In these harder times, it’s perhaps worth considering the cheaper things.
I love travel and hence this is a good subject for me. With the massive decrease in airfares over the last 10 years, it’s genuinely cheaper to go for a day out in Europe than it is to a city just 100 miles away. With Ryanair famously offering free seats with no taxes, there is no excuse not to do this.
I feel that I’m an authority on this subject. In the last two or three years I must have had around fifty trips. It helps that I live reasonably close to Stansted airport, which appears to be the main hub around here. If you’ve never had a cheap flight before, then this guide should help you a little.
First up, you should know that Ryanair and other cheap operators attract a lot of stick. You probably hear that unallocated seating, web-check in all produces nightmares. This, I have found is not so. The seat pitch is marginally smaller than a normal airline, and unless you are very tall, you will not notice it. On a good percentage of flights, I was sitting next to no-one; only on the very busy routes I have seen the plane full. And, it is very rare to experience delays. Sure, everyone has a bad story to tell regarding this, but in all the Ryanair flights I’ve had, I don’t recall a single delay that has caused a major inconvienience.
Booking flights: Ryanair have a standardised model, no messing around with agents or other websites. From here, you can see their intentions: if you play their way, you will be rewarded, if not, you can be there will be hefty charges (more on this later). The website will usually state some sort of offer going on (ie. £10 sale, £20 sale) – you need to wait until the flights go for free, or 1p with no taxes. This usually happens quite often, maybe once every month or two months or so. When this happens, you want to book a few at a go as you won’t get the opportunity to get another go for a while.
TIP: Get yourself a Visa Electron card. This cuts out the booking fee of £4.00 and makes it free. Without it, you’ll be paying £8.00 per flight in booking fees, this is just not worth it. An electron card is free, and you can probably get one from your existing bank. I got one by opening up an account at the Halifax. You just need to fund this account with something like £10.00. As all the flights you will be booking will (hopefully) be cheap, this money will last for ages.
UPDATE: Ryanair no longer accept the Electron card as a free payment method, but other airlines do. For Ryanair, you will need a pre-paid Mastercard.
NOTE: I’ve used Ryanair as an example here as they seem to be alone in offering totally free (or 1p) fares. As other market players do come in, they may offer very cheap fares, but the principle still remains the same. A lot of the low-cost providers work in the same way as Ryanair.
Deciding where to go: Ryanair go to many, many destinations now, but this is actually not as good as it seems. A fair chunk of the destinations are never free, such as Luton – Marrakesh, or Stansted – Tenerife. You have to think about this from Ryanair’s point of view. Routes with healthy supply and demand mean that they don’t need to give seats away on these routes. They give seats away because each passenger carried for free might use their other ‘services’, such as card fees, booking fees, checking in bags. If you add all that up, the cost approaches that of a flag-carrier. Western Europe countries fare best, in particular Germany, Italy, Spain and unsuprisingly, Ireland. Eastern Europe gets a smattering of flights here but generally, there is only one flight a day. The premise is not to be too fussy.
Daytripping: The schedules of Ryanair allows this to happen. Often, there is a very early flight, leaving around 6am, and a late flight back, around 10pm. This means you’ll get around 8-10 hours in your destination, which is more than enough to tire you out for one day. I have lost count of the number of times I have walked until I cannot walk no more. Sightseeing in this way is remarkably cheap and satisfying. By daytripping you also avoid the cost of hotels and the lost revenue of a day off work, etc.
Daytripping is not available to every destination, and the only way to check is via trial and error on the website. Generally, the bigger the destination, the more chance it has. If it’s your first day trip, you have a lot to choose from: Milan, Barcelona, Dublin, Frankfurt, Hamburg all are possible to do with plenty of flights. The recent downturn means that some daytrips that were possible are not now.
Of course, if you’re hardcore, you can sleep in the airport. You’ll be surprised at how many people do this, and in many places in Europe in the summer, it’s warm enough to sleep outside if it’s dry. Often, if you get the first flight out, you’ll be back in London at around 7am-8am anyway, so that is not too bad. Whether you get any sleep or not is another thing, but a sleeping bag makes a hell of a difference. Check the Sleeping in Airports site for more info.
Before the flight: You’ve got the tickets booked and have the email confirmation. What you need to go is check-in online to print your boarding pass: check-in at the airport is not required as it involves seriously long queues and also a fee for this ‘service’! It amazes me how many people still don’t use the online check-in. Make sure you enter all your details correctly; even spelling errors will cost you a whopping £28 for a name change. On-line check-in used to get you priority boarding, but it does not no more. Even so, I wouldn’t pay for this service. You don’t get to your destination any faster, and while it’s true there are some better seats on the plane, with the average Ryanair flight being one to two hours, it’s not the end of the world if you don’t get it. Certainly not worth the £4.00 each way.
