“Taxes", "baggage fees" and "booking fees": the travel charges that most irk us

When it comes to planning our travel budgets, factoring in ‘unexpected costs’ can throw our spending plans into disarray. While we may have accounted for the cost of a last-minute flight, travel insurance and accommodation, when booking our breaks abroad we may be confronted with a barrage of fees that can act as a significant blow to our holiday cash.

And according to Expedia’s 2014 Vacation Spending Index the most irksome of these fees are “taxes”. The ranking of global travellers’ most aggravating travel fees placed this charge in the number one spot, with 41% of those questioned arguing that this put a dampener on their holidays. The top five was completed by the following fees: Baggage fees: 36%, Booking fees: 34%, Seat selection fares: 27%, Resort/hotel fees: 25%

While some airlines have removed debit card charges when booking holiday packages or flights, many continue to charge for credit card payments. As an example easyjet charges a 2% fee for any bookings made using Visa Credit Card, MasterCard, Diners Club, American Express, Carte Bleue (domestic transactions only) and UATP/Airplus.

Further figures from the survey also offered an insight into the items that holidaymakers are most willing to splash their travel cash on, with the top five ‘splurge-worthy’ holiday purchases reading as follows: Hotel in a desired location: 39%, Direct flight vs. connecting: 34%, Room with a view: 29%, Hotel with pool: 28%, Hotel with exceptional service: 18%

And when it came to the money we are prepared to spend getting ‘holiday ready’ the research revealed that it was all about investing our hard-earned cash into items that will help us look and feel good on holiday. The top five most common pre-trip expenses are: New clothes: 43%, Haircut/style: 32%, Phone package: 16%, Waxing/hair removal: 14%, Manicure/pedicure: 13%

Are you heading off on holiday this summer? What do you plan to spend your travel budget on?

Date Created: 11/06/2014