8 Things to Consider Before Booking a Flight

It may seem like a no brainer, but people do mistakenly fly into the wrong airport. Sometimes that's simply an inconvenient option in a multi-airport city, or, more rarely, it can be the wrong destination altogether thanks to a similar name or airport code. Don't be like Alex Karpovsky of Girls HBO fame, who has publicly admitted he once booked a ticket to Grenada, the island in the Caribbean, rather than Granada, Spain. Ouch.

Getting the city wrong is an extreme case. What’s more common is when travelers pounce on deals to a destination's cheapest available airport, not realizing how far away it might be from the city it's named for. Skyscanner has revealed the world's most misleadingly named airports, the top one being Paris-Vatry (Disney), which is 93 miles from the French capital and 70 miles from Disneyland Paris. Just behind are Munich West (70 miles to Munich) and Oslo Torp (68 miles to Oslo).

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: A quick Google Maps search will show where all your destination's biggest airports are located, so you can decide which offers the best combination of price and location.

Getting to your hotel from the airport could cost a lot of money if you don't plan ahead. Larger cities with public transit are likely to have trains or buses at the airport, but smaller destinations might only have shuttles that need to be booked ahead of time, or they could simply cost more at the last minute.

Even trickier is assuming there will be ride sharing options in your destination without first checking to make sure they're allowed at the airport. For example, until recently Boston Logan Airport didn't allow any rideshare services (Lyft or Uber) in the airport pick-up lanes—meaning you'd have to take a potentially higher priced flat-rate taxi.

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: Check the airport website for ground transit options, or do a Google Maps direction search from the airport to  your hotel. Here's a list of airports that allow Uber.

Not sure you're getting a fair price? Most airfare search engines can tell you if the fare you’re considering will likely get cheaper. Use the Google Flights calendar options to see which dates have the best prices, and subscribe to fare alerts like our sister site Airfarewatchdog that will alert you via email about new low fares as they arise. Booking the first time you search for a fare on your own typically won't get you the best price.

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: If it's more than seven weeks before your departure date and you're not finding the price you hoped for, hold off and subscribe to a fare alerts site like Airfarewatchdog.

Being flexible on timing can mean getting great air deals and seeing an extra city on a stopover, but only if you time it right. If you're not factoring in the possibly lengthy transit time to and from the city, you'll just end up sitting at your gate for eight hours. You should also note if your flight times include a '+1' or '+2' annotation, which means the flight times provided are for the following day or even two days later.

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: Make sure your layover hours are appropriate for your schedule, and only book a stopover if it's enough time to actually leave the airport. For the latter, stick to destinations with efficient ground transit that are close to their airport, like Copenhagen or Munich International. If an overnight layover will save you a lot of money, make sure nearby hotels or nap pods at the airport aren't going to cost you more than the difference.

Not a loyal rewards member? Weigh your airline options carefully, especially if there are any you haven't flown before. Budget airlines like Spirit are almost always the cheapest option, but you'll have to forfeit one of your usually allowed carry-on bags. On the other hand, don't let safety concerns keep you from booking with a low-cost carrier if you're trying to save—most budget airlines have comparable safety records, if not better ones than the legacy airlines.

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: Look up reviews of airlines and their amenities written by real travelers on TripAdvisor—a feature the travel review site launched in late 2016.

Editor's Note: SmarterTravel is owned by TripAdvisor Media Group.

You've checked your timing, right? Double check it. Direct doesn't necessarily mean you're flying non-stop, and could include touching down briefly at another airport. Don't add unnecessary hours to your travel time if there's a non-stop option available.

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: If you find a non-stop option, great. If the flight is marked as “direct,” look at the actual number of hours it will take you to get to your destination and compare it to the standard flying time with a quick Google search.

It's easy to skip travel insurance—you likely do most of the time. But there are some destinations and seasons that should have you checking the “Add Booking Insurance” box before checkout. Hurricane/monsoon seasons and snowier months are the wisest ones to spend the extra $20 or so to ensure you'll be able to rebook in case your flight is canceled.

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: Consider the risks involved with your flight and whether or not you'd be willing to lose out on the reservation if an emergency arises. Things to note include monsoon and hurricane seasons, political issues like labor strikes or visa issues, and health or personal issues.

Do you know the passport requirements for the destination you're booking? Many countries require visitors to have a passport that's valid at least six months from the date of departure. That means even if you're traveling with an active passport, you could still get denied at immigration.

What to Do Before Booking a Flight: Make sure your passport will be valid or can be updated in time for your trip—especially since 2017 is kicking off longer wait times for passports. You can check passport requirements for your destination through the State Department's country-specific online resources.