Category: Travel Tips

In this article by James Prior of Asia Scams and Asia Sight See you’ll learn about how to avoid getting screwed over while traveling around Asia.  James has spent the better part of the last 10 years traveling around all corners of Asia and definitely has some killer tips!  There are hundreds of specific travel scams out there, though this guide will highlight the most prevalent “umbrella” scams.

1) Avoid Dirt Cheap Tour Providers and Fake Ticket Booths

Just showing up to a cool location can be spontaneous and fun sometimes, but when traveling to scammer infested areas then you must do research into how you will move between your hotel and the various sights and what to be on the lookout for at the different attractions.  For example, it is good to know in advance that scammers will set up a fake ticket booth in front of the Batu Caves in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The best-case scenario is, of course, seeing the sights with a local friend, but if that isn’t an option and you insist on using a tour provider for the part, or for some crazy reason all, of your trip then take heed and DO NOT go with a cheap tour. If you must do a tour, then fully research the outfit and look at an example itinerary to avoid scam tours.  Cheap tours will spend little-to-no time at the real sights and instead take you to rip-off gift shops and fake ceremonies designed for naïve tourists.

2) Don’t Use Taxi Drivers that Solicit You

If you haven’t already arranged for transport, then for airports in Japan, Singapore, Brunei, South Korea, and Hong Kong simply find the taxi queue or train. For traveling in all other Asian countries where you are unfamiliar with the lay of the land, I advise setting up a car in advance through a trustworthy source.  If you do you prefer taking a street taxi, then be aware of the average amount to your destination and consider negotiating the total fare (including “highway fees”) beforehand.  To avoid real or fake confusion (notice how the English skill deteriorates during a fare dispute) have destination names – don’t forget your hotel – written in the local language.

Ignore anyone who approaches you near airport departure exits, and be aware that scammers will sometimes wear fake airport uniforms.

Without a doubt, the most common way travelers are scammed is by their driver.

Read more: Is Air Asia Safe for Travelers?

3) Use Legit Currency Exchange Providers

Never exchange money with an overly desperate teller trying to solicit your business – no matter how good the rates sound!  Generally speaking, you will get the best rates and avoid fake bills at legitimate banks.  Fakes are generally not an issue in airports or hotels, but the rates at these two locations are oftentimes not the best.

No matter where you exchange your money, you should have some idea of what to expect.  Even if you aren’t good with exchange rates and numbers in general (know the approximate exchange rates and use a calculator), at least feign understanding by watching the teller closely while the money is being counted and handled.  Once you have the money in-hand count it in front of the teller so they can see what you’re doing BEFORE you put any of the money away in your wallet.  This gives you the chance to credibly dispute any discrepancies.

If a trustworthy currency exchange isn’t available (like a reputable international bank) and you have to use a ramshackle fly-by-night moneychanger, then at least double-check the high-value bills for counterfeits.

4) Know Hotels’ Tricks Beforehand

A hostel or two-star hotel in Japan or Singapore is very different from one in Cambodia or Indonesia.  Get the bottom line price if you are staying at budget accommodations, as they can sometimes tack on hidden fees or play tricks such as the old “room rate is per person and not per room” scam.

If you are staying at a quality hotel, then make nice with the concierge.  If he/she appears especially trustworthy and knowledgeable, then dole out a nice tip and ask for advice on both what to do and what not to do in the area.

5) Before Heading Out and Later At the Sights…

Before heading out to the attractions, glean as much information as possible regarding the sight itself and the surrounding locale(s).  Arm yourself with various small banknote denominations (taxis never, ever have small change) of the local currency, a stealthy non-expensive looking camera, and an easy-to-read map. It’s ok to look like a tourist, just don’t look like a naïve mark waiting to be fleeced of hard-earned money.

Once you’ve hit the sights, take in and enjoy everything but don’t listen to any friendly “helpers” or touts that come up to you.  They are used to dealing with tourists and are working some kind of angle whether it is playing on your sympathy, fear, greed/lust, confusion, or desire to witness some kind of local customs/ceremony. These hucksters should not be confused with the regular, honest local folks.

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If you liked James’ awesome article, check out 10 Best South-East Asia Destinations for Chill Budget Travel.

After multiple protests that shook the political climate in Bangkok and led the government to declare a 2-month State of Emergency in January 2014, many tourists avoided the city and sometimes the whole country of Thailand.

Once again, foreign press proved to be a nuisance and fed people fears and other nonsense.

While it was true that the city was in the State of Emergency, there was no curfew and life was going on as usual for the residents of Bangkok. I myself, having lived there back then, was rarely bothered by the protests: they were located at specific spots in the city and you could choose to avoid them quite easily. Some protests marches led to traffic jams, but Bangkok was already infamous for its bad traffic, so nothing really changed.

Sure there were a few deaths and injuries since the protests broke out, but have a look at this statistic:

1. Number of Deaths linked to protests (3 months period): 10
2. Official Death Toll during new year holidays  in Thailand (7 days period): 366

There was still more chance to be in a car accident in Thailand than it was to be hurt during those protests, especially if you avoided the few hot spots: and those were usually away from tourist attractions.

