This Week in Your Wallet: Holiday Travel Hacks
I woke up to weather forecasts of doom and gloom (in other words, rain and wind). While I’d love to be able to give you all the gift of perfect getaway weather, that is not in the realm of my superpowers. I can, perhaps, save you a bit of coin while you’re gone.
If you’re dreading the scale…at the airport: You’re not the only one. Between winter wear and gifts, chances are your suitcase will weigh more than it usually does. Airlines will be looking for you to tip the scale. According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, U.S.-based airlines racked up a total of $3.35 billion (yes, billion) in baggage fee revenue last year. Delta Airlines landed in first place with $833 million worth of baggage-fee profits alone. MarketWatch has nine secrets for outsmarting them:
Fly your bags solo: You can save up to 50 percent by shipping your bags using FedEx or UPS, especially if you’re traveling short distances. For example, shipping a small luggage box (22”x14”x9” with a maximum weight of 55 pounds) from Boston to New York will cost you about $21 for ground shipping, and $77 for guaranteed next day delivery, both via UPS. For a larger box (26”x16”x12” with a maximum weight of 85 pounds), it’s about $35 for ground, and $146 for next day.
Compare this with Delta, which will charge you $75 if your bag is 51-70 pounds, or American, which will charge you $100, and you start to see the potential savings. Shipping costs will vary with zip codes — and you have to be OK with your bags arriving at a different time than you do — but it’s worth doing a quick price comparison if you know the airline you’re flying is charging per checked bag, and/or if your suitcase is over 50 pounds.
Spanx your suitcase: Avoid the extra bag fee by investing in a product that compresses your clothes, like Pack-It Specter Compression Cubes from Eagle Creek. You can find a variety of sizes for different prices online. On Eagle Creek’s site, you can buy a pack of two for $38. (And if you’re a frequent traveler, you may want to look into a bag with built in compression features. I’m in love with my Briggs and Riley expandable carry-on. Not cheap, but I’ve gone a whole week in this bag and had several flight attendants tell me I’ll never have to buy another bag again.)
Weigh-in before you fly: Have an idea of what your bag weighs before you head to the airport. If you weighed your bag six times and got 48 pounds each time, but the airport gets 51, ask them to weigh it on a different scale. Either way, go in knowing which items you can take out and add to your carry on — strategically place these at the top.
Know the fees before you fly: Don’t forget, gate agents are human too, and can accidentally misquote a higher fee — or charge you one — especially if the baggage fee structure is confusing. That’s why you should have a copy of the airlines’ baggage fee policy for yourself, just in case you hear a number you weren’t expecting.
Save on your car rental
I did a little happy dance yesterday when filling up my car in New Jersey. Sixteen gallons of regular and I didn’t go over the $38 mark (and because it was New Jersey, I didn’t have to pump it myself – score!). I’m not the only one, as I reported a couple of weeks ago, the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline had dropped 12 cents to $2.72 — the lowest price we’d seen since November 2010. Accelerate to today and we’re looking at a new record low: the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline is now $2.39. We’re paying 43 cents less than last month and 85 cents less than a year ago. If you’re skipping the airport this week and hitting the road instead, then USA TODAY offers four tips for saving money when renting a car.
One way to save money on your car rental is by filling up the tank upon your return. If you return the car with a half-empty tank — in most cases — they’ll charge you a higher rate to fill it. The rental company might suggest that you prepay for a full tank of gas to save time, but it’d be the only thing you save (especially with prices at the pump this low). Politely decline the suggestion and fill it up yourself.
As for purchasing insurance, or a collision damage waiver that protects you from theft, vandalism and other damage – you may not need it. It’s a major revenue source for rental companies and can be an unnecessary expense (for you) for a couple of different reasons. First, if you own a car and have car insurance, you’re likely covered for rental cars (double check with your insurance company, of course). And second, if you’re using a credit card to pay for your rental, your credit card might cover damages and theft. (Again, check before you travel.)
Smart mannequins
Unfortunately, there’s no third installment of Sex and the City this year. But you can channel Kim Cattrall on your next trip to a department store. Mannequins, it seems, are about to find their voice. As The New York Times reports, in an effort to get us shopping in brick-and-mortar stores once again, retailers are considering mannequins with electronic implants that can send you text messages about their outfits, who designed them and how much they cost. Is it creepy? Yes. Will it work? Who knows. But it’s something to keep on your radar.
Avoiding many (un)happy returns
For a recent holiday Q&A for RetailMeNot.com, I enjoyed asking my friends and colleagues about the funniest, or really, the worst gifts they ever received. One year Farnoosh Torabi received an already scratched-off lotto ticket (it was a gag). Jill Martin received a purse with the gift giver’s initials already monogrammed on it! Ouch.
For your gifts that missed the mark, ConsumerWorld.org’s annual return policy survey found a couple of industry trends in your favor. Some stores are offering longer return periods, like Marshalls and T.J. Maxx, which extended their holiday return deadline by two weeks to January 23. More online stores (think Macy’s, Amazon, Target and Saks) are beginning to offer “free returns,” in which the stores pay the return postage for you. (Note: This can be limited to certain categories, i.e. clothing but not electronics.) But despite these wallet-friendly trends, ConsumerWorld.org still finds many stores’ return policies to be convoluted for consumers. (They even found some return policies to be 45 pages long.) See the biggest offenders here, as well as a list of the most forgiving stores this holiday season.
Have a great week and Happy Holidays!
Jean
