19th October 2009

New flight Comparison Calculator

Fed up travellers continue to be caught out at the airport over flight extras. Also if booking for example Gatwick airport parking or Gatwick hotel parking, check beforehand that the hotel or car park are able to aaccomadate any bulky items on thier buses.

An airline fees estimator designed to help passengers understand how the price of a flight is made up, has been introduced as part of a new tool from TripAdvisor. The calculator is designed to help travellers work out the true cost of flying in Europe by highlighting checked baggage fees, charges associated with payment methods, and anticipated in-flights food a drink costs.   It claims to work out  and compare the entire cost of a flight from the UK to destinations across Europe.   The introduction comes as the company released data from a poll of 600 travellers which found that almost 70% of Britons were surprised at the total costs of their flights after add-on charges.   More than three quarters were unaware of differing credit cards fees when booking flights.   Eighteen per cent found themselves having to pay extra unexpected fees at the airport while 13% did not realise they had to pay extra for items in flights such as soft drinks and snacks.   The flight search is in beta format on the tripadvisor site including the dynamic fees estimator. The poll also found that the average traveller spends three and a half hours researching different flight options across six different websites to find their best flight.   The new service includes direct booking links to airlines including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Bmi together with Expedia, Opodo and ebookers.