In one of my previous posts, “How to find cheap air tickets”, I’ve mentioned that sometimes flying with budget airlines is not that cheap after at all… It’s not easy for an inexperienced traveller to deal with all these hidden charges and fees. Here are some pretty common mistakes that can threaten your budget.

1. Always mind the taxes!
Many budget airlines use a pretty nasty trick – advertise ridiculously cheap flights to get you to their website and forget to mention that this attractive price doesn’t include taxes. Which, by the way, quiet often are way more expensive then the flight itself.
If you are staying in Europe, then this won’t be a problem as there are law regulations that forces airlines to show complete price with all taxes included. But there are no such regulations in Asia, so keep it in mind while traveliving somewhere in Malaysia or Thailand.

2. Airport transfer
A lot of budget airlines use alternative airports. By alternative they mean smaller airports that are sometimes in the middle of no where with no public transport to get to the city centre. The two options that you usually can choose from are: expensive taxi or a bit less expensive yet also quiet pricy transfer. It’s not a big deal if you travel alone, but it may be a problem if you have to pay for a family.

3. Check-in fees
Budget airlines tend to invent additional sources of income wherever possible and an expensive charge for check-in at the counter is one of them. Your travel lifestyle might get a very expensive pleasure if you don’t take care about such unforeseen expenses.

4. Baggage allowance and restrictions
Some airline companies make profitable business on charging you for any extra gram over the allowed weight. So my advice is to read carefully your booking confirmation and remember well what baggage allowance/check-in status you have prebooked.

5. Don’t be late for your flight!
Budget airlines are very strict with departure times and usually close check-in 45-30 minutes before departure. If you are not at the gate by this time, you might not be allowed to board even if plane is still standing at the airfield.

Mind the details, be aware of possible difficulties and don’t spoil your lifetime travel with unforeseen troubles and obstacle. Forewarned is forearmed!