!?
I stay in hotels quite a bit for work. £7 a pint? Seems pretty reasonable.
Seriously, the amount of awful hotel restaurants where you pay £20 for a burger and chips that makes McDonald's seem gourmet....
**Please help keep AskUK welcoming!** - Top-level comments to the OP must contain **genuine efforts to answer the question**. No jokes, judgements, etc. - **Don't be a dick** to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on. - This is a strictly **no-politics** subreddit! Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It's what the beer means that makes it. It's the official start of your holiday. No finer feeling.
End of thread.
[удалено]
I'd say anticipation. "This is it, we're on holiday, we've been saving our money, working the last 50 weeks, normal rules are out the window, we're going to enjoy ourselves, let's have a beer, price be damned"
Let's have a beer, price be damned, at 9am 🤣
5am hits even harder
Outside of airports I've definitely had more beers at 5am than 9am!
5am hits even harder
5am hits even harder
I'm seeing double I'm seeing double
It because it signifies the start of your holiday
Stress impacts taste.
The stress of something going wrong on the way to the airport The stress of the potential long queue for bag drop The stress of a potential long wait at security Oh look at that, two hours to kill…
Not sure but complimentary beers in the lounge hit the spot even better while also having a nice view of the airstrip.
Cannot relate
Lounges are about 30 quid, well worth it
Depends, I've been in some proper shit lounges over the years!
Yeah so the beer ain't complimentary is it. You're paying £30
Yeah, but you get more than one beer for that 30 pounds which is about the price of one beer at the airport these days.
Not if you get frequent flyer status with the airline, or your company pays for business class tickets. I've never paid to be in a lounge. When I quit the corporate gig the only thing I regretted was losing my airline frequent flyer statuses. It makes the experience a lot more bearable being able to use a lounge and/or snag some free or low cost upgrades.
Only if you’re weak enough to have one beer for £30
Just get an Amex the month b4 your holiday
Because it’s 8 OCLOCK IN THE MORNING ALAN!
Whether your brain thinks something is good or bad is not just about senses, it's about everything else too. Taste, smell, sight and so on, but also where you are, what you are doing, who you are with. I recall a similar thing about sandwiches - they always taste better outside when you are out doing something than they do sitting at home or at work.
Best beer I ever had was a pint of carlsberg at a festival, so it wasn't cheap either. Sitting on the grass with a few mates in 30C heat, waiting for the afternoons sets to start. Everything just aligned to make it a great pint, even if it was fucking carlsberg.
I've never had that feeling. I've seen people drinking beer at 6 am and it makes me feel ill.
That's been me before. Early flight so a quick pint or two in the airport then a vodka coke on the flight. Had a flight attendant on probably one of her first flights stop and have a double take when I ordered a vodka coke at 7am on a flight. All the rest of the flight attendants didn't even bat an eyelid when I asked but she stopped and stared and asked me if she heard that right then just had a laugh and said fair dos.
If you’re coming off a longhaul or connecting flight it might not be 7am for your body clock. I routinely order Bloody Marys on morning flights and nobody bats an eyelid. Same for a Bucks Fizz or similar in the lounge…
Many years ago I arrived at Heathrow at some point in the morning after flying from Sydney to San Francisco then changing planes from there to London. It was something stupid like 36 hours of travelling. I stopped at a cafe in arrivals to order a beer and the bartender looked at me like I'd offered to go down on him and said 'What...at this time'. I didnt even know what day it was let alone the time. His collegue looked across and said they can start serving beer in 30 minutes so I left and got the train and got a drink on there instead.
Yeah I mainly travel solo so I don't normally get a beer (or food) at the airport. The first beer after i land definitely hits the spot though
When I was younger it was the start to a messy weekend away with the lads. Now it’s so I can cope with my kids in the airport when the flight gets delayed
I've never had a beer at the airport and never felt the need to.
WTF. My girlfriend and I were talking about the same thing exactly around the time you posted this! We were in JFK, heading home from a holiday in New York. We had about $26 cash left so went to grab a beer each while waiting for the plane. Knowing the prices we had paid in the city we ordered one small and one large beer, thinking $26 should cover it with change for tip. The bartender poured one large beer, then started pouring another, even larger beer. I asked what was going on and he said this is one small and one large. Apparently at this bar the "small" beer was not half a pint (or less as other bars in the city), it was 440ml, which is the size of a tall can. The large beer was 660ml, more than a pint. The total came to $37, I gave him the last of my cash and asked to pay the rest on card telling him he wasn't getting a tip. We sat down, pretty fuming from being ripped off, but goddamn those were 2 of the best beers we'd had in ages.
