Consumer advice – travel tips – plus travel offers

Here are our travel saving tips both at the airport and when abroad.

Cash:
Withdrawing cash when abroad can be expensive, as you will incur charges, not only a conversion charge but a transaction charge as well. If you use a credit card the costs are likely to be even higher..

Mobiles:
Check with your mobile phone company before you travel and arrange a bolt-on deal. Remember that you will be charged for receiving calls so text instead. If you are on holiday for some time, think about buying a local Sim card which will reduce the price of calls significantly.

“Greedy Airports have doubled cost of hiring a baggage trolley. Passengers flying in and out of London Luton and Bristol Airport now have to pay £2 to move their bags around, up from £1 last summer.

Parking:
When people arrive at the airport they are often stung by high parking costs. Many holidaymakers who drive themselves to airports and park there but unless you have booked in advance it can be very expensive,” said Sean Tipton from Abta, the Association of British Travel Agents.

“It is certainly worth comparing parking deals and if you are staying overnight near the airport, many Airport hotels will now offer free parking, so take advantage of that.”

Money FX facts
Travellers who wait until the last minute to change currency can also lose out as airport bureau de change do not always offer the best deals. The banks will generaly offer the best FX deals, so dont leave it so late your forced to use the Airport exchange booths.

Paying:
Holiday makers should be very wary when paying by credit or debit card in shops and restaurants when abroad.

You may often be asked if you want to pay in pounds or the local currency when using your card. This is called dynamic currency conversion which means that shops and restaurants can set their own rates..

Always say you want to pay in the local currency, otherwise you are likely to lose out and that cheap meal will end up costing a lot more.”

If you are serious about keeping to your budget, resist the temptation of the duty free shops at the airport will help.

The perfumes, whisky or digital cameras may appear to be bargains but holidaymakers are likely to save much more money by going straight to the gate and bypassing duty free.

Its cheaper to purchase most things when abroad..