Obviously, you’ll have to take a bag of some sort and it goes without saying that you don’t want to check it in. You can now get wheelie-luggages that have the correct dimensions to class themselves as hand luggage, and these will definately suffice for a weekend, or maybe a week if you’re a guy. Otherwise, for day travel a normal ruck-sack is good and much more comforable to carry around. I have noticed there is some leverage around the dimensions; some airports will measure the case (by putting it into the metal case which holds them), but most don’t. Still, it’s better to be safe than sorry on this front. If you have to check something in, remember that even 1 kilo over the 15kg allowed will give you a whopping 15EUR fine per kilo.
At the airport: Now, it is always best to leave well in advance of the flight time. Because Ryanair would probably suffer a lot from throw-away ticketing (meaning people book and don’t fly), they will not wait for you. Check-in desks close 45 mins before departure, if you’re late, you’ll have to buy a ticket for the next flight, and you can bet your bottom dollar it won’t be for 1p no taxes. So, get there early, I would recommend at least 2 hours before. I would underscore this doubly for a morning flight out of Stansted. Every morning, maybe 50-60 flights are leaving within a two-hour window, this means maybe 5000-10000 people. It may take you 30 mins alone to get through security on a bad morning.
Personally, I love airports so this is no big deal to me. There are always things to look at, stuff to eat/drink, read, or watch planes. Yes, for the Stansted one, you might have to get up incredibly early to make the deadlines (on occasion I have been leaving at 3.45am). But it’s worth it. Free flights do exist for later in the day, but then, if you’re flying out in the afternoon, your schedule is a bit cramped to make the round trip the same day.
On the way back the crush is generally not as bad. Ryanair airports tend to be the smaller, out of the way ones with only a few flights leaving. But still, err on the side of caution. The cost of missing your flight in monetary terms is very high. On a money note, try to avoid changing money at the airport. The rates may be around 5% worse than others. This might seem not bad, but when you factor in commission charges of another 3% you really are losing out. There are many places you can get it commission free now.
On the aircraft: Once you’ve passed security, you’ll go to the gate where the madness will begin! Maybe 15 minutes before the flight, a queue will start forming at the gate; generally there will be less than 10 people in the priority queue, and maybe over one hundred in the other queue. If you get to the front of the other queue, you have more or less the same choice of seats as the priority dudes. The downside, is that you’d probably have to stand in position for an hour or so; not worth it for me. Because the big queue is often disorganised, pushing in is very possible, but this is not for me either. Don’t be disheartened by the queue; a lot of flights are 80-90% full and even if you are relatively late on you still get a good choice of seat.
This brings us to on the plane. Generally you will have to walk across the tarmac, both exits will be open. Generally it is better to go for the rear as less people go there, I have found. But, play it as you see it. On flights departing Stansted, it may be beneficial to sit at the rear. The reason being on many European destinations, they will open both doors, making it possible to be the first one out of the plane. This has a distinct advantage over the first one being in, because you can clear immigration control first and be the first out. Coming back to Stansted, they only seem to open the front door so if you sit at the back, you will be the last out. This doesn’t really change anything though; the UK border control is notoriously slow and a few minutes will not make that much difference.
Other good seats I have found: In the middle of the aircraft there are two rows where the exit doors are over the wings. These seats offer more legroom than others, I’d christen them ‘Ryanair First Class’. That is about the only advantage. At the front, in the front left and front right – the first row also offers better legroom and the benefit of being off the plane first as well. When I say ‘more’, don’t expect loads more, it’s noticeable but nothing to cry about if you don’t get this. I reckon most people on the priority boarding will be going for these seats, so don’t be surprised if most of them are gone by the time you get there.
If you don’t get these seats, where should you go for? If there are two of you, then you should try to get a configuration where one of you takes the window seat, and then one of you takes the aisle seat. People won’t want to take the seat inbetween you until last. You can emphasise this by putting a coat on the seat inbetween, but this might be seen as bad manners. If you’re on your own, try to take the aisle seat of an unoccupied row, or an aisle seat where someone is by the window. For the same reason, these middle seats are less likely to be taken up until last. Believe me when you’re on an early morning flight and you’re knackered, more space is better.
During the flight: Flighttime is usually quick so there is not much advice to give here. As you can guess, the food and drink is really expensive here, up to £5 for a sandwich with not great quality. Buy your own before boarding, or if you’re daytripping, bringing a packed lunch is acceptable and also allows you more time to explore. Not much is usually worth buying, but on the way back, listen out for the Stansted Express tickets; often you can buy discounted tickets for the train journey. If you have to take the train, it is worth taking them up on the offer.
On landing: Most Ryanair airports are out of the way, ex-military bases that force you to take a coach connection to the main town. These coaches can be quite expensive and definately the most expensive part of your day. Sadly, there is no real way around this unless you land at an airport within reach of public transport (ie. Belfast, Dublin, Oslo Torp). The coaches will also take anywhere between 30 mins and 1 hour 30mins to get to the city so build this time into your day. The good news is that these coaches are specifically for Ryanair, and they will be waiting outside for you. Conversely they will also be available to take back to the airport, whatever time your flight. Exchange rates have made these kind of things quite expensive now for UK peeps; fine if you have a few Euros spare.
