Booking an airline ticket yourself: how to avoid some common mistakes.

Today's blog post started life as a compilation of stories re-telling our worst holiday catastrophes. Horrible experiences which we look back on now with amusement; if not quite fondness. Somewhere about the first paragraph I realised that after almost four decades of independent travelling David and I have probably learnt a thing or two about how to avoid holiday disasters.  I don't pretend to be an expert. The following advice all comes from personal experience

Missing a flight

My best advice on missing flights is - just don't do it. It is not worth the stress. Check and re-check your itinerary. Check and re-check transport and traffic conditions en route to the airport. Plan to arrive early - very early.

Don't assume your flight won't be cancelled or re-scheduled right up to the last minute. Check and re-check with the airline. In these days of almost universal wifi you don't have to make a nuisance of yourself - just keep going online. Our most stressful missed flight occurred in Egypt. We confirmed the departure time a week or so in advance and then failed to check again. Egypt Air cancelled us the day before we were due to fly. We missed our connection to Rome and got stuck in Cairo late on a Thursday evening - nothing opens on Fridays. We had no idea whether there was a flight to Rome the next day, the day after or ever, let alone whether we could get on it. It is an experience I NEVER want to repeat.

Partner Airlines

We have only ever missed a handful of flights - almost all of them when our connecting flight was delayed. Generally speaking if you have been ticketed through to your final destination missing a connection is not a huge issue.  I can't speak for the budget airlines or smaller operators in out of the way places but the big players tend to do the right thing with a minimum of fuss.

Don't expect much help however if you have two separate tickets. If you know you are going to need a connecting flight book it at the same time as your primary flight and make sure both flights are on the same ticket. Unfortunately we rarely take this advice ourselves. David is a sucker for a special. If he sees a cheap airfare to somewhere we might want to go he'll grab it and worry about the detailed planning later. He does however always book onward flights with a partner airline. It is no guarantee that you will be treated better but sometimes it helps.

Moreover if your connecting flight is with a partner airline it is possible to join up two separate reservations. We've done it with QANTAS and its US partner airlines a couple of times but we have also spent many, many frustrating hours on the telephone and at 'special assistance' airline check-in counters trying to determine how it is done. Every airline employee we talk to has a different understanding of how the system works.   David is one of the world's great experts in finding his way around rules, regulations, terms and conditions and even he can't pin down exactly how to ensure that one reservation gets joined up with another if they were made at different times.

Non-partner Airlines

Just don't miss a connection with a non-partner airline - honestly it is not worth the aggravation and stress.

If you do miss a flight, check the terms and conditions of your ticket. We have rarely had to buy completely new tickets. Many airlines will let you change your ticket right up to the time of departure for a small fee.  If you are delayed taking off and you know you won't make the next flight contact your connecting airline as soon as you can and throw yourself on their mercy.

Don't always go for the cheapest available ticket. The more you pay, and often it isn't a lot more, the more flexibility you will have. We have noticed this particularly with domestic carriers in the US. Sometimes for $10 or $20 more you can choose a class of ticket which allows last minute changes.

Summary

• Book all your connecting flights at the same time as your primary flight and with partner airlines.
• If you can't manage that then at least book your connecting flights with a partner airline and ask that the two reservations be joined up in the airline's system - Good luck!
• If all else fails stay clam, be polite and look helpless when you get to the airline check-in counter.

For a list of Partner Airlines click the links below.

• OneWorld  - This includes QANTAS, British Airways, American Airlines and Japan Airlines.
• SkyTeam - This includes KLM, China Southern, AirFrance and Alitalia.
• Star Alliance - This includes Air New Zealand, Air Canada, United, Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines. 
• Virgin - This includes Virgin Australia, Virgin America, Virgin Atlantic as well as Delta, Etihad, Air New Zealand and Etihad.

Egypt was fabulous - almost worth the aggravation of missing that plane.

Who should you book with:

Online booking agents like Expedia can be very useful to find flights but if you book with an agent and you want to change your flight then you have to deal through the agent. We have found that airlines will only deal with you directly if you have booked with them directly in the first place. Moreover Expedia is worse than useless when you want to change something. We once had to throw away tickets from Lima, Peru to Santiago, Chile because David accidentally booked for the wrong day - the day before our flight home to Sydney left - Oooopps! In theory we were entitled to a refund of the taxes but LAN refused to deal with us because we had booked through Expedia and Expedia just didn't want to help.