So if you’re thinking about cancelling your trip to Thailand, don’t! Bangkok is still very much safe and there are a lot of places in Thailand worth visiting. However, consider the following common problems that tourists run into during their visit to Bangkok, and make sure that you learn from others’ mistakes to avoid similar issues.

Read more: The 12 best places to travel in Thailand alone

Transportation

Two main forms of transport around the city of Bangkok are tuk-tuks and taxis. Despite tuk-tuks becoming more and more ousted each passing day, they’re still a way of life for some Thai people. Taxis are replacing them as a tourist’s go-to transportation for several reasons, but that doesn’t mean you should drop your guard. Here is a breakdown of both modes of transportation and what to look for (and do) when you get into one:

• Tuk-tuks. The reasons for their slow regression as a number one choice for driving around Bangkok are twofold. First of all, they’re largely unsafe, not just because they’re basically an upgraded motorbike, but also because Thai drivers go really fast and don’t practice safe driving (at all). There were instances of health insurance companies challenging claims for injuries sustained in these vehicles because passengers weren’t wearing helmets. The second reason is that tuk-tuk drivers are often involved in scams such as driving the tourists around town instead of taking them to the agreed-upon destination, dropping them off at stores that pay the drivers a commission for bringing in customers. Not to mention arguing about the fare! If you do decide to get into a tuk-tuk, make sure that you discuss the price before going anywhere. Write it down on a piece of paper and show the number to the driver if their English is horrible. Expect it to cost more than a taxi with a meter on.
• Is it safe to take a taxi in Bangkok?. Be careful when opening the door to a taxi because traffic is simply wild, and any damage to the door will be charged to you, the tourist. Sometimes, taxi drivers refuse to run the meter. If you ask them to, and they still refuse, just leave the vehicle and get another taxi. In some cases, they’ll refuse to start the meter, but will instead give you a fixed price. It’s usually not a scam, but the fixed price will be pretty higher than what you would pay with the meter running.

BONUS TIPS: Know where you’re going. Have a map, show it to the driver. Let them know not to take longer routes, ask them to stop the car if you feel like they’re trying to cheat you. Don’t get into heated debates, you’ll find out soon why. Never give any documents such as passports, you don’t need to no matter what they say! Ultimately, buses are really cheap in Bangkok and you can avoid all of this if you wanted to.

Conflicts

Most Thai people are very kind and helpful, but be careful about one local ‘custom’. They have what they call ‘losing face’. That means that you humiliated a Thai person, often leading to an aggressive response. Avoid confrontation with locals, especially those that seem inebriated. The same goes for drivers – if you can’t get a fair deal and they’re getting angry about it, just find another ride.

Traffic

If you’re discovering the magic of Bangkok on foot, be very, very careful. The city has an awful reputation for unsafe drivers that don’t really abide by law and regulations. Make sure that you’re paying a lot of attention when crossing the road. In the unfortunate case of an accident, you’ll be in fault as Thai laws are more concerned with drivers rather than pedestrians. It is much better to be safe than sorry, so pay good attention and use your head when you’re about to cross a road. Overpasses are an excellent way to get around safely, so make good use of them.

Read more: Cheapest Way to Travel to Southeast Asia

Scams

Bangkok has a certain bad rep when it comes to scams. They come in different forms and variations, from ‘gulible traveller’ scams, all the way to serious offences. We have already mentioned the scams to be aware off when you’re driving around town, but there are others as well.

• Fake jewelries. Bangkok is not the right place to get your significant other a piece of jewellery. In the sea of scammers, finding genuine precious stones is very difficult, if not impossible. The safest path is to not buy anything of the sort. You’ll be overpaying for a fake.
• Overly friendly people. You shouldn’t buy this for a second. Of course, you should be kind and polite towards your hosts, but don’t believe an overly pleasant Thai that would like to take you places. We’re not saying you should be paranoid for the entirety of your trip, just be aware and make reasonable choices.
• Free drinks. Don’t take free drinks from anyone, because they are most likely laced with something, and you don’t want to risk it. When you’re unconscious, you’re so much easier to rob of everything you’ve got.
• Sightseeing. Among other things, people trying to scam you will offer sightseeing tours and excursions. Take none of that, as they will probably lead you into a trap, or to places that seem free at first, but then you get charged exorbitant prices for drinks that you’re coerced into paying.
• Pen Scam. Or any variation on the topic. If a stranger approaches you and asks you for anything in Bangkok, even something as simple as a pen, you should be suspicious. Oftentimes, they’ll take the opportunity while you’re distracted to steal from you.

Food

Among other things, Bangkok is a paradise of local cuisine. So many dishes to try, so many drinks to have. Street food vendors are great in number and a lot of them offer amazing food that tastes incredible. However, focus on those places that prepare the dishes in front of you because that is the only way to know that it’s fresh. Another great piece of advice is to eat where local people go to eat.

