Money Crashers » Travel

Great Comment About Southwest Airlines Charging For Priority Seating

Erik Folgate — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 03:58:03 +0000

Great comment from Jon:

My wife and I just flew Southwest on Labor Day Weekend. Getting there early won’t get you the best seat. They have a couple of ways you can check in early, either at the kiosks in the airport, or online up to 24 hours prior to your flight. Either option lets you print a boarding pass, with a boarding number on it. The boarding group you are assigned to determines the order in which you board the plane, and thus the “quality” of your seating. I’d guess that they hold open some slots in the “A 1-30? group for people who are willing to pay the extra $10. We were in the B 1-30 and B 31-60 groups (last to board), and still didn’t have much problem finding decent seats together on flights that were full, so unless it was extremely important to me to be first off of the plane on landing, it’s not worth the extra cost. If you’re first to board, you also spend quite a bit of time just sitting in your seat waiting for everyone else to board and settle in before departure.

So, it looks like the extra $10 might not be worth it, and that could add up if you are traveling with your entire family, round-trip. However, if you’re a single business traveler and you want time is of the essence, it’s probably worth springing for the extra $10. Anyone else else traveled on Southwest lately? How hard is it to get a decent seat? Related Posts:

Great Comment About Southwest Airlines Charging For Priority Seating is a post from: Money Crashers

Southwest Charges $10 For Early Boarding Privileges

Erik Folgate — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 21:38:11 +0000

I thought this article was relevant to my last post about Southwest charging an extra $10 for early boarding privileges.

Southwest will charge an optional $10 for anyone who wants to upgrade their ticket for early boarding. The significance of this is that Southwest doesn’t assign seats, so early boarders will get seat preference and they will most likely get overhead luggage space near their seat.

Why We Like This

Charging extra for something like this is a much better revenue model than charging for checked baggage. Sometimes its impossible to fit everything into a carry-on bag, so you are forced into a fee. This fee is completely optional, and it adds value to the customer who purchases it. Charging for checked baggage is like a restaurant charging you a flat fee for a server to wait on you.

How To Avoid The Fee

At only $10 a pop, my guess is that many travelers will opt to pay for this, so make sure you arrive earlier than normal when taking a Southwest flight. If you don’t upgrade, still get there early to get in line for a better seat. Related Posts:

Southwest Charges $10 For Early Boarding Privileges is a post from: Money Crashers

How To Save Money On Airline Fees

Erik Folgate — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 19:37:56 +0000

In order to increase revenue to save their business, many airlines have started nickel and diming customers with a ton of fees, some up front and some hidden. No longer do airlines provide full-service. Everything comes at a price from the snacks to checking baggage. Here are some quick tips to help you avoid extra airline fees.

Pack snacks and drinks with you. If you’re on a long flight, avoid paying for snacks and meals by carrying on your own snacks. I haven’t come across an airlines that charges for a beverage yet, I am sure some of the smaller discount airlines do charge for it. Beverages are tougher to bring with you because of the liquid restriction, but you could still carry one on from the terminal and still save money.
Pack Light. Not only will you be helping the environment out, because the plane will be lighter and use less fuel, but you’ll avoid checked baggage fees that most airlines now charge for. Southwest is one of the only airlines that don’t charge for checked baggage. I recently paid $20 each way on United to check a bag.
Keep your pets at home. Many airlines charge to bring small pets on the plane with you. Southwest now charges $75 to bring a small dog or cat on the plane with you.
Don’t let the kids travel without you. Some airlines are charging an extra fee for minors that require supervision during the flight.

Fees, fees, and more fees. Be smart, and don’t pay these extra fees! Do you have any others to make us aware of? What’s the most you’ve ever been charged for an airline fee?

Dream Green Vacation Giveaway from Green Travel Hub

Erik Folgate — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 20:37:17 +0000

My friends over at RezHub.com are re-launching a great travel booking website that offers customers ways to travel green without thinking about it! They have a green score rating system for all hotels affiliated with them that rates how environmentally friendly it operates. They’ll also help you find affordable hybrid car rentals, and they give back 20% of their profits to eco-friendly organizations.

The Giveaway

A 4 night stay at the Pacific Beach Hotel and Resort in Waikiki, Hawaii and a $350 car rental voucher to Hertz rental car.

Ways To Enter

First, you must go to the official website for the giveaway and register your email address to sign up for their newsletter, then they have dozens of other ways to earn extra entries to maximize your chance of winning. You can become a friend of their Facebook page, follow them on Twitter or make a meaningful comment on their blog or forum.

This is a cool company with a unique concept, so check them out and be sure to enter your name for the trip to Hawaii!

How To Protect Your Money While Traveling

Erik Folgate — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:31:52 +0000

We are in the thick of the traveling season, so here is a good video from Clark Howard about protecting your money while you travel.

Save Money On Your Summer Rental Car

Erik Folgate — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 18:00:20 +0000

Gas prices are cheap, and more travelers are renting cars this summer. Rental car companies are in a price war, and you can find a mid-size car in some areas of the country for less than $20 per day. But, if you don’t do your research, you could get burned when it comes to renting a car. Here are a few tips to help you save money on a rental car.

