Fair play to anyone who makes an effort to travel to the games. Especially the likes of Rocky and Dave Burnley. But just had a text off a mate who recently moved abroad.

Hes just booked a flight into Istanbul on Wednesday and back home on the Friday.

When he moved abroad.... he moved to Australia

How can Sean Dyche have this effect on otherwise rational people

Probably cheaper to fly from Australia than it is from Manchester.

And I'm not even taking the ****

Class see my post on the other thread. Its time for all clarets to unite. This is special

Right lads... 700 quid from Manchester to Istanbul is a pisstake.

Anyone wanna come in my car and share the petrol and a tent? Cost will be about £100 each.

Alternatively I've gotten quite good on Flight Simulator 95 lately and am more than capable of leasing a state of the art 737-200 there and flying it myself.

starting_11 wrote:Probably cheaper to fly from Australia than it is from Manchester.

And I'm not even taking the ****

Its cost him less than his brothers flight from manchester

starting_11 wrote:Right lads... 700 quid from Manchester to Istanbul is a pisstake.

Anyone wanna come in my car and share the petrol and a tent? Cost will be about £100 each.

Alternatively I've gotten quite good on Flight Simulator 95 lately and am more than capable of leasing a state of the art 737-200 there and flying it myself.

I would genuinely have driven if I had enough days.

I've booked manchester to thessaloniki. 150 quid. Fly out weds back Sunday. Its 6 hours by car from there.

Currently 4 of us on this route. Happy to drive / car share / bus / cycle / all with any other clarets who fancy this route.

Worse case scenario can go PAOK Salonika vs Spartak Moscow on the weds night

Just a thought. Maybe someone could contact nik michopoulos and ask him to drive make a documentary

This is ridiculous. I've been looking at every possible route and you can't get anywhere near Istanbul for under 400 quid.

Bearing in mind if you want to go in Oct you can for about a hundred quid and I've seen connecting flights for around the £70 mark.

The only thing I can think of is taking a Turkish airlines flight one way to a destination further than IST and finding the same flight as a cheaper fare and jumping off the plane when it lands.

You'll need to book a seperate return fare but I can only assume it'll be cheaper to find a flight with them to Bali or something and jump off than it is to find one direct (£800 ish!)

starting_11 wrote:This is ridiculous. I've been looking at every possible route and you can't get anywhere near Istanbul for under 400 quid.

Bearing in mind if you want to go in Oct you can for about a hundred quid and I've seen connecting flights for around the £70 mark.

The only thing I can think of is taking a Turkish airlines flight one way to a destination further than IST and finding the same flight as a cheaper fare and jumping off the plane when it lands.

You'll need to book a seperate return fare but I can only assume it'll be cheaper to find a flight with them to Bali or something and jump off than it is to find one direct (£800 ish!)

Get on the thessaloniki flight. It's a pretty good price. And closer than Burnley to Aberdeen

This isn't gonna happen to me for a number of reasons. Timing, personal life etc

If we progress to a more "european" game I'll consider a road trip.

Watch this space.

cricketfieldclarets wrote:Fair play to anyone who makes an effort to travel to the games. Especially the likes of Rocky and Dave Burnley. But just had a text off a mate who recently moved abroad.

Hes just booked a flight into Istanbul on Wednesday and back home on the Friday.

When he moved abroad.... he moved to Australia

How can Sean Dyche have this effect on otherwise rational people

Do you know how he’s planning to get a ticket cricketfield? I’ve got flights booked from Brisbane but struggling on a ticket now wi not having a season ticket.

On Skyscanner it's coming up as £380 return from Amsterdam going out Thursday morning and returning on the Sat.
It's v easy and cheap to get to Amsterdam.
Much easier than driving from Thessalonika I would imagine.

nil_desperandum wrote:On Skyscanner it's coming up as £380 return from Amsterdam going out Thursday morning and returning on the Sat.
It's v easy and cheap to get to Amsterdam.
Much easier than driving from Thessalonika I would imagine.

That's all good and well.

But 380 is 230 more. And when theres 4 in my group that's 1000 more. I am sure we will get there and back for much less than 1000.... and it will be an adventure.

CrawshawBrisClaret wrote:Do you know how he’s planning to get a ticket cricketfield? I’ve got flights booked from Brisbane but struggling on a ticket now wi not having a season ticket.

Unsure but you will almost certainly get one.
If you're flying from Australia for a match you can have mine

Count me out still stuck in preston

CrawshawBrisClaret wrote:Do you know how he’s planning to get a ticket cricketfield? I’ve got flights booked from Brisbane but struggling on a ticket now wi not having a season ticket.