Don’t spend too much time in fancy restaurants if you’re bent on discovering the true charm of Bangkok cuisine. Street vendors are where you should be, but just make sure that you’re served fresh food. Avoid tap water at all costs and buy bottles instead, your stomach will thank you for it.

Pickpockets in Bangkok

Pickpockets are the most common group of thieves in Bangkok, but they’re easily avoidable. All it takes is a little precaution – don’t take your expensive smartphone out of your pocket to avoid unnecessary attraction. Keep your items secure and never ever put anything in your back pocket because it is as good as gone. The same goes for your cash or documents. We’ve mentioned before how drivers sometimes ask for your passport. They’ll rationalise it as having a sort of security deposit for your ride – don’t do it. Pickpockets often try and take their victim’s documents as well for purposes of identity theft.

Keep your documents and cash safely tucked away in a bag that can be zipped up, otherwise, it may be gone in a blink of an eye. Another tactic they use to distract tourists is to have a ladyboy approach you and ask for a picture. When that happens either refuse or be very, very careful about where your things are.

Especially be mindful about your belongings in high-traffic areas, because this is where most pickpockets simply blend in with all the hustle and bustle of markets and passing crowds.

Drugs

You can find whatever you like in Bangkok, and that includes drugs more than anything. They’re readily and easily available, attracting young tourists from all over the world who want to experience Thailand from a whole different perspective. Bear in mind though, that drugs are completely illegal in Thailand and don’t let their availability trick you into thinking anything other than that. You could spend a year in Thai prison for it, or face a death sentence in case you were trying to smuggle it across the border.

Red-light Districts

Another spicy attraction in Bangkok, red-light district houses prostitutes with very little regard for health and safe sex. These areas do have attractions of their own, and it would be unreasonable to suggest that no one comes to Thailand because of them. In fact, they’re well visited by young and old tourists alike, but it doesn’t mean that you should go in there unprotected.

Political Strife

At the moment, Thailand is entirely safe and there are no political instabilities in the country. There aren’t any riots or protests like the one from 2014, their relations with other neighbouring countries are just fine, with the exception of the deep south. More precisely, provinces of Songkhla, Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat suffer from constant violence. Most governments recommend that you refrain from travelling to Malaysia by land and that you should instead go by plane if you want to visit Malaysia.

Conclusion: Is Bangkok safe for travel now

So, is it safe to travel to Bangkok right now? Yes, it is completely safe to visit Bangkok now. Like in any major tourist destination, there are certain people that would take advantage of you given the opportunity. However, if you don’t give them this chance, if you take certain precautions you’ll most likely have no problems whatsoever. Many visitors to this amazing city have only the best things to say about Bangkok, going as far as calling it safer than their own hometowns. Of course, you shouldn’t take their testimonies for granted, as your experience may vary from theirs. With just a bit of self-restraint and responsible behaviour, you ensure that the overall quality of your trip remains high.

I loved Sri Lanka. The food, the people, the beach, the mountains – even the big city was good. It’s a real gem in what some consider a tough neighborhood for independent travel (South Asia).

On my last morning in Colombo I sat in a strange (but friendly) guesthouse having breakfast on a backyard patio. As I scrolled through my photos from the past two weeks I remember being impressed that my time in Sri Lanka went off so smoothly. Aside from a couple of uncomfortable bus rides, the trip was fantastic. Nothing could possibly go wrong now…right?

WRONG!

It’s always a good idea to check the status of your flight before heading off to the airport. Sitting on that same backyard patio, in the strange guesthouse, I Googled the status of my first of two flights. From Colombo, Sri Lanka to Chennai, India (less than 2 hours north): Kingfisher IT62.

The flight info from Google showed a delay of almost 10 hours! Instead of leaving at 3:15 pm, the flight wouldn’t depart until 1 am. This also means missing the connecting flight to Fort Cochin in Kerala, India by a long shot. And to make things more complicated, this connecting flight that I would now miss was on a totally different budget airline (SpiceJet).

Oh, and spending the night in Chennai didn’t sound like any fun.

Travel Nightmare?

This type of scenario is a common substrate for travel nightmares. That last day of a vacation that turns into such a disaster, it drowns out much better memories of beautiful days on the beach. But this time was different. This time I was prepared and had purchased travel insurance through SquareMouth.com before I left home. (Something I now do for every international trip I take).

Using Skype, I called the toll free insurance help line and described the dilemma of my delayed flight and my desire to get to Fort Cochin as soon as possible. The friendly American voice on the other end of the line reviewed my travel insurance coverage and confirmed that I would get reimbursed up to $150 per day that I’m delay for this ‘missed connection’. She also helped me re-book my flights, but unfortunately I wouldn’t get to Fort Cochin that night. I would stay overnight in Bangalore – India’s IT hub.

