EasyJet survival guide: six simple steps

by Tom Johansmeyer on
The name is seductive: EasyJet. This low-cost airline boasts occasional fares of below €10 (one way) and can get you almost anywhere in Europe. What’s not to love? Of course, entering the experience, you know deep down that there has to be some unpleasantness involved, but you accept that as a condition for cheap travel. After all, you’re only inconvenienced for a few hours at the most – it’s not like you’re crossing the Atlantic. These are short, easy flights that would be called “regional” back home.

Nonetheless, the whole gig can be an absolute drag.

The most difficult part of the EasyJet excursion is the rush of the crowd … which you’ll endure more than once. At some point, the line at the gate descends into chaos, as boarding “zones” decompose from a single line to several crowds of travelers jockeying for position. Then, the bus from the gate to the airport is little more than a cattle car and sets the scene for another crowded push in which any semblance of order is but a wish. By the time you get to your seat, aisle, window or middle no longer matters. You’re just happy that the uncertainty (as well as the shoving) is finished.

Fortunately, here are ways to make your EasyJet flight a bit easier (and, for those of you bouncing along the northeastern United States [LINK:tag], you can apply some of this to the Delta Shuttle). It’ll never be a first-class experience, but you’ll be able to avoid some of the stress involved in this form of air travel.

[Photos thanks to EasyJet]

1. Get to the gate early, and sit as close to it as possible
Since there is no assigned seating, preparation has its rewards. By arriving at the gate early, you can find a seat as close as possible to the gate itself. When it is time to get in line for boarding, you’ll be among the first to know.

2. Help start the line rather than join it
Once you see a few people start to hover around the gate (not necessarily forming a line but signaling their intentions to do so), join them.

3. Stand near the door on the bus
Those at the front of the line, naturally, will be the first to board the bus that takes you to the plane. The common mistake is to go as deep into the bus as possible, to make it easier for those who follow. Don’t do this. Step through the door and move immediately to one side or the other. You’ll be out of everyone’s way but will still be among the first to step off the bus when you arrive at the plane.

4. Move quickly to the plane
If you think a line forms somewhere between the bus and the plane’s door, you’re out of your mind. Movement continues to be by crowd. Step off the bus as quickly as possible and find your way into the plane. Hesitate, and you will find yourself jostled and (worse) passed en route to the best seats in the house. You’ll be reduced to the same primal urges as your fellow travelers – instead of watching this animalistic drama unfold from the comfort of your seat … which happens to be both bulkhead and aisle!

5. Use your overhead storage
Getting onto the plane early means that you can take advantage of the overhead storage, which does fill quickly. Miss this opportunity, and you will lose that precious legroom under the seat in front of you (as I did). I measured the space from the front of my seat’s cushion to the back of the one in front of me. I can’t give you an exact number of inches, but I can confirm that it’s less than the length of a size 9 ½ shoe. The floor-space, of course, is a bit larger, but not much. Every inch counts. If you can recapture some space under the seat in front of you by tossing your bag above your head, don’t give it a second thought.

6. Bring your own nourishment
If you thought domestic airlines in the United States were stingy, EasyJet will change your perspective. Even the basics start at €1, and shooting a desperate look will only get you a shrug or an apology – neither of which will address your thirst. Eat before you board, and bring a bottle of water. If you have a longer flight, maybe grab a small snack. Remember: this is not long-haul. I brought neither water nor food on my two-hour flight from Madrid to Marrakech and was fine. But, if the thought of even a short period of time without some sort of refreshment is akin to unchecked brutality, pay either before you board or on the plane. The price will be about the same.

The upside of rising travel costs

by Meg Massie on

Raise your hand if you’ve had to change your travel plans in the last year due to budget constraints. Just about everybody, huh? Travelers who fly to their vacation destinations have had a rough time this year. Fares are up across the board, except in the cases where whole airlines have ceased operations entirely. Maybe planes don’t even fly to our destinations anymore, or those that do cost three times more than the budget airlines that have recently gone bankrupt.

Leisure travel has taken the biggest hit, of course, and resorts are suffering heavily as tourism is down 5-10% in many American vacation hotspots this year. Labor Day air travel was down this year for the first time since 2002, the first Labor Day following 9/11/01. The last part of this ugly equation is the development boom that began a few years ago — now more hotels than ever are competing for far fewer guests.

In order to stay afloat, hotels and resorts have been slashing prices and offering incredible vacation incentives to attract visitors. Some are cutting prices and offering deep discounts, and almost all have slowed their price hikes, which have been steadily increasing over the past several years. Other resorts are directly addressing the airfare issue. Sandals recently unveiled a new “fly-free” offer with an airfare credit of up to $550 per person for trips booked by Oct. 23, and Elite Island Resorts just announced a new promotion that guarantees round-trip airfare of $299 on American Airlines flights to its properties in Antigua. Both companies operate resorts in the Caribbean.

Now at the tail end of the summer travel season, hotels and resorts are bracing for an even weaker autumn and winter. If you can handle the more expensive plane tickets, you may be able to recoup some of that money in hotel savings. So if you put your summer vacation on hold this year, maybe it’s time to consider a fall getaway. It should be easy to find some bargains.

More sales to Central and South America on American

by Grant Martin on

As Airfarewatchdog dutifully pointed out earlier today, American Airlines just released another coupon code for 20% off Central and South America.