The day should pass quite quickly; no doubt there will be lots of things to see and do. Past springtime, the weather is usually lovely, and much nicer than the UK, particularly the further south you go in Europe. Make sure you do check the internet for information before you go, a site like Wikitravel will show you the basics. You will almost certainly pass big shopping centres, train stations, these mostly contain toilets, although you may have to pay for it. As for food, there really shouldn’t need to eat too much, but even if you get stuck, you will be able to get food back at the airport.
One word here. It might be pretty obvious that you’re a tourist, depending on how you dress and what you look like. Therefore your risk might be slightly higher than usual. Guard your passport carefully, as you can lose everything else and be ok on that day. I tend to keep this on an inside pocket. Also, minimise the amount of cards you carry in your wallet. Is it really necessary to take all those cards like driving licence, NI card, etc away for such a short time? Stick to one cash card that will work abroad, and don’t take what isn’t needed. I would also take the precaution of sticking money (or another cash card) under the sole of your shoe, in case you do lose your wallet. Safe, as opposed to sorry and all that. If you’re one of these people that likes to lose things, then you’d do well to invest in a belt that clips around your body and holds your valuables.
Coming back: The airport on the way back should be much quieter with less queuing, so that’s good. I usually try to take a walk around, there is excellent places for watching, as well as lots of seats, which is just what you need after a long day. Bear in mind the duty free; stuff like alcohol and cigarettes are much cheaper than UK prices, especially in places that are out of the EU (such as Norway). If you are flying to non-EU, you can purchase these on the way out at massively discounted prices (for example, £1.50/20 cigarettes). Now, there is a limit of 400 cigarettes, but as long as you don’t abuse this (for example, walk around with a transparent bag full of them), you are unlikely to get stopped.
In this way, if you are a smoker, your day trip could pay for yourself, and then some. Even if you’re not, I’m sure you know someone who does.
Other than this, duty free tends to be more expensive for some like confectionary, chocolate and clothing, I’d avoid buying this, unless it’s a specific brand that you can’t get. On that note as well, do look around, you might discover something you haven’t even heard of, but really like now.
On landing : It most likely will be late, and dark. So make sure you’ve got a way home and don’t play it too tight if you’re relying on public transport connections! From Stansted, you can park in Long Stay just for one day (just pay at the exit). Or, you could take a bus/train. The costs for me are all the same (train is most expensive), but I prefer the car. Generally I would get back in between 11pm-1am, and fall asleep straight away! If you have currency left over – don’t change it back, but save it for next time. In the case of Euros, you will always need them sometime.
Here are my suggestions on things to take if you’re going for a trip:
Trainers: – You are going to be doing a lot of walking so make sure your shoes are comfortable. If you wear formal shoes and do walking, you are going to get a lot of blisters.
Rucksack: – Something that sits on the shoulders nicely and is comfortable to carry. You will need it to carry things, and also if you do find things that you want to purchase.
MP3 player: – Useful for the long coach journeys – make sure you load it up with stuff you like listening to. Also the earphones are good when you want to avoid conversation. Most people you meet will be nice to talk to – single serving friends, to paraphrase Fight Club, but some people will be real dullards.
Pen, Paper, Book – Book, for the same reason as above. There will be lots of waiting around and you need to fill that time with something. Time goes surprisingly fast when you are reading something you enjoy. Pen and paper, for you to write things down. I find trips like this quite inspiring and I will have several good ideas which I can capture. I also take a bit of serious work too, if I feel like doing that.
Nokia N95 (or similar) – This device is great because it packs a camera – which is essential stuff but also satellite navigation, which is most handy as it means you can’t get lost. To save extra cash, download the city maps before you leave as GPRS costs are expensive abroad. On that note, do not use Internet services while abroad unless the bandwidth is included in your contract. I have found this out the hard way. If you are shrewd, you can also put your music in here as well, but I personally don’t like doing this because it runs the battery down, and you might need your phone in an emergency.
Chocolate and sweets – You never know when you get hungry, and these treats will keep you going over. Add to this a bottle of water (buy when you land due to the liquid restrictions) and you won’t really have to worry about going to a place where there might not be shops, for example, getting the train into the countryside.
Seasonal goods – Tailor this to place/time of year, but I find stuff like extra pair of socks, flip-flops, shorts etc. I personally prefer layering; a jumper/cardi over a t-shirt so that it’s warm enough for the aircraft. Sunglasses are a must as well if it’s very sunny. I think to be added to this should be small change (for use of toilet etc) and some general medicine, ie aspirin.
Cigarettes – I don’t smoke no more, but I have found on my travels that smoking is by far the easiest conversation starter. If you do, then asking for a light is an easy way to gauge if people speak English. If you’re single, it’s also a good way to talk to a member of the opposite sex.
You should be all set to have a great, energy packed trip. I hope I’ve covered everything but if not, please let me know!
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