Travel Insurance Saves The Day

Without my travel insurance things would have played out very differently that morning. Instead of slowly finishing my coffee on the backyard patio in Colombo, I would have been frantically scrambling to come up with new travel plans, and exploring every conceivable option to avoid spending the night in Chennai. It would have been stressful to say the least. But being prepared with travel insurance was like having a personal assistant fixing all my travel headaches. Feeling like I was taken care of lifted a huge weight off my shoulders. I could now carry on enjoying myself and discover how to make the best of the night in Bangalore.

My luxury hotel in Bangalore

Considering that I could spend up to $300 of insurance reimbursements ($150 per day x 2 days), I decided to try to find a room at one of Bangalore’s best hotels. On such short notice, most places were fully booked. But with luck, I got a room at Purple Lotus– a small but ultra-modern hotel, tucked down an alleyway in a nice area of the city. The place was outstanding – huge rooms, great shower, big desk and good wi-fi! Too bad my delay was just for one night – the place was just that good. It only cost about $80 per night (and trip insurance covered it all).

Even a budget travel insurance plan from SquareMouth will save you a huge headache when your flights get delayed or cancelled. Plus spending $60 on travel insurance today might mean saving $300 on unexpected hotel bills and plane tickets if you hit a snag during your trip.

These days every backpacker seems to be equipped with at least a mobile phone and a tablet. Don’t worry – I’m not here to tell you to leave the iPad at home. Let’s just get right to the point…

You’re traveling to Thailand and want to buy a local SIM card for voice and/or data?

I’ve done this several times before so let me tell you exactly, step by step, what you should do to get a cheap local SIM card in Thailand.

Read more: How safe is it to travel to Bangkok now?

1. Go to the nearest 7-11. If you’re arriving at the main Bangkok airport (BKK) you’ll find a 7-11 near the entrance to the BTS train on the lower level. And for all other locations in Thailand, just know that 7-11’s are extremely popular and common all over the country – you’re never far from one.
2. At the 7-11, ask for a SIM card. English language skills at 7-11 are generally poor to non-existent, so be patient and be prepared to use hand gestures (try showing them your old SIM card as an example of what you’re looking for.)
3. But don’t get just any SIM. You want the Dtac Happy Tourist SIM card. If communication with the 7-11 staff is challenging, say the words “Dtac Happy” and point to your old SIM card (or your mobile phone). Make sure you get the “Dtac Happy Tourist” SIM card for 49 Baht. It should cost exactly 49 Baht. If you are offered something that costs 100 Baht or more, you are probably being sold Dtac top-up credit (also useful, but not what you need at the moment).
4. The Dtac Happy Tourist SIM card is a prepaid mobile phone SIM card that is perfect for tourists. For 49 THB (Less than $2 USD) you instantly get one day of free unlimited 3G Internet and 15 Bhat of voice/sms credit.
5. The Dtac SIM cards include a standard size SIM and a micro SIM, which will fit most phones. (Note: The iPhone 5 needs a nano-SIM, so use caution, or be prepared to cut down the micro SIM to nano size).
6. Unwrap your Happy Tourist package and extract the SIM card. Take note of your new mobile phone number, which will be printed on the external plastic packaging.
7. Insert your new Dtac SIM card into your phone. Turn off your phone and immediately re-start it. Wait a few minutes and you’ll receive an SMS message from Dtac that says something to the effect of “Welcome to happy service”. Now you are free to start browsing the net.
8. ‘Top-up’ (add more credit) to your prepaid SIM as soon as possible and subscribe to a data plan if you want to use data beyond the first 24 hours of free 3G Internet. Topping up can also be accomplished at 7-11 and can now be done online as well: http://www.dtac.co.th/en/prepaid/services/happy-refill.html
9. Once you top up, your credit will be instantly added to your Dtac account. You can use this credit for calls and SMS (including International calls, but read the included Dtac manual for dialing instructions). You can also apply your Dtac credit to a “Happy Internet Package” which allows you unlimited browsing throughout Thailand. Unlimited data packages start at 199 THB per week or just 299 THB per month. See here for the details: http://www.dtac.co.th/en/prepaid/products/Happy-internet-package.html

For example, if you want to subscribe to an unlimited data package for 1 week, first make sure you have more than 200 THB in credit on your Dtac account. (You might want a little extra for calls and texting too). Then dial this exact code on your phone: *104*28*9# (then press send). After a few minutes you’ll receive a confirmation SMS that is mostly in Thai, but will say “Happy Internet” in English – that’s your cue to start surfing.

If you forget your phone number, want to check your balance, or need more help, Dtac has pretty good English-speaking customer service (dial 1678 and then press 7 for English after the call connects).Also the included ‘Dtac Happy User Guide’ is full of tips on getting the most from your Dtac prepaid plan. Want to read the dtac Happy User Guide? Click Here.  Now you’re free to enjoy all the benefits of staying connected while traveling to every corner of Thailand. Just remember to put the phone sometimes down so you don’t look like a lame-ass nerd!

Read more: Best places to travel in Thailand alone

There are many airfare search tools, mileage calculators, route maps, and other travel tools to help find all the possible connections and destinations to the region(s) you want to go on your next trip.  This guide will walk you through a series of steps so you can be sure you’ve covered all of your bases to find the cheapest flight out there.

