Baggage, seats, long layovers and separate tickets. Where the advertised price quietly stops being the price.
The headline number is a starting bid
Comparison screens rank on the fare alone. That is a fair comparison only if everything else is equal, and it usually is not.
Where the difference hides
- Hold baggage: often excluded on the cheapest fare, and most expensive when added at the airport.
- Seat selection: sometimes the only way to sit with the people you are travelling with.
- Layover length: a three-hour saving on paper can mean an overnight in a terminal.
- Separate tickets: if a self-connection goes wrong, no airline owns the problem — you do.
A more useful comparison
Price the trip you will actually take: the fare, the bag you are definitely bringing, a seat if you need one, and transport at the far end if the arrival time is awkward. Cheapest on that basis is a real answer.
General guidance, not advice on your specific ticket. What your fare permits is set by the operating carrier’s own rules — ask us and we will read you the conditions that actually apply.
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