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Some tips you know and some you do not! Has links to other articles as well discussing these topics
http://www.smartertravel.com/photo-g...l?id=602&all=1
When's the best time to book a flight? How can a free upgrade actually cost you money? Why are duct tape, petroleum jelly, and dental floss among the most valuable things you can pack? Find out the answer to these and many other questions with our list of 101 clever travel tricks to try in 2014!
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Purchase Your Flight On Tuesday Afternoon
If you're trying to get the best airfare, when you book can make as big a difference as when you fly. The results of a recent FareCompare study offer some very specific advice: For domestic airline tickets, the best time to buy is Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. ET.
The study also cautions against booking on Saturday or Sunday, since airlines tend to pull discounted airfares in advance of the weekend.
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Fly in the morning
Since air traffic drops off significantly late at night, early morning offers most airlines and airports a clean slate from which to launch a new day of on-time departures. And while these best intentions often don't make it to lunchtime, booking an early-morning flight can mean avoiding the worst delays of the day.
Keep in mind that this is a general rule, and it has its exceptions. For instance, Brett Synder, The Cranky Flier, notes that at San Francisco International, morning fog (which often burns off by early afternoon) tends to delay early flights. And airports with runway construction are more prone to delays at all times of day.
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Cancel for free
This is a no-brainer, but it's something that many travelers don't think to do. If you missed the cancellation window for your hotel, restaurant, or car booking but can still change the reservation date free of charge, move your reservation back by several weeks or months. Then call back to cancel with a different representative. Sneaky? Sure. But it works, and you'll never get stuck with a lousy cancellation fee again.
Some reservation services, like OpenTable, allow the representative to see the "history" of the booking, but many pressed-for-time agents won't bother to check.
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Don't Depart From The U.K. (Unless You Absolutely Have To)
This is one gouge even the airlines don't like—mainly because they don't get to keep any of it. The Air Passenger Duty (APD) applies to flights departing from U.K. airports. It was sold to the British public as a "green" incentive that would help alleviate the carbon pollution of air travel.
The duty has escalated to a healthy hit on tourists returning from a British airport to the U.S. or Canada: £69 (about $113) in economy class effective April 1, 2014, and double that in any higher classes, including premium economy. The duty also applies to award tickets. Rates are lower for flights within the U.K. and for short hops to Western Europe (£13) and higher to Asia and the South Pacific. Northern Ireland opted to reduce the duty to zero on direct flights to the U.S. or Canada.
Work-Around: On a multi-country trip, avoid returning from a U.K. airport if you can. Or consider ending your U.K. trip by taking easyJet to Amsterdam or Eurostar to Brussels or Paris and returning from there.
Adapted from the story Nine Worst Airline Rip-Offs by Ed Perkins.
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Steer Clear Of High Airport Parking Rates
Airport parking rates can be very high. In Boston, for example, supposed "economy" rates are $27 for the first day, then $18 for the next six days, or $108 for six to seven days. Rates don't have to be that high: At busy Charlotte Douglas International Airport, the long-term rate is just $5 per day. But parking is one of the primary cash cows for big airports. Airports typically contract with private operators that, in effect, return more than 95 percent of the revenues to airport coffers.
Work-Around: You can avoid gouged parking rates in several ways:
Leave your car home and take shuttles to and from the airport, or have someone transport you.
Use private off-airport parking lots; you can find them around most big airports. Typically, however, they fine-tune their rates so as to be just enough below the airport's rates to generate the business they need.
Many airport-area motels offer "park-sleep-fly" deals: Pay for one night and get "free" parking at the motel for as long as two weeks. You can take the night at either end of your trip. Rates are generally a few dollars higher than the motel's lowest, but this can still be a good deal.
Fly from a nearby airport with lower rates. You can escape Boston's $18–$27 per day rates by flying from Manchester ($10 per day) or Providence ($60 per week).