Discover Which Airlines Fly to Your Destination.

1. Check ITA Matrix for the cheapest tickets to your destination (read more about this awesome airfare search tool).

2. Head over to Wikipedia to find out the where you can fly from your destination airport.  The route information is almost always available on in an up-to-date article about each airport.

3. If you are flexible with which destination airport you will use (example: you might not have a preference between JFK and the La Guardia airports in NYC), airports with more airlines serving them will generally be much cheaper to fly to/from than airports served by only one or two airlines.  The more airlines are forced to compete with each other on a given route, the more they will end up slashing fares.

Starting the Cheap Flight Search

4. Sometimes you may discover budget airlines that fly into your destination that don’t fly from your home airport and you probably aren’t seeing their fares listed on sites like Orbitz.com.  But if the fares are so cheap why are they not on Orbitz or even ITA Matrix?  Here are some examples of why.

• SouthWest airlines, one of the largest airlines, does not publish their fares outside of their own website.
• Spirit Airlines does publish some fares on Orbitz, but never their “bargain-bin” super cheap fares.
• In Europe, the biggest budget airlines EasyJet and Ryanair don’t publish their fares on sites like Orbitz either. This saves the airline money, which lets them slash fares.

To account for this you must visit the website of each budget airline serving your destination’s airports. Figure out where the budget airlines’ “hubs” are located in an effort to see if you can find any great deals on airfares from their hub cities on to your final destination. The trick will be to get a ticket on a ‘regular’ airline (i.e. a non-budget airlines) from your home country to a transportation hub near your destination – then get the budget ticket for the final leg to reach your destination.

Step It Up with Some Advanced Travel Hacks

5. You can’t normally buy a single plane ticket that has both traditional airline and budget airline segments. But you may be able to do it yourself and combine a traditional airlines’ ticket with a budget airline ticket to save money. For example, fly from your home airport to a nearby large hub airport (like JFK airport, Madrid’s Barajas airport, Kuala Lumpur International Airport, etc.  –  depending on where you are and want to go, of course). Then take a budget airline the rest of the way to your final destination.

• Heading to the beach in Thailand? Book a ticket to Bangkok and then buy an AirAsia ticket for the rest of the way to Phuket, Ko Samui or Krabi.
• Want to explore Central America? Buy a regular ticket to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and then book a Spirit Airlines flight to Costa Rica from that same airport  (read more on scoring the best deal on Spirit Airlines).

6. When combining tickets from multiple airlines, check and double check to make sure that your itinerary leaves you enough time to get from your first flight, on to the next (a 4 hour minimum connection time is recommended).  Also, make sure you have the right dates when booking your flights.  This is especially important on international flights where you change time zones and arrival dates – things can get messy fast!

7. If you end up booking flights that require a local airport change to make your connection (like London Heathrow to London Stansted) – leave at least 1.5 hour of buffer time for the transfer beyond the expected travel time.  Researching all the transportation options, availability, reliability schedules, and prices ahead of time will make for a smooth transition between airports.

8. Looking for a last minute cheap flight on Shanghai-based budget carrier Spring Airlines during some Chinese holiday you’ve never heard of? Good luck. If you can avoid it, don’t leave the booking of the budget airline fare (or any other airfare) until the last minute.  Many low cost airlines boost their prices a week or two before the departure date.

See It In Action

Let’s say you wanted to find the cheapest way to get from Chicago to Morocco and back.  Here’s how you can save at least $310.

Option 1: Buy a regular round/trip ticket from Chicago (ORD) to Marrakesh. Cost = $1,000 or more if you’re lucky.

Option 2: Buy a regular round trip ticket from ORD to Madrid Barajas airport. This airport is a busy major transportation hub and a hub for ultra budget airline Ryanair. Round trip ticket on US Airways from ORD to MAD = $600. Round trip Ryanair ticket from Madrid to Tangier or Marrakesh is approximately $90 or less when booked in advance.

Combining regular airline tickets with budget airlines to reach Marrakesh can save you over $300!

Flying can be a pleasant experience, however if you don’t get a decent seat then any pleasure quickly vanishes.  A bad seat always puts a damper on your hard earned vacation.  Follow these 5 golden rules and you’re pretty much guaranteed to have the best possible seat. Leave the unpleasant ones for others to suffer in!

1. Book your ticket early.

It’s always easy to put off planning and booking your next trip.  But it’s best to start looking for flights as soon as you know the timeframe for your getaway (hopefully 3 to 6 months before you plan to leave).  If you book your flight in this time window than you can dramatically increase your chances of getting your preferred seat as most will still be available.  When possible it’s best to select the seat directly at the time of purchase!

2. What if your airline won’t allow you to reserve a seat?  Or they charge you for it?

Ok so you’re diligent and tried to follow rule #1, but they won’t let you, jerks. Solution, get to the gate early. No need to be pushy, but polite confidence helps.  Stand at the very front of the line (or be sure to get the best number in the boarding sequence) so you can be in the first wave of people in your seating class to board the plane.

