Reducing The Cost Of Air Travel

Is it cheaper to book last minute?

It's not always cheaper to book last minute on airlines. You get all sorts of hassles and annoyances. No, I would say, do some research, see what air travel is available. You can often get some fantastic deals on flights by booking in advance.

Do I need to buy insurance as well?

You need to buy travel insurance for the whole journey, not just your airline flight. You should take a free EC health insurance card which you need to apply for six weeks before the journey, via a form you collect from the post office. But I wouldn't count on that to cover you entirely, except for the most basic medical care in Europe. Insurance prices are complex and can be expensive, especially if you take things like video cameras and you won't cover for them. It may be best to check out buying one policy to cover you for a month, six months or a year. Don't buy insurance automatically offered to you by the travel agent or airline. And don't click through from one website to another if you're going to buy insurance. Take a note of the various names of the insurance companies, exit from one site and then re-enter the site because that way you don't include the premium that may be paid from one website to another for introducing your customer to their site. The safest holidays are booked as packages and then the seller has to help you if you get into difficulties, not necessarily health ones, but they will be there for you. You save money by booking your own holiday bit by bit but you do have a lot less redress if things go wrong and you're on your own. It could be expensive.

Is it cheaper if I just take hand luggage?

It's considerably cheaper to travel by air just taking hand luggage. The airlines are starting to charge hefty prices for bags these days.