I'm the same - I'll be in Istanbul without much chance of having a ticket. Wonder how many others there'll be?

CrawshawBrisClaret wrote:Do you know how he’s planning to get a ticket cricketfield? I’ve got flights booked from Brisbane but struggling on a ticket now wi not having a season ticket.

Get yourself to the hotel where the ticket collection point is. It will help if you have a Clarets number and I.D, choose the right moment and ask the right person and I'm confident you'll get one. It worked for me in Aberdeen and that was officially sold out. Failing that try and pay in the home end.

Manchester to Sofia. Out Wed. back Fri. early. £315. 5h 49m on planner

piston broke wrote:Manchester to Sofia. Out Wed. back Fri. early. £315. 5h 49m on planner

Theres a train too. Which is cheap. Istanbul's easy from Bulgaria.

cricketfieldclarets wrote:Theres a train too. Which is cheap. Istanbul's easy from Bulgaria.

Hi CC - slight tangent but I want to go from Istanbul to Sofia via train. Hoping it'll be cheap and straightforward. Have you done it? Ta.

Pickles wrote:I'm the same - I'll be in Istanbul without much chance of having a ticket. Wonder how many others there'll be?

Get yourself to the ticket collection point mate. Wait till it's quietened down show some common sense and I think you'll get one.

No opted for a different trip in the end. But used Sofia as the starting point of my first proper euro trip. It's easy to travel to and from Sofia especially to Istanbul.

When I first went there were issues with trains especially to Greece but all that's now sorted.

Even from the coast the times we have been there, there are plenty of tour companies doing coach trips to istanbul.

From Seat 61 (best website ever)


Sofia to Istanbul for €29...

A daily overnight train called the Sofia-Istanbul Express  links Sofia with Istanbul, leavingSofia central station at 21:15 (21:00 from 2 October 2018 onwards), arriving Istanbul Halkali station at 07:40 with free transfer bus to Istanbul Sirkeci arriving around 08:50.  This new train started running in February 2017.  It has two safe & comfortable Turkish air-conditioned sleeping-cars and one Turkish air-conditioned 4-berth couchette car.  There's no catering, so bring some snacks and a bottle of wine.

The fare is around €19 plus either €10 supplement for a couchette or €15 supplement for a bed in a 2-bed sleeper,feedback appreciated.

To buy tickets, simply go to the international ticket windows at Sofia station.  There are always places available, indeed I had an entire 6-berth couchette compartment to myself.  Bring a picnic and some wine or beer as there's no catering, it's a pleasant journey in spite of the need to get off the train at the Turkish border for passport control.  You'll find more advice about this and the journey on the London to Turkey page.

Be prepared to get off the train at the Turkish border at Kapikule late at night to buy a tourist visa and get your passport stamped, in summer the train arrives at Kapikule 03:10 and leaves again at 03:50.

Halkali station to Istanbul...  The Marmaray Tunnel Project means that the train is terminating at Halkali, a suburban station some 25km west of Istanbul's historic Sirkeci station.  TCDD (Turkish Railways) run a free transfer bus from Halkali to Istanbul Sirkeci in connection with this train, leaving Halkali at 08:00 and arriving Istanbul Sirkeci around 09:00.  Rail tickets and passes are valid on this bus.  Alternatively you can make your own way by taxi or frequent local bus number BN1 from Halkali to downtown Istanbul.  Allow at least an hour for this by taxi, more by bus.  Make sure you bring some Turkish lira with you for the bus or taxi as there is no ATM in or near Halkali station. A taxi will cost around 60 YTL (€16).

jrgbfc wrote:Get yourself to the ticket collection point mate. Wait till it's quietened down show some common sense and I think you'll get one.

Hi. That's what I'm doing to do. Turn up, be polite and see what happens.

cricketfieldclarets wrote:No opted for a different trip in the end. But used Sofia as the starting point of my first proper euro trip. It's easy to travel to and from Sofia especially to Istanbul.

When I first went there were issues with trains especially to Greece but all that's now sorted.

Even from the coast the times we have been there, there are plenty of tour companies doing coach trips to istanbul.

From Seat 61 (best website ever)


Sofia to Istanbul for €29...

A daily overnight train called the Sofia-Istanbul Express  links Sofia with Istanbul, leavingSofia central station at 21:15 (21:00 from 2 October 2018 onwards), arriving Istanbul Halkali station at 07:40 with free transfer bus to Istanbul Sirkeci arriving around 08:50.  This new train started running in February 2017.  It has two safe & comfortable Turkish air-conditioned sleeping-cars and one Turkish air-conditioned 4-berth couchette car.  There's no catering, so bring some snacks and a bottle of wine.