To squeeze even more money from you, some airlines may charge extra to select your seat in advance.  Don’t give them your hard-earned money since it’s generally not worth the price.  Don’t get sucked into this trap.  That is unless sitting with your group is extremely important or you need more space to be comfortable.

Read more: Visiting Peloponnese and Its Kalogria Beach

3.  Does your airline reserve seats at check-in only?

Although it doesn’t seem to make much sense, the reason why airlines do this is to give themselves an opportunity to sell you upgrades and extract more money from you. For example on Lufthansa’s inter-European flights, check-in (and seat selection) is allowed starting 24 hours before departure. If online check-in isn’t an option, then get to the airport as early as you can to get the best seat.  Being nice to the airline check-in agent can only help your odds of scoring a good seat.

But use caution, because some discount airlines, like Spirit Airlines in the U.S. actually assign seats starting from the last row of the plane.  This means that checking-in early will leave you stuck in the back.

And if checking-in online is an option mark your calendar for this and give yourself the 5 minutes that it will take to make this happen.  It is an easy way to guarantee yourself the best seat.  If you have a smartphone, use it to check-in as soon as your airline allows you to.  This will significantly decrease “curb to plane time”, a fancy phrase to describe the time it takes from the airport entrance (or parking spot) to your seat (the best one in this case).

4.  Does your airline allow you to reserve your seat online during ticket purchase? Do they require a phone call?

For most purchases, this is a moot point since the majority of common airlines allow you to select seats online.  But some airlines are still stuck in the 20^th century and require you to call in to get a seat assignment.  Go ahead and call them up as soon as you can (do this outside of busy times like lunch and evening to shorten the time you have to spend on the phone).  Tell the agent (extreme politeness and small talk goes a long way) the exact seat you want (check out my Ultimate Seat Guide for help on this).  Sometimes your options may be limited so have a second and third choice in mind to cover your bases (or even a guideline helps – e.g. “an aisle seat towards the front of the plane away from the bathrooms”).  Make sure you have your e-ticket number on hand, they will most definitely ask for it.

To make the most out of your flight and the time you have spent on arranging it, make sure you give them your frequent flyer number when you book online or when you talk to the agents on the phone.  If you don’t have a frequent flyer account, get one ASAP. This will ultimately lower your traveling costs and increase your travel options.

Read more: A Guide to Palanga Beach in Lithuania

5.  You can change seats after the boarding process is over.

If for some reason you haven’t had the opportunity or time to hustle up your preferred seat before the flight, you may have the option to change your seat after the boarding process is over. Generally, a member of the flight crew will make an announcement once boarding is complete.  If they don’t, and you think the process is finished, ask a flight attendant if you can switch seats.  There is a possibility that you will not be able to do this if you are in a small plane because of weight distribution and safety issues, but if that’s the case you’re probably on a pretty short flight anyway.

Sometimes airlines with the questionable ‘premium economy’ seating or airlines that charge a fee for reserving seats when booking the ticket may object to your request.  But by the time boarding is complete they probably won’t do anything about it because thankfully they have a schedule to keep.

They say “fortune favors the bold”. Sometimes after you’ve played hardball to get the best seat on the plane, you might just be lucky enough to end up on a nearly empty flight. If that’s the case, get yourself to a vacant row of 3 or 4 seats, lie down and enjoy.  (This is especially amazing when you’re on a long flight and you want to sleep.)

Want to experience the beauty of European towns, but you’re short on cash? No problem, here are some quick ways to save while going to pricey towns such as Chamonix where a beer costs 6 EUR and a bed in a dorm is 18 EUR if your lucky enough to get one.

1) Avoid Trains: they are too expensive.

Take a bus or if you plan ahead book a flight on easyjet.com which is often time cheap (@ 35 EUR from Birmingham, UK to Geneva, Switzerland) but with advanced planning even swiss.com (@ 37 EUR from Prague, Czech Republic to Geneva, Switzerland) is a quarter of the price of a train – which cost 210 EUR!!  Additionally, they are obviously much faster than trains saving valuable travel and sleep time!

Read more: How Safe Is the Channel Tunnel?

2) Avoid Hostels: they can be expensive too.

Look at airbnb.com for apartments.  You will most likely need stay for at least a week and it will cost as much or less than a hostel, plus you have privacy (no drunken noise at 3am). Airbnb apartments are significantly cheaper if you can book with some friends, splitting the cost. You can also cook and store food (saving cash) and lock your belongings in a safe place (think passport!).

3) Seek out happy hour drinks.

You can get a beer for as low as around 1.50 EUR. Happy hours are generally between 4:00 – 6:30pm and after 10:00pm.  Stay away from the main strip where the prices are typically jacked up for tourists.

Read more: Best European Cities to Parlay in English

4) Don’t pay retail for lift/transportation tickets.

Buy a rapid carte (if in Chamonix) or if you’re a student get the student deal of 10 EUR a pop per lift ride instead of 50 EUR!  Many other pricey towns in Europe will have student discounts or other tourist discounts.  Ask in hotels, hostels, information centers, train stations, and airports.  Keeping your eyes open for deals can go a long way in saving you some cash.