Don't be a victim of Dynamic Pricing:

Dynamic pricing is a fancy term for pricing according to demand. If you want to fly in peak season it will cost you more than flying when the no-one else wants to - fair enough.  The problem is that airlines have, with the aid of cookies, taken dynamic pricing to new levels. Have you ever checked the price of a flight on line a couple of times and then found it is more expensive when you go to book? If so, you have probably been the victim of dynamic pricing. The way dynamic pricing works is that airlines track your interest in a particular flight by the use of cookies which send information back from your computer. They know you want that flight so next time you log on they nudge the price up. You think you were a bit slow in booking but the cheap seats are still there - just not for you.

Fortunately for the cognoscenti avoiding dynamic pricing is simple. When you are ready to book either clear the cookies from your computer or use a different computer.

Click here for a great explanation of dynamic pricing, how it works and how to avoid it. The page is slow to load but it is worth persisting because the article is excellent.

Taking too much, or oversized baggage:

Pack light - It doesn't matter how many weeks, months or years you plan to be away you really only need a couple of pairs of spare undies and a towel. See The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy for why you need the towel.

I just thought I would throw this advice out there because every other travel blog I've ever read says this is what you should do. Yeah right - David doesn't even know the meaning of packing light. We once flew from Norfolk Island to Sydney with several hundred kilos of luggage and I mean that literally. We had lived on the Island for a year and for a billion reasons decided the best way to get our effects home was to put them on the same plane as ourselves. It was a bizarre feeling knowing all our worldly goods were in the hold as we were thousands of feet up above the Pacific Ocean. I kept thinking if the plane went down we would lose all our furniture. For some reason I wasn't worried about David, myself or our two small children; just the pots and pans, coffee tables, bed linen and assorted junk.

We have given up taking furniture with us when we travel but we still take small mountains of luggage. That David insists on taking our bicycles wherever we go really doesn't help. When your basic kit includes two oversized suitcases, a backpack, two laptops and a couple of mountain bikes you become intimitely acquainted with airline baggage rules.

Travelling light?

I don't think I'm giving away any state secrets by saying that baggage rules vary from one airline to another, from one country to another and from one class of ticket to another. They even vary within the same airline according to your destination.  QANTAS for example has one baggage rule for travel to Nth and Sth America and another for travel to the rest of the world. We once spent over an hour in a check-in queue at Narita Airport in Tokyo because a large group of US servicemen who were on the same flight just assumed the baggage rules from Tokyo to Sydney would be the same as if they were flying home to America. QANTAS wanted to charge them a small fortune in excess luggage fees and they didn't want to pay. It was chaos!

Don't assume that baggage rules will be easy to navigate - see my advice here about travelling light. Sometimes the baggage allowance which applies to your ticket will come down to which flight is listed first. (click here - for the rules on Interline Flights in the US.)

As with missed connections it makes a big difference if your connecting flights are with the same or a partner airline. Usually domestic carriers have a smaller baggage allowance than international carriers but if you transfer from a domestic flight to an international flight or vice versa on the same or a partner airline within 24 hours then the international allowance will generally apply. (click here - for QANTAS baggage rules).

Don't assume that the person behind the check-in counter will know their own airline's baggage rules. Our experience with flying bicycles is that no matter how much research you do and how many airline staff you talk to before hand when you get to the airport the guy behind the counter will interpret the rules differently. The minute you see a problem head to the special assistance counter and ask for a supervisor - then pray. I've found that looking like you're about to break down and cry can help a lot. (click here - for why flying with bicycles is a bad idea and click here  -for why we should have learned our lesson the first time.)
.

Summary

• Pack light.
• If you can't pack light consider not travelling at all.
• Never fly with bicycles.
• If you absolutely must fly with bicycles be prepared to throw them away and buy new ones after your trip (click here for why).
• On second thoughts - Never fly with bicycles.
• Don't attempt to understand airline baggage rules - it can't be done.
• Try to ensure that any connecting flights are with the same or partner airlines and that you are ticketed through to your final destination - it can't hurt.