The fare is around €19 plus either €10 supplement for a couchette or €15 supplement for a bed in a 2-bed sleeper,feedback appreciated.

To buy tickets, simply go to the international ticket windows at Sofia station.  There are always places available, indeed I had an entire 6-berth couchette compartment to myself.  Bring a picnic and some wine or beer as there's no catering, it's a pleasant journey in spite of the need to get off the train at the Turkish border for passport control.  You'll find more advice about this and the journey on the London to Turkey page.

Be prepared to get off the train at the Turkish border at Kapikule late at night to buy a tourist visa and get your passport stamped, in summer the train arrives at Kapikule 03:10 and leaves again at 03:50.

Halkali station to Istanbul...  The Marmaray Tunnel Project means that the train is terminating at Halkali, a suburban station some 25km west of Istanbul's historic Sirkeci station.  TCDD (Turkish Railways) run a free transfer bus from Halkali to Istanbul Sirkeci in connection with this train, leaving Halkali at 08:00 and arriving Istanbul Sirkeci around 09:00.  Rail tickets and passes are valid on this bus.  Alternatively you can make your own way by taxi or frequent local bus number BN1 from Halkali to downtown Istanbul.  Allow at least an hour for this by taxi, more by bus.  Make sure you bring some Turkish lira with you for the bus or taxi as there is no ATM in or near Halkali station. A taxi will cost around 60 YTL (€16).

Brilliant - thank you. I'll have a look at Seat 61.

Pickles wrote:Hi. That's what I'm doing to do. Turn up, be polite and see what happens.

It worked for me up in Aberdeen. Just don't go too early and pick a quiet moment. If Elaine from the ticket office is there she's generally very helpful and knows what she's doing.Hope you can get sorted, ridiculous decision by the club to stop non season ticket holders attending.

jrgbfc wrote:It worked for me up in Aberdeen. Just don't go too early and pick a quiet moment. If Elaine from the ticket office is there she's generally very helpful and knows what she's doing.Hope you can get sorted, ridiculous decision by the club to stop non season ticket holders attending.

I'll give it a go. Really hope I get lucky. Agree - it's a really bad decision.

Surely it's cheaper to charter a plane than travel on a normal service. All it would require would be somebody to do ordinate, in order to make sure the plane is filled and the money forthcoming.

Go through Sofia (from Manchester), via Frankfurt, with Lufthansa on Wednesday, returning on Friday and it's currently £294 return. The flight is currently available on Orbitz.com. Then, a six hour drive to Istanbul.

Colburn_Claret wrote:Surely it's cheaper to charter a plane than travel on a normal service. All it would require would be somebody to do ordinate, in order to make sure the plane is filled and the money forthcoming.

Are you volunteering ColburnClaret?

Pickles wrote:Brilliant - thank you. I'll have a look at Seat 61.

It's easy. The trip I did from Sofia was Skopje in Macedonia (8 hours overnightbus) then into Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia.
And that's when trains were playing up.

They have a main bus station and train station though with regular services to all major cities. It's the same all over Europe. They all have buses to neighbouring capitals and major cities. That's why i think I should be ok from salonika.

jrgbfc wrote:Are you volunteering ColburnClaret?

Sadly I'm going to be stuck at work. I'm on lates as well, but at least that means I can go to the home leg.
The big clubs, and I realise they have a lot more experience, regularly charter planes for away matches in Europe. The phenomena of raising prices post draw must be common as hell.

Colburn_Claret wrote:Sadly I'm going to be stuck at work. I'm on lates as well, but at least that means I can go to the home leg.
The big clubs, and I realise they have a lot more experience, regularly charter planes for away matches in Europe. The phenomena of raising prices post draw must be common as hell.

I have had 2 companies looking at charter flights (fly in / fly out) but due to the shortage of time, school holidays and lack of charter plane availability the costs were prohibitive. 1 company need a minimum of 100 people and they quoted £1000 per person and the other needed 180 and quoted £900.

cricketfieldclarets wrote:It's easy. The trip I did from Sofia was Skopje in Macedonia (8 hours overnightbus) then into Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia.
And that's when trains were playing up.

They have a main bus station and train station though with regular services to all major cities. It's the same all over Europe. They all have buses to neighbouring capitals and major cities. That's why i think I should be ok from salonika.

Mint. I'm hoping to get to some of the countries you've just mentioned, starting from Istanbul.