Read more: Europe Destinations without the Crowds

5) Get a tourist card (and an ISIC card if you’re a student).

In most tourist towns, taxes pay for such cards so that tourist can get around and spend money.  You can take advantage of this by getting a tourist card, for example in Chamonix you can get one for 2 EUR/ week and ride the Chamonix valley bus for free (http://www.chamonix.net/english/transport/) and some SNCF trains as well!  This way you can easily access other interesting places, bring food with you to maximize cheap traveling!  If you’re a student, guarantee yourself the student discount widely available in Europe by getting an ISIC card.

There is no reason to get discouraged from expensive towns.  If you know how to work it, then it will be significantly less expensive than for the average tourist allowing you to relax and enjoy your well deserved vacation with money left in the bank!

When traveling through Europe most people are excited to travel by train.  The cabin’s size allows you to walk and stretch and even the smallest European towns have a train station, which makes things easy. And for Americans trains are a romantic European novelty.  Many travelers purchase a “Eurail Pass” which is an unlimited train pass.

Eurail is Expensive and Not the Best Option

Eurail is for the most part an out-of-date way to travel except if you are planning to travel very frequently over short distances during your trip to Europe.  As idealistic and quaint as train travel sounds, they can be very expensive.

If you’re on a tight schedule (as most people are) flying will decrease your transit time, increase your vacation time, and leave you with more cash in your pocket.  Additionally, if you want to explore several different regions that are far apart (think: London to Brno, Czech Republic) Ryanair will be your best bet.

Ryanair Explained

Hands down Ryanair has the lowest airfares in Europe.  Although you will save money, you may have to deal with a few unpleasantries.  Being prepared for this will make these nuisances null-and-void.

Ryanair’s customer service is sub-par at best.  (Be ready for this especially of you’re from the States.)  But if you plan your trip well, you’ll probably never have to talk to them.  The seats have little legroom and are not as comfortable as those found on inter-continental jets, but in Europe things are generally smaller so no surprise here.  If you are travelling light (which we suggest anyway) then Ryanair will be a perfect fit.  There are extra charges (and steep ones, the cost of a checked bag could be as much or more than the ticket) for: ALL checked bags, extra carry on bags, food, water, seat reservations, and any other amenity.

One reason why Ryanair has such low airfares is that they often times use second-tier airports, which are not popular with large airlines (think United, Lufthansa, etc.).  However, these airports have buses and trains that will take you to city centers and even first tier airports (like London Heathrow). So there will be no problem getting to where you want to go.

Sample Ryanair Month in Europe

If you are planning a trip to Europe and have considered buying a “Eurail Pass” then you are probably going for at least a month.  We certainly recommend a month trip, as this will allow you to sample a variety of European countries.  In our example itinerary, you could spend 33 days and party it up in an eclectic mix of beautiful Euro-capitals.

Let’s say you want to visit the following cities during your trip: London, England; Madrid, Spain; Rome, Italy; Budapest, Hungary; Brussels, Belgium.  You would initially book your ticket from your home airport to fly into London and then fly out of Brussels back home.

Read more: Cheapest Travel Destinations in Western Europe

At the time of writing your flights between these capitals would set you back a measly $166 dollars and a total of 8.5 hours in the air.  To do this with a “Eurail Pass” you would pay around $600!!!  This painful price tag is only part of the problem given all the valuable time that you would waste sitting on a train.  For example London to Madrid would include at least two train connections and around 15 hours of travel! Just think about how many hours you have worked to save up to go on this awesome trip; Ryanair is clearly the best option for any savvy traveller.

Be aware, however, that it will be important to book your Ryanair flight early.  If possible, book the flights when you book your main flight to Europe and it will be smooth sailing (or flying!) from there.  Playing it smart by using great travel hacks and you’ll get to see a great and diverse selection of European destinations while savings hundreds of dollars … not to mention many, many precious hours.

Here is an example itinerary we found to get around Europe on Ryanair:

1. Start your trip in London (stay in London August 29th – September 3rd)
2. Fly London>Madrid (September 3rd – $50 – 2.5 hour flight)
3. Fly Madrid>Rome (September 11th – $50 – 2:15 flight)
4. Fly Rome>Budapest (September 14th – $38 – 1:40 flight)
5. Fly Budapest>Brussels (September 23rd – $28 – 2 hour flight)
6. End your trip in Brussels on September 30^th and fly home.

(All prices include taxes, but must be booked well in advance. Prices change all the time, so YMMV, literally.)

Have fun and travel safe.

No luck finding a cheap flight? Even after searching for the best available fares on the Matrix Airfare Search, using the calendar feature, adding some flexibility in your dates, and maybe even including some nearby airports in your search, you sometimes just don’t end up with any super cheap flights.

When things weren’t looking good for my test subject, Jolene, I was able to shave nearly 20% off the price of her flight, without giving up any travel conveniences.

