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It is the ultimate Bank Holiday from hell: British Airways is on strike, roads will be congested, trains cancelled for engineering works.
And it that's not enough, it is going to rain.
Forecasters on Friday warned Britons to get their brollies to the ready after they predicted three days of showers and unsettled weather over the holiday.
The misery will be the final blow for millions of people who had either avoided a Bank Holiday getaway - or braced themselves for travel misery if they did.
The worst disruption will be for British Airways passengers.
The first of three strikes by cabin crew ended at midnight last night - but on Sunday the second five-day walkout will begin.
There seemed no end to the dispute in sight last night after talks between BA and the Unite union ended without an agreement – with staff perks and disciplinary
action still the sticking points.
Even a last-ditch resolution of the dispute will still be too late to prevent some disruption next week - because contingency planning means scores of flights have already been cancelled or re-arranged, with up to a quarter of booked passengers still affected.
BA said conciliation service Acas had contacted both parties to arrange further talks but Unite boss Derek Simpson blamed airline chief executive Willie Walsh for
refusing to reinstate staff travel perks for the continuing strikers.
The airline says it will fly more planes and carry more passengers next week – up to 75 per cent of customers compared with 70 per cent this week – as more staff cross picket lines and resolve among the strikers shows signs of weakening.
However, tens of thousands will still have their flights cancelled as thousands of cabin crew at Heathrow walk out.
And trouble in the skies is only part of the problem for travellers – as domestic journeys were hit by roadworks and congestion as well as diversions on the railways. Experts predict record numbers of Britons will spend the Whitsun Bank holiday at home. Some 15million cars are expected to hit the roads – to be faced with 220 miles of roadworks.
Coastal areas are bracing themselves
for an influx, with rooms in Brighton almost fully booked.
Those opting to travel by rail are not likely to fare any better, with 300 sets of engineering works scheduled for the holiday weekend.
There is some good news, however.
Although temperatures are not likely to reach the dizzy heights of last week, the best of the weather is scheduled for Monday when the mercury could rise above 20c (68f) in some parts.
And parents should not worry. Half term will not be a complete wash out thanks to a band of high pressure which should ensure a bright, warm end to the week. The
Met Office’s Becky Shewry said: ‘It will be rather wet everywhere on Saturday, with an organised band of rain moving eastwards across the country.
‘Gardeners might welcome the wet weather but sun worshippers will have to be patient.
‘We are not likely to see temperatures like last weekend over the next few days, but the weather is likely to get steadily better as we move through the week, reaching 23c (73.4f) in the South by Wednesday.’
After the worst of the weather, today, Sunday will be slightly warmer and drier day for most of Britain, although the South West will be cloudy. By Monday, it will warm up in the Midlands and South East but western areas will be at risk of patchy cloud and showers.
Wednesday should be even hotter, with the drier weather hanging around until the end of the half-term holiday.
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