In and of itself, the discount is pretty substantial, but when you add the fact that American already has some of the lowest prices on the market to several destinations, the savings really start to pile up.

Take San Jose, Costa Rica. I’ve been fighting several of my friends trying to schedule a bachelor party in early April and domestic tickets across the board to somewhere warm are upwards of 300$. But using this coupon code I’ve been able to price tickets to CR in around the 225$ range.

Tickets to Central America this cheap don’t come around very often.

Use coupon code DFNNWLAT by December 19th to take your discount, then travel between December 13 and May 14 ’08. More details about the discount can be found at the airfarewatchblog or AA.com

Go to Costa Rica, for me at least, and I will live vicariously through you.

A Canadian in Beijing: Dancing the Bargaining Dance

by Ember Swift on

I have tried my best not to spend too much time at the markets here in Beijing. It’s easy to do. They’re addictive. I think it’s the action combined with the colours and the diversity of people you can see there. Not to mention the fact that “things” are so cheap here (by Canadian standards) that it’s hard not to get excited when you find a gift for a friend that costs a fraction of what it would back home.

And let’s not forget the bargaining.

One of my friends on campus, Daisy, is an expert bargainer. She is from France and she is just starting to learn Chinese. After only two months here studying the language, she has mastered most of the bargaining lingo and she chats easily with the shopkeepers in a dance that I find highly entertaining. Watching Daisy bargain is like watching a stage show by an expert choreographer. It’s not just her words but also her facial expressions – the disdain, the disgust, the surprise – and then her exaggerated body language that communicates a complete and utter disregard for the item in question no matter how much she would like to purchase it.

It’s awesome.The first time I went shopping with Daisy, I felt as though I should apprentice with her when it comes to bargaining; she is the master and I am the student and I watched her technique closely for subtlety and style. She has a gift.

Here in Beijing, there are several kinds of large shopping complexes. So far, I have experienced the “Yaxiu” markets down near Sanlitun area (very geared towards tourists) as well as the Wudaokou Fuzhuan markets which are here near my school. Both markets were vast and carry stall upon stall of stuff, stuff, stuff. Both feature overpriced clothing to start with that can be bargained down to a reasonable compromise after engaging in the dance. Both are exhausting, in that enjoyable kind of way.

Yaxiu markets is a huge building with several floors. Each floor has its own character. There are floors that feature only accessories like belts and purses, another for children’s wear, another for adult clothing, another for silks and materials, etc. We only spent time on three different floors before we left again, but I managed to bargain myself into two new t-shirts and a pair of jeans – with pant legs mercifully long enough for my tall self.

We noticed the presence of lots of foreigners at Ya Xiu and the obvious mark-up on the clothing as a result. As soon as a shopkeeper saw us, I felt sure that the price doubled thanks to our appearance. Clothing that I’d seen in the Wudaokou markets for just fifty or sixty kuai was suddenly being quoted at two-hundred kuai here. A standard response of ours was “tai gui!” (too expensive!) which was always responded to with “wo gei ni pianyi yidiar” (I’ll give it to you cheaper!)

Well, of course they will – otherwise, where’s the dance?

Daisy came away with several bags worth of skirts, shirts and shoes. I asked her how she was going to be able to send all these clothes back to France with her and she said that she probably wouldn’t send them home. “They wear out too quickly anyway,” she said, “They’ll probably break before I need to go home!”

And herein lies the problem:

When I first arrived and was asking about markets, my friend Traci said this to me: “The great thing about China is that the clothing is cheap.” Then she paused for a moment and followed that up with, “But the bad thing about China is that the clothing is cheap.” I laughed at these double meanings, but it’s so true. These clothes aren’t made to last, to be sure, and Daisy’s approach is one of many.

For me, I have been trying to avoid these markets because I can easily get sucked into the incredible discounts and the fun clothes. I don’t want to contribute to all this consumerism, but I’m as susceptible as the next person. What I know to be true is that the more I buy here, the more will be made and the more this cycle (and production) of disposable goods will be fuelled. I have already had to sew a tank top I bought a few weeks ago because the stitching came undone at the seams. I’m working on a moderation theory. I’ll let you know how it goes!

The Wudaokou markets are more casual than Yaxiu. Fewer tourists and lower prices to start with, narrower passageways, and just as much stuff. There are also food stalls, manicure booths, stationary stalls and I even saw a whole stall devoted to custom sticker making. Outside, there are merchants selling goods out of the backs of their cars. It’s a circus and I love it. I stand in the midst of the chaos and smile.

Then, I turn and see Daisy in the midst of another choreographed bargaining scene and I take a look at what she’s after. She’s handing a pair of shoes back to the shopkeeper gruffly and she’s at the point where she is not only poised to leave but actually walking away, flippant and irritated. This is the “piece de resistance” because it generally gets her the price she wants. The shopkeeper will fear losing the sale and concede to her final offer by calling her back as though this amount is her name. Today was no exception. Money was exchanged, the shoes went into a bag and the bag went into her hand.

I saw a smile flash in her eyes but she kept her cool and showed no reaction in front of the merchant.

She’s my new shopping hero.

Pictured from left to right are David (Canada), Daisy (the shopping hero from France!), Daniel (South Africa) and Tobias (Switzerland). These are some of my dorm friends here at Beijing Language and Culture University.