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Flying budget airlines can be easy and cost effective, and the 88.5 million passengers that fly Easyjet every year agree (according to Airline Travel Genius). I have used EasyJet several times as it is one of my go-to airlines for low airfares when I travel in Europe.

However, you may have read my post on my ordeal in Rome with an EasyJet boarding pass. Well, a colleague told me about her encounter with EasyJet so I want to make sure to pass on this information with you so you won’t be caught unaware and have to pay these fees.

Please know, this mistake was my colleagues, and I am in no way blaming the airline. As travelers, we must do our due diligence and make sure we have all the information we need in order to travel well.

Flying Budget Airlines 

EasyJet has wonderfully inexpensive flights all over Europe. But they do have restrictions that you must adhere to, or else you may be charged an exorbitant amount in fees. My colleague was flying to Prague from Paris, she found two tickets for less than $150 total so she was very happy about that.

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When they got to Paris they had to check their bags for the trip to Prague. They were able to check the first bag for free. However, as they were traveling for 2 weeks, she and her husband had more than one checked bag each (clearly, she didn’t read my post on packing when I went to Ecuador).

In the end, they had to check three extra bags. Each bag was 30 euro, that’s 90 euro (which is about 120.00 dollars). But this is the painful part: at the time this blog post was written, EasyJet charged passengers BY THE KILO for each pound your bags are overweight.

If you’re buying checked luggage, Amazon always has practical and beautiful bags

How Much Do Budget Airlines Charge For Baggage?

Please note, these fees are for Easy Jet only.

Each kilo cost them 14euro (almost 19 dollars). They had 32 extra kilos. 32 x 19=608.00 euro. That is $813.00. Ouch.

So how can you avoid this if you are traveling with EasyJet?

•  Read all emails that you are sent from EasyJet. They do tell you what their fees are, but it’s in that fine print that no one seems to take the time to read.
• Read the fine print on their site. EasyJet gives a very thorough explanation of their fees. They do not hide anything, it is up to you to pay attention.
•  Don’t pack so much stuff. You really do not need three of four bags when you travel, It is not necessary to have so much stuff. Extra stuff can cause problems when you try to fly. If you are driving or taking a train, take as many bags as you want to deal with. But when you fly, try and streamline your clothes so you won’t have too much stuff.

What would I have done had I gotten to the gate and was told I had to pay $813? I would have given clothes away or thrown them out. Seriously. I would NEVER pay that much money to check a bag.

I would have taken those things out that I really like and let everything else go. Thankfully my friend and her husband weren’t too upset about having to pay this fee and they still have a wonderful vacation.

Is It Safe To Fly Budget Airlines? 

Getting an inexpensive ticket is one thing, but is it safe to fly budget airlines? How can you be sure? There are a few websites you can check to verify the safety rating of the airline you are flying. This site, AirlineRatings.com gives you all of the information you need for basically every airline in the world. The Independent discusses the safest airlines for 2019, do you think your favorite carrier made the list?

There is a viral picture circulating on social media of a woman sitting in a seat on an Easy Jet plane, and her seat has no back. Many people believed this photo and Easy Jet was blasted all over social media.

However, this picture was a snapshot of one moment in time that wasn’t true. Easy Jet did nothing wrong, as there is no airline, whether is is a budget airline or not, that would allow a passenger to fly in a seat without a back. 

When you do the math, you see that budget airlines are safe. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t be allowed to fly. There should be no fear in flying a budget airline, you just need to make sure that you are prepared for any hidden fees.

Have you ever flown on a budget airline?