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Have you ever regretted being frugal? I certainly did this morning. My 5:30 a.m. flight to Alicante in Spain was meant to be the start of a nice break meeting a friend flying in from London, but thanks to my decision to save forty bucks, it became an endurance test.
When I booked the flight, I decided against paying for a reserved seat, thinking I’d play the check-in lottery and get a decent spot for free. That bet didn’t pay off. Instead, I was assigned the middle seat, sandwiched between, shall we say, some rather large individuals.
For three long hours, I was crammed in there, all for the want of $40. It was an uncomfortable flight and a reminder that the true cost of a purchase isn’t just the price tag—it’s also the comfort and peace of mind it provides.
Now, not only do I need to figure out what sunscreen to use, but more importantly, whether I’ll pay for a seat on my flight home. Surely I won’t be that unlucky twice… right? Maybe I’m not being frugal, maybe I’m just being tight.
Once I tried to fly from Boston to Philadelphia (about a 1 1/2 hour) for the cheapest cost as it was for an unexpected funeral. Tried to book without an assigned seat, and for only a carry on as I was flying by myself, and the flight was so short I didn’t care where I sat. Frontier was the cheapest base price but I was unable to pay only for the few things that I wanted as their upgrades were package deals. Will never fly them again.
Monday afternoon we were on the final days of our vacation and had just arrived in Bilao Spain. We had planned on spending two days there and then fly home on KLM airlines Wednesday morning. I had already booked and pre-paid for a private guide and another excursions for the next day. After unpacking I got an email alerting us that KLM was going on strike Wednesday morning! I immediately called the airlines and changed our flights to Tuesday. The extra night at the hotel and the two tours were non-refundable. Then we paid extra to get the seats we wanted on the rebooked return flights home. We didn’t care about the lost expenses. Just didn’t want to be stuck in the connecting Amsterdam airport with over a hundred cancelled flights that morning.
Recently we booked a cruise on Oceania which was expensive and a splurge. We got an offer to bid on a higher level stateroom which went for almost triple what we paid for our room. We bid a reasonable amount and we got the upgrade! It was the best cruise ever and worth every penny. The room was hotel sized and the amenities incredible.
This may indeed touch on the difference between frugal and cheap…. For a one hour flight I’d probably be willing to risk the middle seat (not that I’d take a one hour flight in Europe when the rail system is so good), but for a three hour flight I’d pay up these days. Of course, right now I’m considering whether to spend the FF miles to fly business class both ways across the Atlantic. (Across the Pacific it’s a no-brainer.) I don’t need a lie-flat seat coming back.