Many of us are desperate for some time away from it all after so much time stuck at home, and budget airlines can make a trip abroad more affordable.
Unfortunately, these same airlines tend to charge extra for bags and to choose your seats - and these additional costs soon add up. If you want to sit by others in your group, paying for each seat can sometimes work out more expensive than one person's flight.
Thankfully, one former flight attendant has shared a handy tip to sit together without paying, the Express reports.
READ MORE: Manchester Airport travel warning to people with flights booked
Jane Hawkes used to work for British Airways, and is now a consumer expert. She has explained how to "never pay" to book seats on a flight. She said: "Obviously if you’re travelling with children you might not want to do this.
“Because if you’re travelling as a family, you’ll probably want your children with you to keep an eye on them. But if you’re travelling with friends or a partner, then never pay to book a seat together.
“Just wait to get onboard and then say ‘we’re travelling together and we didn’t realise we’d be separated’. You could also ask other passengers around you who can be very accommodating, but there’s not much point asking before you get onboard.”
If solo travellers are sitting between friends they may be happy to swap so a group can sit together on the plane. And passengers may be more willing to swap if it’s an opportunity to switch out of the undesirable middle seat.
If a plane is very busy, passengers that don’t choose a seat before boarding will often be allocated the middle seat. Middle seat passengers tend to have slightly less room than their neighbours and won’t be able to look out the window.
On Ryanair, children under the age of 12 must be seated with an adult and the airline will allow passengers free allocated seats for four children per adult. Seats on Ryanair cost around £2.50 for a standard seat while extra legroom seats cost as much as £11.94 .Of course, some passengers might want a break from their travelling group if they’ve had a stressful holiday.
Jane also shared a tip that could help passengers make some extra money or freebies while at the airport. She said: “Mystery shopping is a way to pass time at the airport but it’s also a way of making a little bit of money.
“Most companies will offer a variety of mystery shopping tasks but not all of them will offer airports. Just do your research because you don’t want to do anything that’s going to cause you more stress and hassle.
“What you want to do is something that might get you a free coffee or something small without filling out loads of forms.” Mystery shopping is when people pretend to be a normal customer and judge how well a shop performs.
If passengers have time to kill at the airport, it could be a way to earn a little extra cash for a holiday treat. Jane Hawkes shares consumer tips and advice at ladyjaney.co.uk.
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