Book well in advance. Discount rental car companies are just like airline companies. As supply decreases the closer you are to the date of the departure or pick-up, the demand heavily increases. This increases the price of an airline ticket or rental car. If you have a trip coming up and you know the exact dates you’ll be traveling, then start looking to book your rental car as soon as possible. You’ll get a great rate. Also, take advantage of travel websites that will alert you of a rate drop.
Sign up for rewards programs. Rental car companies often have loyalty programs like airlines and hotels. Make sure you sign up for the companies that you use most, because they often offer online coupons and reward points for frequently bookings.
Don’t buy their insurance. Many car insurance policies will cover your collision and liability coverage if you pay for it on your primary car. Before you book, simply give your agent a call to confirm that you are covered in the event of an accident. If so, don’t waste the $10 to $20 a day paying for the renal car company’s damage waiver.
Shop Around. Competition is fierce, especially at this time of year. Shop at websites like Car Rentals and Kayak for the best rate on a rental car.
Ask about additional discounts. Many rental car companies give additional discounts for memberships such as AAA and AARP, being in the military, or being a senior citizen. Make sure that you ask, because they aren’t always quick to tell you about more discounts.

Saving money while you travel is so important, because it allows you to spend money on doing fun things during your travels. My philosophy is to go all out and spend money while on vacation as long as you are paying cash for it. But, it’s tough to indulge on your vacation if you paid too much for your airfare, rental car, and hotel. Do you have any more tips for saving on a rental car or other money saving travel tips? Share them below.

Breaking Down Our Moving Costs

Erik Folgate — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:19:15 +0000

We recently moved from Jacksonville, Florida to Orlando, Florida. It’s about 140 miles between the two cities. My wife started working about two months ago, so money wasn’t as tight as it has been in the past. However, we still like to get the most out of our money no matter what we’re doing.

Here is a breakdown of our moving expenses:

$55.00 – Packing Supplies: We spent $20.00 on 30 boxes with packing paper and it included four wardrobe boxes. We found this steal on Craigslist. A couple was selling them after they had just moved from Texas. They were all nice, professional moving boxes. We spent another $10.00 on packing tape, $20.00 on mattress and couch covers and $5.00 on furniture wrap. The boxes were definitely our best deal. Check out your local Craigslist for great deals on used boxes.

$223.00 on Truck Rental: We used Budget Truck Rental, because a lot of their trucks are newer and safer than U-Haul. Penske is another good company to use for truck rental, but they tend to be a littler more expensive. Right now, Budget automatically gives you 10% off of your truck rental if it’s a one-way drive. But, you can get a 20% off coupon code if you forward your mail with the post office online. With every one way rental, you get a minimum of 2 days and unlimited mileage. I think you get more days for travel time based on farther distances of travel. This amount also includes a $45.00 charge for a local one-day rental, because we had to store our stuff for a week until we closed on the house.

$175.00 – Movers: We splurged a little and got movers to help us pack up the truck. Renting your own truck and hiring movers load your stuff is much cheaper than doing the package. We lived on the second floor of an apartment building, and we had bought a ton of heavy stuff over the past year, so we figured the money was well spent. Good professional movers are an asset, because they are quick and they know how to pack the truck to maximize space.

$23.00 – Storage: We had to store our stuff for about a week, because our house wasn’t ready to close at the date we had to be out of our apartment. We didn’t like the fact that we’d be moving our stuff twice, but we didn’t have much of a choice. Every extra day we kept the truck rental, it was an extra $75.00 a day. We found a public storage facility that only charged $1.00 for the first month of storage with NO time commitments. But they did charge a maintenance and lock fee.

Total: $476.00

So, there you have it, our moving expenses. We had budgeted $600.00, so we came way under budget. That’s not too bad for a long-distance move with help to load the truck. What are some of your tips for saving money while moving? Related Posts:

Breaking Down Our Moving Costs is a post from: Money Crashers

How Facebook Can Save You Money On Travel

Erik Folgate — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 01:32:32 +0000

Facebook isn’t just a place to reunite with old friends and write cute little comments on your friends’ uploaded photos. There’s an application for everything, and the traveling applications are something that I’ve been checking out lately. Here are some facebook applications of interest.

Hostelbook.com application: this application helps you find the best hostel at the best rate wherever you may be traveling whether it’s in the United States or abroad. I backpacked around Europe four years ago, and we saved a ton of money staying at hostels. However, we didn’t have facebook to get quality reviews of which hostels to frequent and which ones to stay away from. There were hostel review sites out there, but facebook’s social network blows any of those sites away. Check this one out.

Where I’ve Been: Basically, you can brag about where you’ve been, but the cool thing is that you can check all of your friend’s “where I’ve been” places, and there may be someone who’s been where you’re going. There’s nothing better than a personal referral for cheap places to eat and stay.

Been There, Done That App: This one is similar to the one above, but it will also list things you’ve done in a particular city or country. I always have a hard time finding cool, cheap stuff to do when I visit a new place, and your network can help you with this if they’ve got the “Been There, Done That” application.

Trips by SideStep.com: This application helps you organize a trip with friends or family. Even though I’m not the most organized person in the world, I recognize that being organized saves you money. When you have a plan, you’ll save money, because you’ve already done the research. Being spontaneous is fun, and it has its place in your trip, but if your whole trip is done “on the fly” you’ll fall into a lot of tourist traps.

Have you ever used facebook for your travels? Do you like seeing where your friends or family have traveled? What other applications do you recommend? Related Posts:

How Facebook Can Save You Money On Travel is a post from: Money Crashers