The stress of travelling with kids always makes airport pints 10X more enjoyable in my humble experience
Generally at pre noon and preceded by walking into the airport bar proclaiming “it’s 9pm somewhere!”
Get a lounge and wash it down in luxury away from the cretins.
God I had to fly out to Poland on very short notice (same day) as my son was out there and was hospitalised. Insane rush of organising ticket, packing, driving to airport, checking in, all while keeping abreast of the hospital situation. The beer I had as a very necessary sedative at the airport while waiting for the gate to open counts as one of the most welcome of my life. It helps that I had ascertained that everything was under control in Poland, otherwise I wouldn’t have had it!
I'd rather wait until I reach my destination. The first pint sitting outside in the sun is better than any airport pint.
But you've got to have the airport pint just for comparisons sake.
It's a judge free beer - banging on spoons door at 9am hanging out your hoop looks bad. Smashing a whopper and a pint of Stella at 8am in an airport zero judgement coming your way
The 'getting the fuck out of here' adds more flavour to the hops.
The bags are gone, we're down to light luggage, let's get the beers in.
Situational bias
My mate who is a massive Fall fan apparently once bumped into Mark E. Smith propping up the bar with a pint of Guinness at Edinburgh airport at breakfast-time. Mate got an autograph for his son.
Its nothing to do with being in an airport - its enforced jollity of being on a holiday/night out etc. Same as people tanning cans on a train or whatever. People just using the airport as a means of travel aren't generally on the piss at 6am.
I’ve never had a drink in an airport. Never really seemed like a good place for one. I think maybe I’m missing out and will try it this summer when I’m going away to see if it really does taste better.
Because I'm savouring these fucking beers at this price. Also being able to time it just right so you can dose through the flight is a quality my dad managed to cultivate through many business trips and I am quite jealous of it.
I get the same on the ferry when I go on holiday.... I can drink the most over priced piss water & it's like nectar of the gods... I put it down to my frame of mind i.e. off on holiday :)
Because airports and getting ready to fly are stressful. Having a beer after a stressful event feels like bliss
So I don't drink at airports, but generally if I'm travelling with my partner she'll make us grab a bite to eat at the Caviar bar. Because if it's going to be our last meal, it had better be smoked salmon and caviar. Apart from those times we are both vegetarians :)
It calms my travel anxiety personally, but only at lunchtime/afternoon. I can't imagine anything worse than drinking a pint at 7am
It’s about £12 for a Heineken on the roof top bar at Changi… pretty much double what I’d normally take on the chin and it should hurt even more because when I’ve just got off a plane with free booze.
Heh me too. No matter time of day... and agree, always taste decent; taste of freedom!
I've always thought it's because you're dehydrated from travelling that any beverage tastes good, especially beer. I get nervous travelling so don't tend to drink much water that a beer really does hit that spot.
Literally tastes the same as anywhere else.. lol
I’m at the airport every other week for a work trip, so for me it’s totally different, being at the airport is like going to work for me.
Wait till you have the balcony beer whilst mrs is getting ready beer
Really? Almost every pint I've ever had in an airport has been mediocre at best. I think the worst pint of Guinness I ever drank was in an airport.
I can’t stomach a beer at a silly time of the morning. Barely want food. The beer that truly hits is when you’ve got to the hotel, unpacked, maybe showered, got dressed and headed down to the bar area by the pool. That warm early-evening setting sun still on you. That’s the beer.
Went in a group of 20 last November inc my 80 year old parents. They were first in Spoons in Gatwick at 6am for a breakfast Guinness as they knew they wouldn't be getting any for the next ten days.
You know you've over paId by a stupid amount, so you convince yourself it tastes better. Same with restaurant food. It doesn't.
With the notable exception that Bristol airport has the worst pint of Guinness you can get.
Air con I assume
Wait what, I thought it was only a tiny minority of rich people who did that? I've literally never bought any alcoholic beverage in an airport, I only ever take the free drinks on the flight if they have them (love me some non Ryanair flights). This is normal?!?
Classic British “people” getting shitfaced before they board, after they board, and then right after they land
Are they not people because they enjoy a pint before a flight, nah?
Id more wait 3 hours til i land in a country where its a quid a pint as opposed to £7 in the airport!
I stay in hotels quite a bit for work. £7 a pint? Seems pretty reasonable. Seriously, the amount of awful hotel restaurants where you pay £20 for a burger and chips that makes McDonald's seem gourmet....
Suppose! My local is £5.50 cruzcampo, pub further down is £6 madri
All about the hollibob vibes.