How to save money

Let's start of with a few basics. All the airlines publish their fares. So, if you go to them directly, you know exactly how much you are going to be asked to pay. That said, there are "high" and "low" seasons where the volume of traffic rises and falls. Airlines do offer "sale" prices to maintain passenger volumes during the low seasons. Some increase their prices at the peak periods. Then you have the budget carriers. These offer basic carriage at a basic price. All this information is usually freely available and gives you the base price to work from. Then we come to the "special offers". These are prices advertised in the local press or through the internet, promoting particular airlines or online ticket agents. They often invite you to use a code or keyword from the advert to "prove" your entitlement to the special price. The other source to identify are the "consolidators". These businesses buy tickets in bulk from the airlines and so get discounts that allow them to pass on savings to their customers. In the US, consolidators tend to specialize in the international market. In Europe, consolidators sell tickets for all flights both domestic and international.

Most people who are looking to travel are either on business or going on holiday. That means they will be in the market for a place to stay, a car rental and other elements that could make up a package. This gives you considerable freedom to negotiate. Start off with a hotel. Most sites that sell accommodation can be a little vague about pricing rooms. The best strategy is to get a quote, then telephone the hotel direct and find out what their best price is. If a hotel is your best option, you now have a choice. But if you want flexibility to come and go, or to entertain, you might do better to take a managed or serviced apartment. Depending on the number of people traveling together, you might find a better deal in a two, three or four room apartment on a daily or weekly rate. For those on holiday, there are package deals and all-inclusive resorts. In the right climate, camping may be a good option, or you could try one of the home swap/exchange plans. And, for the sake of completeness, there are still one or two companies that use "ordinary travelers" as couriers. It's hard to get on the lists but, if you like more random travel, this can be a cheap option.

So when you're looking for cheap flight, particularly for international cheap flights, look beyond the price of the seat at all the other options for accommodation, car rental, travel insurance, and so on. You are looking for the best deal on the whole package. Identify the consolidators and start with them. They are most likely to have the cheap air flights advertised. Then it's just a case of exploring how to pull everything together to save the most money. In fact, in it's own right, it's fun and, when you get to enjoy the end result, all the more satisfying.

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In praise of California

In November, 1988, the electorate in California approved Proposition 103 to prevent the massive increases in premiums that were affecting all consumers looking for insurance. After major litigation to decide whether the Proposition was constitutional, it was finally implemented in May 1989 and rapidly revolutionized the rates of insurance across the state which fell by an average of 45% between 1989 and 2001. It is estimated that up to 2006, Californian drivers alone saved $62 billion on their auto insurance rates. Then the Consumer Watchdog combined with other socially active groups to force the insurance companies to abandon the practice of basing rates on the zip code and not your record as a driver. Now comes Assembly Bill 2800 which emerged from the Senate Appropriations Committee in August 2008.

This is being treated as a slightly more controversial measure. The auto insurance industry is campaigning to allow a switch to mileage and use as criteria for fixing the premiums. It estimates that this could produce further average savings in premiums of about $275 per vehicle. It would work by placing a small monitoring device in every vehicle to assess how far you drive in a year and how well you drive. But this device is viewed as an invasion into the privacy of drivers. As a compromise, the Insurance Commissioner suggests that drivers could allow the insurers to make regular checks on the odometer rather than allowing electronic collection and transmission of data. If the electronic version of the plan does go ahead, it will allow companies to identify consistently low-risk drivers from the time of day they use the roads, the speed at which they drive and the distance they travel. Such drivers will receive the maximum discounts available. Those deemed more likely to have accidents from the way they drive will potentially pay more.

The current system allows drivers to report their own mileage. The industry standard is to offer discounts to drivers who do less than 10,000 miles per year. Obviously, there's a temptation in difficult economic times for drivers to underestimate their mileage to gain the discounts. This proposed device will reward the genuine drivers and charge a fair premium to the others. It will also help to save the planet because drivers who maintain a lower average speed use less gas and so produce less emissions. For once, the auto insurance industry would be helping to fight global warming which is very public-spirited it.

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Footloose and fancy-free

In days long ago, when we were footloose and fancy-free, we would all travel at the drop of a hat. Come the weekend or a holiday break, we would get in the car and drive somewhere different. When the cost of air travel dropped, flying somewhere warmer for a weekend break was normal. Airline routes crossed the world. Nowhere was too far away. One of the first mass market discounts was the so-called stand-by ticket. Because airlines can be left with seats unsold on the day of flight, they would sell the tickets at a reduced price to anyone who happened to be there.

Some money collected on an empty seat was better than no money. When word of this system spread, the young with a few dollars in their pockets would go and queue at airports, taking whatever flights were on offer just for the fun. For a while, this was under control and not too disruptive. But, as with anything involving money, it soon fell victim to a scam. People would buy full price open tickets for a particular route, nominating one date but able to change without penalty.

So what are the foot loose to do today? The answer lies in number of online agencies that specialize in last-minute deals. There are two separate systems. One is left to the customer to react when time suddenly becomes available. The day's offers are continuously refreshed and, depending on what time you hit the site, you may find some good offers left for the same or next day. The other system operates on a "club" system. When you sign up for membership, you get regular newsletters and special offers. Sometimes, the sale of charter tickets on a particular package have not gone well and the operator wants to fill places at discounted prices.

If you are adventurous and enjoy travel to different places, often with a resort hotel at the other end, this is the thing for you. The cheap airfare tickets get you there, the rooms have been block-booked so you get a good rate on those too. So long as you have your passport, any necessary immunizations are up-to-date and you have the money, the world is yours. In fact, during the winter months, pensioners often spend a little of their cash on deals just like this when the weather is coldest. But, young or old, rich or poor, if you shop around, you are bound to find cheap airfare tickets available.

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