Protect your plans
You should think about travel insurance as soon as you book your holiday. An annual plan starts as soon as you want and is usually good value if you’re planning more than one trip. We got a quick quote on Comparethemarket for a holiday in France on an annual policy covering multiple trips to the EU – prices started from £5.55 for a week away for an individual in their 40s, and £12.15 for a year. (These are very basic policies – you’ll have to pay more if you want larger cash sums covered or fewer exclusions on what you can claim.) Most annual trips will have a limit on the length of each stay. In some cases this is 24 days, so make sure this is enough for your purposes.
Travel insurance should pay out if you need emergency medical treatment or need to fly home. It can protect you if you have to cut your holiday short because you are ill, or if you have to cancel your plans because the government suddenly warns you not to travel to your destination. You should declare any pre-existing medical conditions and read the terms and conditions when comparing policies. Make sure you know what you can and can’t claim before you buy. HE
Take care of your pets
You can find someone to stay at your home and look after your pets while you’re away. There are both free and paid services that offer this. For example, the average price for dog sitting in London listed on the Gudog website is £32 per night. You can find someone to look after your cat on Happymeow, which you can visit once a day for £20 or twice a day for £39.
Some people will look after your pets for free in exchange for accommodation. Companies like TrustedHousesitters exist to connect the two parties.
If you are getting people to stay at your home or visit you while you are away to look after a pet, it is a good idea to take out both home and pet insurance. Most professional house sitters will also have public liability insurance.
Mark Shepherd, head of general insurance at the Association of British Insurers, says: “Hiring a trusted house sitter or having a friend or family member stay at your home while you are on holiday will not usually invalidate your home insurance policy. We recommend checking your cover for any relevant exclusions. For example, some policies may not cover you for theft or malicious damage caused by someone you have invited into your home.” SM
Solve the circulation
Whether you can use your mobile phone as if you were at home in Europe this summer depends on your UK operator.
Some smaller providers, such as Virgin Media/O2, Tesco Mobile and GiffGaff, have resisted the temptation to impose post-Brexit roaming charges on Brits travelling to Europe – but EE, Vodafone and Three are all doing so. And their prices have increased for this summer to make them do so.
Fortunately, customers of these companies can often reduce their fees by signing up for a package.
If you’ve joined EE since 7 July 2021, you’ll need to pay £2.47 a day to use your data, minutes and messages in any of the 47 countries in EE’s EU roaming zone. EE’s one-month roaming pass costs £25 a month – well worth it if you’re travelling for more than 10 days.
Vodafone Pay Monthly customers will pay £2.42 per day for a European roaming pass when travelling to any of the 49 EU locations, £12 for eight days or £17 for 15 days if you sign up to a bundle. However, customers on Xtra plans may have EU roaming included, so make sure you check.
Three’s Go Roam service will charge you £2 per day for EU roaming, but it also offers three-day passes for £5 and seven-day passes for £12. Three’s seven-day Go Roam Around the World pass costs £30.
The prices above are for those on a monthly payment contract. Every company needs to check their customers’ costs as they pay. The same goes for anyone travelling further afield than Europe – check what your provider charges and if there are any deals you can sign up to before you head to the airport. Be warned: Turkey and Morocco are two countries that catch out a lot of travellers. MB
Package adapters
Travelling in the 21st century means carrying around multiple electronic devices that all need charging. Adapters to make your existing UK plugs compatible with EU, US or global sockets cost around £5. If you need a lot of plugs, consider getting a four or six-lead extension lead instead and plugging it into the adapter, so you can run multiple UK sockets into one.
Alternatively, you can buy USB chargers with detachable cables, such as the £30 four-port Anker 543. You can swap the UK 8-digit (C7) charger for your country of choice (an EU-compatible one is £5 from Maplin), or pick it up from a hardware or electrician when you get there. SG
Weigh your luggage
If you’re flying, try to figure out how much luggage you want to take before you book, as it can be more expensive to add on later—or at the airport. Measure your suitcase and weigh it when it’s fully loaded (use your bathroom scale or buy a cheap luggage scale set) so you know whether it will fit within the airline’s carry-on baggage restrictions or if you’ll have to pay for the more expensive checked baggage option. Remember that you may want to take some souvenirs home with you, so if you’re over the weight limit when you get there, you could end up in trouble on the way home.
Airlines have different rules when it comes to luggage, and this can make a big difference to the overall cost of your trip. On British Airways flights, you can take one small bag measuring up to 40 x 30 x 15cm and a second piece of carry-on luggage (including wheels and handles) measuring up to 56 x 45 x 25cm; both can weigh up to 23kg. Economy Basic customers must pay to check in in all cases. EasyJet allows one free bag measuring up to 45cm x 36cm x 20cm and weighing up to 15kg. Ryanair allows one free bag measuring 40cm x 20cm x 25cm or less. Other airlines have their own size and weight allowances. Families get some extras: airlines often allow you to check in some equipment, such as a pram, for free.
If you’re buying a new suitcase, check the size guidelines before you go shopping and choose the lightest suitcase you can find. HE