There are a few things you need to know about your ‘cheap’ flight.
Anyone who loves travel will agree that nothing beats that feeling of finding flash sale for flights.
You’ve been planning a trip to Japan for a year, but you kept waiting and waiting for just the right time to book your tickets.
Then you see an email in your inbox telling you there are $2 flights, return and you can’t believe your luck.
Surely this is too good to be true?!
.jpg?resize=380%2C285)
Sadly, sometimes it is.
With budget airlines all over the world dropping their prices right now and more set to have these extreme sales we spoke to Travel Insurance Direct’s Phil Sylvester (Travel Safety Expert) who has pulled together a list of five things travellers need to know about their budget trip.
Be quick!
Usually there is an allocated number of seats, in Tigerair’s recent $1 sale there was only 13,000.
These 13,000 seats will sell out quickly so speed is a must.
Offload the kids
MUST. GO. FAST.
The cheap return flights are for late January to late March – exactly when the kids are back for Term 1 2018.
So unless you’re single, or can get the grandparents to do drop-off you’re not going to be able to take advantage of the sale.
No free perks
On a $1 flight, especially on a budget airline there is no free seat allocations, free baggage, credit card fees or even meals (may vary).
Travellers should be prepared that the $1 may in fact cost more then $1 – always read the fine print.
Be flexible
If you absolutely have to be back home at a certain time on a certain day beware that budget airlines don’t have the best track record on reliability.
A plane breaks down and they don’t have a spare to roll out of the hangar, so you’ll have to wait until it’s back in service, and that might mean missing a deadline.
Get travel insurance
Yes, even for domestic travel.
You don’t need medical coverage, but you might need cover for cancellation and delayed flights.
Always get a few quotes rather than ticking the box on the airline site, it will most likely be cheaper to buy elsewhere.
