Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

Booked a summer holiday abroad? Act NOW to cut the cost of leaving
Martin's 18+ need-to-dos incl passport renewal, GHICs, cheapest currency card for years, insurance & more

The cost of living crisis may now be firmly in play, but millions had already booked summer holidays earlier in the year. Around 60% of the 60,000+ who replied to my Twitter poll last week said they plan to leave UK shores and holiday abroad this year (or already have).

So with the first big post-lockdown holiday season fast approaching, it's never been more important for your pocket to prepare. Here are my 18+ things to DO NOW to cut costs / hassles when you go...

1. Check if your passport will have under 6mths left OR be over 10yrs old when you go. Renewals can take MONTHS! Brexit means more countries now require UK passports to have months left on them, and be under 10 years old, to let you in. See our country-by-country rules list.

If you need to renew, go quick, as the UK Passport Office is over-burdened and under-resourced. It says to allow 'up to 10 weeks' to get a passport, but I'm hearing it's taking even longer for some, and paying to 'fast-track' isn't an option for many as there are few appointments. To do it safely and avoid shyster lookalike sites, use our Passport renewal guide.

2. Is your hotel cheaper now than when you booked it? The rebook trick may save you £100s. If the price of your hotel has dropped and your booking allows free cancellation, simply rebook for less. Check latest prices on comparison sites Skyscanner*, Kayak* and TripAdvisor* - and keep checking before you go. Alison tweeted: "I saved £200 when the price dropped two days before travel." See Hotel tricks for full help.

3. This summer is the first since 2016 where you can't roam-like-at-home when in EU countries. When we were leaving the EU, most firms said they had no plans to reintroduce roaming charges - well, that didn't last long.

Of the four main networks, Vodafone and EE already have them, and Three's return at the end of May for those on contract. Only O2 still says it has no plans to do it (yet?). The charges are usually £1-£2 a day to get your home phone & data package abroad.

For other providers, see our full who's bringing back EU roaming charges list, and the same link has info on how to cut costs.

4. Going to Europe? Check you've a valid GHIC (or EHIC) - 5.6m expire this year. These cards give you access to state-run hospitals or GPs in EU countries for the same price as a local - so if it's free for them, it's free for you. They're no substitute for travel insurance though, use them in combination.

If you have an old school European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), check it's still valid. If not, most now need to apply for its post-Brexit replacement, the FREE Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC).

5. Find your cheapest bureau de change in seconds. While taking cash abroad isn't as cheap as using the right plastic, many like to have some with them, and others prefer it as a way of sticking to a budget. If that's you, don't just pluck any old bureau, there are big differences. Our travel money comparison tool compares 16.

6. Will you need a Covid test to travel? If so, where's it cheapest? Testing for UK arrivals has been scrapped, but many countries including the USA, New Zealand and Japan still require you to take one before they'll let you in. Our Covid travel rights guide has info on the top 20 destinations. If you need a test, then check our Cheapest Covid travel tests guide.

7. Roaming outside the EU can be very costly - take precautions. If you're in the USA and watch 30 minutes of TV on a bad roaming deal, the bill could, in theory, be £3,000! By law though, thankfully data is capped at £45 unless you actively choose to keep spending (there's no similar law to cap calls and texts, so be extra careful, though you can set your own cap).

If you go outside the EU a lot, then a specialist global roaming Sim may work for you. Plus use our tips for using less data overseas, such as turning your mobile into a free worldwide sat-nav.

8. Beat airlines' seat reservation charges and sit together for FREE on BA, Easyjet, Virgin and more. A family of four could pay up to £240 extra to guarantee they sit together on return flights. It's usually unnecessary - but it's all about knowing your timings and rights. We've help in our Airline-by-airline seating guide (though even we struggle to find ways to beat Ryanair's charges).

In some cases this can be very important, as Forumite blaggy said: "We have a 27-year-old son who has learning difficulties and have always been seated together for free after phoning the special assistance team."

9. Book car hire EARLY to keep the price down. Reports say car hire prices have sky-rocketed since before the pandemic, so expect to pay more than before. Yet early booking is still the rule. We can find August car hire for around £35/day in various Spanish destinations, and our guess from previous patterns would be that if you leave it to much nearer the day, that could rise to as high as £80.

To find the cheapest, use (more than one of) Skyscanner* | Kayak* | TravelSupermarket* | Carrentals* comparisons. FULL help in Cheap holiday car hire.

10. Booked car hire? Be ready for the insurance forced-sell / hard-sell when you pick the car up. Car hire usually includes basic insurance, yet when you pick up a car, many hire firms will try to push you to get 'excess cover insurance' costing up to £25/day with scare stories of huge bills for just a scratch.

Instead, standalone car hire 'excess' insurance can cost just £2/day. Yet be aware that even if you get it, they'll often grumble, try to put you off or tell you it doesn't work, and require you to leave a refundable deposit of possibly £1,000+ on a credit card (some don't accept debit) - not a problem, as long as you have one, just nod, say it's fine and do it.

Forumite Thriftmeister told us: "The best £11 I spent for my holiday. I just got paid back the £878 for the excess I had to pay on my credit card resulting from a minor incident in France."

11. Want to park at the airport? Book ahead, even if on the day. Turn up at Manchester Airport's long-stay car park and it's £350/week, yet prebooked on the day, park & ride is just £58/week, though obviously for safety do it earlier if you can.

To find your cheapest, use our special discounted comparison links... Holiday Extras* (6-35% off standard prices), Looking4Parking.com* (5-35% off), SkyParkSecure* (5-30% off) and FHR* (5-30% off). Or for more creative options, see Cheap airport parking.

12. Have you got an overseas debit card from hell? Not only do most debit cards add a 3%-ish load on the exchange rate, some including biggies Lloyds and TSB also add a 50p-£1.50 charge every time you spend on them, meaning a two-dollar coffee could cost you nearly double what a specialist overseas card charges.

Use our card-by-card overseas charges calculator to see how much your credit and debit cards cost for spending abroad.

13. 'Onde é o banheiro, por favor?' Free apps to help you learn the lingo before you go. A little vocabulary can go a long way - say if you're caught short in Portugal. Download a free language app now. Plus when you're there, a free app can translate 59 languages offline.

14. Driving to Europe (or when you get there)? Check if you need emissions stickers, headlight converters and more. Different countries have different requirements, so if you're taking your own car (or hiring when you arrive), use our Driving in Europe guide to see what you need before you go, and what the rules are when you get there.

15. Avoid airport drop-off charges - now as high as £7 for five mins. Most UK airports have put in £5+ charges for those who want to be dropped off right outside the terminal. Yet if you don't want to pay, there are often workarounds, usually involving a longer walk or shuttle bus. See our airport-by-airport guide on how to Beat 'kiss and fly' charges.

16. Beware holiday scams on social media and search engines. This is rife right now. If you're looking at holidays, then you are likely to be targeted by scammers with ads for fake package holidays, hotels, flights and especially caravans. If you get an out-of-the-blue email or WhatsApp message offering deals, be very careful. Always do independent research, and if it isn't from a legit source and seems too good to be true, it probably is. See Avoid holiday scams.

17. Travelling outside the EU - do you need a visa? If heading Stateside, even in transit, you must get an ESTA at least 72 hours ahead - see our ESTA guide. Elsewhere (for instance, India), you may need a visa which can take weeks to arrive. See the Government's foreign travel advice for the full requirements.

18. Taking pets abroad (including in the EU)? You need an animal health certificate. It covers dogs, cats and ferrets, and needs to be signed by an 'official veterinarian'. You can get it up to 10 days before your trip. Best to know what's needed early - see taking pets abroad.