| The growth of the Internet and budget airlines | | | | near. Budget airlines use smaller airports to avoid |
| has turned last-minute flights into a huge industry | | | | paying the higher airport charges at the larger |
| - you can just be surfing around, and then, right | | | | ones, and these smaller airports can be as much |
| there, there's a flight cheap enough for you to | | | | as two hours away from the city centre by |
| buy on impulse and go away this weekend. If | | | | often unreliable public transport. In some cases, |
| you're thinking about booking last minute flights, | | | | you can end up paying as much as you did for |
| however, there are a few things you need to | | | | your plane tickets just to get a train to the place |
| know. | | | | you thought was your destination. |
| An important point to make is that you can't | | | | On airlines that take bookings for seats, it is also |
| trust the prices you see quoted in advertising for | | | | worth noting that last minute flights will only have |
| last minute flights. This is because of the common | | | | the seats that no-one else wanted, which usually |
| practice of excluding booking fees, airport taxes | | | | means the ones in the middle of the row. This |
| and all sorts of other little extras from the price - | | | | can be very important if you get airsick, or if you |
| these all get added on just when you've got your | | | | really want to sit together as a couple or family. |
| card out and you're ready to pay, in the hope | | | | The biggest gotcha is that last-minute flights are |
| that by then you won't want to back out. | | | | always non-refundable. If you are going to buy |
| Also, you should realise that just because a flight | | | | one on impulse, make sure you can actually make |
| says it goes to a big city like London or Paris, it | | | | it first, as there won't be any backing out of the |
| doesn't mean that the airport is actually anywhere | | | | deal afterwards. |
