Travel Hack #13: Budget Airline Flights Are a False Economy
Posted: December 6, 2024 | Tagged: Travel Hacks
Photo by Wolfgang Weiser on Unsplash.
Budget Airline Flights are a false economy:
- Inconvenient Departure Times
- High Baggage Fees
- Paying through the nose for water
- Uncomfortable
1. Inconvenient Departure Times
Many budget airlines schedule their departures at ungodly hours. In addition to being hard on the body, you need to call a cab to get to the airport because the public transport doesn't run at 4 a.m.
When I lived in England, the EasyJet flights used to leave at 6 am. The first bus from Milton Keynes never used to leave around 9 am. On a few occasions, I had no other option than to pay the 30 quid for a taxi.
Not all airports are open 24 hours a day. And when they are, getting to the airport at around 11 pm, just to spend an uncomfortable night in a plastic chair or on the floor doesn't do it for me and if you are travelling, check out from the hotel is probably at around 10 am, noon if you are lucky. Hanging around without being able to rest is just too damn tiring for me.
Airport hotels are always extremely pricey, though I did find a cheap hotel 5 minutes from Ivato Airport in Antananarivo, Madagascar once.
When I lived in England, the EasyJet flights used to leave at 6 am. The first bus from Milton Keynes never used to leave around 9 am. On a few occasions, I had no other option than to pay the 30 quid for a taxi.
Not all airports are open 24 hours a day. And when they are, getting to the airport at around 11 pm, just to spend an uncomfortable night in a plastic chair or on the floor doesn't do it for me and if you are travelling, check out from the hotel is probably at around 10 am, noon if you are lucky. Hanging around without being able to rest is just too damn tiring for me.
Airport hotels are always extremely pricey, though I did find a cheap hotel 5 minutes from Ivato Airport in Antananarivo, Madagascar once.
2. High Baggage Fees
Flying is Cheap … If You Don’t Have Any Baggage
Over the last few years, carry-on baggage allowances have been reduced significantly. You used to get 10kg plus a small day bag, which, for most trips, was more than enough, even with those cheap and nasty airlines like Easy Jet.
Now, many budget airlines have a limit of 8 kg and must not exceed 40 cm in length. Some even less.
If you are a travel blogger, a laptop and all the gear will be around 3 kg, leaving little room for other gear, so you will have to pay big fees to check in another bag
Ground crew can be pretty anal about luggage being ever so slightly over the limit. That's how they make their money, after all.
I like airlines that have a 10 kg carry-on plus a personal bag which will fit under the seat in front.
Over the last few years, carry-on baggage allowances have been reduced significantly. You used to get 10kg plus a small day bag, which, for most trips, was more than enough, even with those cheap and nasty airlines like Easy Jet.
Now, many budget airlines have a limit of 8 kg and must not exceed 40 cm in length. Some even less.
If you are a travel blogger, a laptop and all the gear will be around 3 kg, leaving little room for other gear, so you will have to pay big fees to check in another bag
Ground crew can be pretty anal about luggage being ever so slightly over the limit. That's how they make their money, after all.
I like airlines that have a 10 kg carry-on plus a personal bag which will fit under the seat in front.
3. Paying through the nose for water
You need to empty your refillable water bottle before you go through security and are then forced to buy overpriced water in yet another plastic bottle once you are airside. Yes, sometimes airports do have water fountains but these are actually pretty uncommon. Airlines like RyanAir are: "stopping Brits taking water onboard as passengers were filling their bottles with vodka". This I feel, will become the norm, forcing you to pay through the nose for water on board.
4. Uncomfortable
Budget airlines like to cram in as many people as they can. They reduce the leg room, and they make the seat smaller, so they reduce the overall weight of the aircraft. They reduce fresh air intake all in the name of cutting their costs.
It's ok for a short hop, but any longer, my God, it's like riding a 3rd class train in India.
It's ok for a short hop, but any longer, my God, it's like riding a 3rd class train in India.