Adapted from the story Nine Worst Airline Rip-Offs by Ed Perkin
and lots more, a great reference article.
http://www.smartertravel.com/photo-g...l?id=602&all=1
When's the best time to book a flight? How can a free upgrade actually cost you money? Why are duct tape, petroleum jelly, and dental floss among the most valuable things you can pack? Find out the answer to these and many other questions with our list of 101 clever travel tricks to try in 2014!
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Purchase Your Flight On Tuesday Afternoon
If you're trying to get the best airfare, when you book can make as big a difference as when you fly. The results of a recent FareCompare study offer some very specific advice: For domestic airline tickets, the best time to buy is Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. ET.
The study also cautions against booking on Saturday or Sunday, since airlines tend to pull discounted airfares in advance of the weekend.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Fly in the morning
Since air traffic drops off significantly late at night, early morning offers most airlines and airports a clean slate from which to launch a new day of on-time departures. And while these best intentions often don't make it to lunchtime, booking an early-morning flight can mean avoiding the worst delays of the day.
Keep in mind that this is a general rule, and it has its exceptions. For instance, Brett Synder, The Cranky Flier, notes that at San Francisco International, morning fog (which often burns off by early afternoon) tends to delay early flights. And airports with runway construction are more prone to delays at all times of day.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Cancel for free
This is a no-brainer, but it's something that many travelers don't think to do. If you missed the cancellation window for your hotel, restaurant, or car booking but can still change the reservation date free of charge, move your reservation back by several weeks or months. Then call back to cancel with a different representative. Sneaky? Sure. But it works, and you'll never get stuck with a lousy cancellation fee again.
Some reservation services, like OpenTable, allow the representative to see the "history" of the booking, but many pressed-for-time agents won't bother to check.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Don't Depart From The U.K. (Unless You Absolutely Have To)
This is one gouge even the airlines don't like—mainly because they don't get to keep any of it. The Air Passenger Duty (APD) applies to flights departing from U.K. airports. It was sold to the British public as a "green" incentive that would help alleviate the carbon pollution of air travel.
The duty has escalated to a healthy hit on tourists returning from a British airport to the U.S. or Canada: £69 (about $113) in economy class effective April 1, 2014, and double that in any higher classes, including premium economy. The duty also applies to award tickets. Rates are lower for flights within the U.K. and for short hops to Western Europe (£13) and higher to Asia and the South Pacific. Northern Ireland opted to reduce the duty to zero on direct flights to the U.S. or Canada.
Work-Around: On a multi-country trip, avoid returning from a U.K. airport if you can. Or consider ending your U.K. trip by taking easyJet to Amsterdam or Eurostar to Brussels or Paris and returning from there.
Adapted from the story Nine Worst Airline Rip-Offs by Ed Perkins.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Steer Clear Of High Airport Parking Rates
Airport parking rates can be very high. In Boston, for example, supposed "economy" rates are $27 for the first day, then $18 for the next six days, or $108 for six to seven days. Rates don't have to be that high: At busy Charlotte Douglas International Airport, the long-term rate is just $5 per day. But parking is one of the primary cash cows for big airports. Airports typically contract with private operators that, in effect, return more than 95 percent of the revenues to airport coffers.
Work-Around: You can avoid gouged parking rates in several ways:
Leave your car home and take shuttles to and from the airport, or have someone transport you.
Use private off-airport parking lots; you can find them around most big airports. Typically, however, they fine-tune their rates so as to be just enough below the airport's rates to generate the business they need.
Many airport-area motels offer "park-sleep-fly" deals: Pay for one night and get "free" parking at the motel for as long as two weeks. You can take the night at either end of your trip. Rates are generally a few dollars higher than the motel's lowest, but this can still be a good deal.
Fly from a nearby airport with lower rates. You can escape Boston's $18–$27 per day rates by flying from Manchester ($10 per day) or Providence ($60 per week).
Adapted from the story Nine Worst Airline Rip-Offs by Ed Perkin
and lots more, a great reference article.
