Travels are, without a doubt, very expensive and airlines seem to make a nickel out of their customers for every little thing. Fortunately, there are still many ways by which an ordinary traveler can save money at airports.
What’s more interesting about these airport travel hacks is that these are simple and straightforward in their applications. There is no need for any shady or underhanded tactics, all you need is a little bit of creativity and intent to save some money on your travel plans.
Bring Snacks And An Empty Water Bottle From Home
Vendors at the airport can charge substantially for the food and bottles of water but what is the need for it as you can bring these from home too. In order to make it TSA friendly, make sure that the water bottle is empty.
Once you pass the security parameters, fill it with water as many airports have water bottle refill stations inside.
As for snacks, you can pack from home things like fruits, nuts, chips and granola bars to keep you satiated until you reach your travel destination.
Pre-Check Your Bags Before Getting To The Airport
Some airlines and airports charge the passengers more than usual for luggage checking as compared to the luggage checked online.
If before travel you pre-check your luggage online, you can save both money and time.
Pre-Book Your Parking
Like many other things, airport parking is also very expensive so it is better to have a pre-book parking spot for yourself before you arrive at the airport. You can make the pre-booking reservations online which are much cheaper as compared to when you arrive there.
Also, be on a lookout for discount lots which are garages that are not affiliated with the airport and even cage less than airports. They are a little farther from the airport but they still offer shuttles to airport terminals.
Get An Extra Hour Of Wi-Fi
Many of the airports offer on a specific amount of fee, WiFi time. However, you can still bypass there system by a neat little trick. If you have 60 minutes of free browsing, then set the computer clock back 1 hour after your initial one hour has passed.
Shop In The Duty-Free Stores
For those travelers who cannot stop themselves from doing some airport shopping, then they should make sure to go to the duty-free shops. Once there, make a habit of comparing prices. Many things are generally cheaper at the duty-free shops and allow a person to avoid the local taxes.
Don’t Convert Your Currency At The Airport
Airports also have the highest currency rate as compared to when you exchange the currency outside.
If you are planning to travel internationally, then plan ahead of time and exchange your currency far away from the airport. Common places that will give you good currency rates are banks, post offices, and American Express offices.
Use A Friend’s T-Mobile Number For Free Texting
For those travelers who fly with airlines like Alaska, Delta or American; they can enjoy the free texting service in-flight from a T-mobile account. You don’t have a T-mobile? No worries, simply ask for a friend who has the T-Mobile and borrow their number. Simply insert this number into the in-flight internet login to enjoy free texting service.
Wear A Bulky Coat With Plenty Of Pockets
Majority of airlines around the globe charge their passengers for their carry-on luggage. In order to avoid paying those high charges, wear a bulky coat on your travel that has lots of pockets.
For example, a passenger traveling on the European airline the RyanAir wore a jacket that had 17 big pockets. He had in these pockets his laptop, four shirts, two pairs of pants, a toothbrush, a cell phone, a camera, and a flashlight.
He did not break any rules by not paying the extra luggage cost. Although this method is not an ideal one for long flights, for short flights it is still applicable.
Use A Shopping Bag As A Carryon
For those who want to save some money on the additional carry-ons but still don’t want to use our trick for above, then they should try this one.
Simply go to an airport retailer and ask for a large shopping bag. Put all of your additional items in this bag and pass the gate. The gate agent will most likely think that you have just done some shopping.
Wear Extra Luggage To Avoid Additional Weight Surcharges
Majority of airlines charge their customers with additional fees if their luggage exceeds a certain weight limit. You can also bypass this money sending procedure with this nifty little trick.
To avoid the fee and reduce some luggage, wear some of your clothes on top of each other. This will help you reduce the weight of the suitcase. The eight of a man’s suit is about three pounds while for women it is 2 pounds.
If You Plan To Request An Upgrade, Dress The Part
Flying in a first class is a luxury that only a little group of people can afford. If the flight has some leftover seats in the first class, they can request the flight attendant for one of these leftover seats. The only catch is that you should look like someone who can actually belong in the first class.
According to one flight attendant, she often lets passengers change their seats to first class. These are normally people who are dressed smart but not understated meaning no jeans or trainers. The ideal choice for clothes in this case for men is chinos or trousers and a shirt and for women, it is tight black trousers and a blazer or a dress.
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