Planning a trip is quite a time-taking task. You need to spend time researching the destination you are visiting and booking hotel and flight tickets. Sounds challenging? Well, planning a vacation can be a cumbersome task if you don't do things in the right way. You need to be very careful while booking the tickets and hotel rooms.
As per a Skyscanner survey, more than half of all respondents confessed booking flights for the wrong date or time. A few of them even booked the flights to the wrong destination. You should be extra careful with the airport codes as they can be tricky. If your ticket shows destination FLO, then you're probably headed for Florence, South Carolina, not Florence, Italy.
Listed below are a few common mistakes that people do while booking a flight-
Wrong date
Most flight booking websites have the current date as the default date. When you start the booking process, you mention the correct travelling date. However, when you shuffle back and forth to edit the details or check them, the date tends to change and go back to the current date. If you go to the payment page now without checking, there's a chance you will end up with a flight that has you flying out that very day. Hence, it is essential to check the date before making the final payment.
Wrong flight time
Does your scheduled departure time say 12 am, but is that midnight or midday? Confused? We can understand! It's midnight, actually. This is the easiest mistake you can make if you're working with a system that doesn't run by the 24-hour clock. It is advised to have a 24-hour watch on your mobile so that you don't get confused when your ticket says departure at 1430. Similarly, if you want to stay in a town until midday on the 11th of the month, don't book a flight that leaves at 1 am on the 11th. Being cautious is better than feeling sorry!
Booking the ticket too early
You stand the best chance to get the lowest possible fare 45 days before your domestic travel and 60 days before your international trip. Until and unless you are planning to fly during the high-traffic days like Christmas or New Year. If you book your flight too far in advance, you'll always pay a higher fare.
Wrong passenger details
When you are flying on an international flight, the information you have on the boarding pass/ticket must be precisely the same as what's in your passport. One silly mistake like wrong passport number or leaving out the middle name, and you may be looking at your flight taking off without you.
Insufficient baggage allowance
Each airline has a different baggage allowance limit. Usually, international baggage allowance is 30kgs. However, it won't be the same if you are flying domestic while abroad. Most airlines only allow you to carry 15kgs of check-in luggage when you are flying domestic. Think about those fur coats and fancy boots you have packed for the vacation -- you might have to pay a hefty amount to accommodate the luggage.
Connecting flight with not sufficient time in between
Most of us think that having a layover of an hour or two is enough to catch the connecting flight. You probably can get lucky, but it usually takes around 90 minutes to get your baggage transferred. When travelling internationally, you need to go through security, immigration, customs, and get your bags checked and repeat the same before boarding the connecting flights. Transferring between terminals also takes up time, so consider that as well.
You should pay attention to all the little details while booking your flight. Even if they get the tickets cancelled, you will have to bear a cancellation fee towards it. Why pay the extra money when you can be careful and save money. Also, don't make the mistake of not covering your trip with a travel insurance policy. A travel insurance policy is your best buddy when you are visiting a new country. Travel insurance covers you against several unforeseen circumstances.