Jolene lives in Vermont, USA and was searching for a late-spring flight to Israel (ideally May 14 – May 28). A few quick searches on the Airfare Matrix Search and Orbitz.com and things were not looking too good.

First, the cheapest airfares have pretty bad schedules. It would actually take 40 hours to reach Tel Aviv, that’s well over twice the time it should. Also check out what’s going on in the advisory column! See that little grey warning symbol? – It turns out that all of these least-expensive flights would require that Jolene collect her luggage, and then haul herself across New York City from one airport to another to meet a connecting flight. That not only adds additional expense to the trip, it’s also extremely annoying!  The first flight in the results that’d be worth considering cost $1,376 since the connection is decent and there are no airport transfers involved.

Read more: How to Find Extremely Cheap Last Minute Flights

The bad schedules and expensive flights are a signal that we needed to break up our search.  To get a better price we’ll try to match together two separate round trip tickets into one. Instead of searching for flights from our home airport (Burlington, VT, USA) to Tel Aviv, we should instead search for a round trip flight from our home airport to a major nearby air hub such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami etc (in this case, New York) and then find another ticket from that same air hub on to the final destination.  I used this technique when looking for flights to get from Burlington, VT to Tel Aviv, Israel and managed to save Jolene almost 20% on her flight! How is this possible?

Hack the flights with codeshares

Maybe you’ve heard of the term “codeshare”. When two airlines are codeshare partners, it means they have formed a kind of partnership, despite being totally different companies. Maybe it’s happened to you – you buy a ticket from one airline but the flight end up being flown by another airline. That is a codeshare agreement in action!

Airlines that are codeshare partners can sell seats on each other’s flights in combination with their own flights. Generally this is great for the customers, because they don’t need to re-check luggage when a connecting flights happens to be on a different airline.

Codeshares also make it easy for people to search for tickets. I can easily purchase a single plane ticket to get from a rural area like Burlington, VT, to a big foreign city like Tel Aviv, Israel, even though no airlines that fly from Burlington also fly to Tel Aviv.  This system provides customers with a few nice conveniences. But the system does have its downsides and can end up costing you hundreds of dollars extra on your next flight. So how can this be avoided?

How to beat the codeshares?

Breaking up your cheap airfare search into two (or more) tickets means that you could save big on your next trip. When you search for two separate tickets to reach your destination, you aren’t limited to airlines that have a codeshare or interline agreements with airlines at your home airport. To reach Tel Aviv from rural Burlington, VT, I first searched for round trip flights from the JFK airport in New York City, to Tel Aviv.  Later I’ll find a round trip flight to get between Vermont and New York City.

When we search this way, we find some fares that are quite a bit cheaper than what we saw earlier. In fact, it’s about $400 cheaper than the first acceptable itinerary. Even when we add a cheap round trip flight from Burlington, Vermont to JFK airport, we could still save a few hundred bucks.  Transaero Airlines (offering the cheapest flights to Tel Aviv) does not have codeshare agreements with any U.S. based airline. So to take advantage of their cheap flights, I need to purchase tickets on that airline separately. It’s just a little extra time invested – but the savings are BIG!

Adding on a round-trip flight from Burlington, Vermont to JFK costs only $143. That means that we can get to Tel Aviv from our home airport for a grand total of $1,127 ($143 + $984).  The schedule is good and does not have any inconvenient quirks.  That’s a savings of $249 over the fare that Jolene was originally considering.

Extra Bonus: Get a free stopovers to visit an new place

The cost savings alone is big. That’s enough to sell most people – but if you need another reason to break up your trip into two tickets, we’ve got one: stopovers. This means scheduling a ‘layover’ of several days between flights – it allows you time to visit the city before flying on.

With Jolene’s flight from Vermont to Tel Aviv, Israel she has the option to add on a stopover in New York City for free. In fact, she could most likely add a stopover in Moscow as well.  Now for the price of $1,127 Frankie gets to visit Tel Aviv AND Moscow AND New York City – wow!

The Downside?

There is one big reason you might not want to buy two tickets to get to your final destination. If one flight is delayed, your next flight on an unrelated airline won’t know to wait for you! If airlines aren’t codeshare partners, they won’t know you’ve just come from another flight that’s been delayed. A good way to avoid such a problem is to simply allow 4 hours or more between flights on non-partner airlines. A good travel insurance policy will also have your back in this situation (I never go abroad without a good travel insurance policy).

Read more: How Do Airlines Allocate Seats To Passengers?

Also, if you check luggage in, you’ll have to re-check it when transferring between two separate itineraries.  This is easily avoided by not checking any luggage in.  I only check luggage in on rare exceptions to give myself the most flexibility.  Plus traveling light is always worth it!

Bottom Line

You can save $100s of dollars on your next trip by combining two round trip plane tickets into one larger trip. You can’t buy single airplane tickets that include multiple flights on multiple unrelated airlines.  So to make sure you’ve got the cheapest fare, break your search up into two and switch to a cheaper airline at a major air hub!