My one really useful packing tip

• Keep a master packing list. I keep mine on Evernote. Write down everything which you can't bear to leave behind even obvious things like phones, chargers and contact lenses. Whenever you pack for any trip refer back to the list - it makes life a lot less stressful.

Getting stuck with the worst seats on the plane:

This happens to the best of us - just live with it and try not to let it spoil your holiday. Checking-in early doesn't really seem to help. No matter how early you arrive at the airport everyone else on the plane will have managed somehow to get their seat allocation before you.

Lots of airlines now allow you to pick your seat for a small fee when you book. Pay it - trust me it's worth it. (click here -  for QANTAS's seat selection program). If your airline doesn't offer this then consider another airline or at least jump the check-in queue by doing an internet check-in before you leave home. The ability to check-in online is becoming more and more common but David and I are constantly surprised at how few passengers take advantage of it. Not only do you get to pick your seat before all the decent ones are gone but you head straight to the bag-drop counter and skip the long frustrating queues. (click here - for QANTAS's internet check-in rules).

I probably have to mention SeatGuru here if only because it is so comprehensive. However sometimes the seats it rates as the worst on the plane are those we like the most so I wouldn't rely on its rating system too heavily.

Summary

• Pay the seat selection fee when you book - it's worth it.
• Check-in online before you leave home.
• If all else fails carry lots of sleeping pills and remember that even the longest flight in the world is only about 15 hours.

Cordoba was worth the crappy seats and lost bags.

Losing your bags:

I really can't offer much advice here. I just mentioned it so I can put in a link to my tale of woe about getting the worst seats on the plane and losing our bags - (click here - for my blog post on lost luggage and here for my post on lost bags and crappy seats.)

Well perhaps one piece of advice:  Don't buy a black bag. Every second piece of luggage on airline carousels seems to be black. If you don't want someone to accidentally walk away with your bag buy a bright colour and add something to make it look unique. David and I have matching bright purple bags - horrible to look at but easy to identify.


Do you have any tips and advice for independent travellers? If so I would love to hear them.

Addendum:

I just had to share this. It was sent to me by one of the people I share things with on Twitter. He described it as a few light-hearted tips of his own, jotted down in response to my blog. Tips number 5, 6 and 7 are priceless.

1. Always check in on-line; make sure that seat is confirmed and always check its the seat of choice ( also if travelling with business colleagues allows you to "politely not sit with them LOL)
2. Go for the nearest seat to the front; its where the meals/drinks carts start and ensures at least a semblance of service. Also facilitates being one of the first to immigration and customs (if only carry on and no baggage) when leaving the plane
3. If you are in a "lounge" NEVER leave on the first call and check at the desk before you exit that the plane is LOADING; not just "call to gate" .....Nothing worse than leaving (OK sculling) half a beer and then waiting at the gate.
4. IMHO aisle seat is best; ease of loo access and if you happen to end up with a "[insert here the kind of person you least want to sit " next to you (more and more common) allows the aisle as some relief.
5. Never leave your passport in your jeans after travelling and throw them in the wash after you get home
6. Always work out your method of transfer at "the other end" and realise cab drivers ARE scoundrels  ... when you let them. KNOW the EXACT details of your destination and preferably check the route on Google maps beforehand (who knew Hollywood Boulevard went for about 100km and a cabbie would start at the WRONG end?)
7. In Europe don't carry very nice (& expensive) French wine in hand luggage unless you have checked the 'liquids" regs (or you feel like sculling at 11 a.m. in the morning!!)
8. ALWAYS argue for a better room in a hotel if you are not satisfied .... Amazingly they are one of the few industries that are totally trained in "customer service"
9. If (WHEN!) they lose your bags ... Complain ... and keep complaining. Last time it happened to me I lost all my stuff after a business trip and I was in Canberra for a wedding the next day. QANTAS were unbelievable I have to say and were going to buy me a suit if they did not get bag ( and suit) to me in time. In the end they GAVE me $100 (from memory) to drive to aiport to pick up bag ... I was staying 5 mins from airport!
10. DO always check on line how the airport you are going to "works"  ....  especially when you are driving there yourself and you have a rental drop off. Ditto re picking up a rental car .... and send one person to handle the car key pick up while the other(s) wait for luggage at the (worst part of travel) carousel.