Flying with a budget airline this summer?

Analoguesat

If so - check your baggage allowance weights carefully! We have just been to Majorca with Globespan. At Palma airport coming back we were told our bags were 44kg (including the hand luggage) This was 4kgs over the 40kg allowed (20kg per person) As such we were stung with a 28Euros fine. (7Euro per kg - about a fiver)

We werent alone - many of the other folks on the flight were caught as well. Its a great scam for the airline and I say scam because after you get you bags weighed and the suitcases disappear into the bowels of the airport you get to go into Duty Free and pick up as much booze in glass bottles as you want

PoloMint

Yea, it can really catch people out, adding the handlugge into the overall allowance is sneaky.

One tip, if you know people in the country you are leaving from, or people give you a lift to the airport, get them to keep a hold of your handluggage (out of sight of check in staff) while you check in with 'just a book' as hand luggage. Then collect all your actual hand luggage from them before heading through security - works well

Last time I flew with globespan I was with my brother, we were both over the baggage allowance, (we had checked at home, but nothing we could do about it). At the airport the check in belt was broken so they couldn't weigh them. Downside of this was the bags never actually reached the plane and took 2 days to turn up.

With easyjet they used to (and perhaps still do) give a 10kg 'sporting allowance' on top of the normal allowance, I never understood why people with sporting equipment should get this extra 'free' 10kg!?

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'All you need is duck tape and WD40; if it moves and it shouldn't, use duck tape - if it should move and it doesn't, use WD40'

Analoguesat

If they budget airlines are going to enforce these restrictions, then they should be providing digital scales in every hotel so you can weigh your baggage before you leave.

gameboy

That's why you see passengers with three coats on, extra clothes and all their cameras, video and iPods, etc - in their pockets.

They don't weigh passengers - yet!

Sometimes the queue looks like an 'It's a Knockout' event!

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Only he who does nothing, does nothing wrong.

PaulR

Ryanair is the worst for weight restrictions. It used to be a miserable 15Kg hold allowance but now it's nothing. If you want hold luggage then you have to pay an extra £5 for each piece of luggage.

In order to get the maximum usage we've just bought some digital body weight scales to measure the bags accurately.

Unfortunately they also measure me accurately.

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PaulR

As I get older I find myself thinking about the hereafter - I go into a room and then wonder what I'm here after.

silvernet

They are going to get your dosh, one way or another, charges for credit card and debit card payments...extra taxes etc. etc.

Some charge for baggage items over length as well now.

Thonsonfly are the worst for extra taxes.

Ryanair for almost anything.

It will not be long before they charge for a seat..

Analoguesat

A lot of them do if you want extra legroom. Globespan charge 10UKP / 15Eu.

gameboy

All said - Ryanair are still cheap, I can honestly say I haven't had any problems with them (use them a few times a year).

The baggage weight is per person, we usually use two persons allowance in one case - not sure if that's allowed now.

With Ryanair if you book your bags in 'online' then the charge is less. And if you only have hand luggage it's free.

With KLM I stood in a queue at Schiphol airport for over and hour only to find that I didn't have to queue as I only had hand luggage - LOL

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Only he who does nothing, does nothing wrong.