Airport security loophole

This is a great little trick found by the guys and girls over at www.studentmoneysaver.co.uk, will definitely be giving it a try next time I fly from the UK! Let me know if any of you give it a try and how you get on. 

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By ordering your big bottles of holiday liquids, BEFORE you get to the airport and then getting them delivered to the Boots stores that are in airport terminals, you get past airport security with all its liquid limitations, get big bottles of the brands you like, skip holiday resort inflation and ensure your bag isn’t too heavy – think of the extra bikinis you’ll be able to squeeze into your suitcase.

We’ve all been there... the night before a big holiday, frantically choosing which shampoo/tanning oil/after sun to ditch because it’s just too heavy or there isn’t enough room in your case.

Or, opening your suitcase to find you now have conditioner completely covering all your new holiday clothes because the baggage handlers were a bit too heavy-handed.

Or, if you’re a money saver like us, weighing up whether you can actually stomach spending almost as much on a miniature bottle of your favourite shampoo as you would on the full sized product - money that could be much better spent on holiday cocktails.

What can you take through airport security?

You are able to take liquids in your suitcase to go into the plane’s hold. However the general allowance for suitcase weight is about 20kg give or take, and a study by Boots showed that the average holiday toiletries shop is 5kg. So it’s fair to say weight is at a premium and any heavy items you can take out is a plus, because you can be slapped with a hefty charge for over-weight luggage.

If you want liquid products with you on the plane itself, there are hand luggage restrictions. Liquids include all drinks, liquidy foods, hairspray, foams, pastes including toothpaste, gels, contact lens solution etc.

If you do need to take these on, you have to ensure they are in containers that hold no more than 100ml and that they all fit within a single transparent, re-sealable bag that holds no more than a litre and measures approximately 20cm x 20cm. We've actually seen someone throw away a whole bottle of perfume because they were not prepared.

What’s the loophole?

When you order items from Boots online, you are able to get the items delivered to a local store free with over a £20 spend or £1.95 for anything less than that. However, what you might not know is that you can get them delivered to Boots stores that are in airport terminals, past security?

At the Boots online checkout, pick option one and put the word ‘airport’ into the search bar. You’ll get a big list of airport stores you can get your items delivered to - including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Aberdeen, Newcastle and Solihull.

So when you pick up your items at the terminal store, you’ve already had your bag weighed saving the precious weight/space in your hold luggage and you’ve also passed the point where you need to have liquids in 100ml containers and in little plastic bags.

This means you can order all the products you want from your holiday online, but you’ll need to do it five days in advance and pick up within 14 days.

Any downsides?

Here’s the thing, you won’t be able to bring the items back without putting them in your hold suitcase. So you need to make sure you’re going to use the items you buy, or at least have the room/weight allowance to put them in on the way back. Although, they probably will be lighter.

You also need to find out the allowance limitations and exclusions on what you can order from your flight provider. Just because you can buy 100 bottles of shampoo and have them in the airport terminal, doesn’t mean the airline is going to let you take up a load of room on the plane. We'd suggest you keep it to a reasonable amount, or find out the limitations.

A Tesco Clubcard is for life... not just for Tescos!

If you don't have a Tesco Clubcard already, do not do anything until you have signed up for one, which can be done here: http://www.tesco.com/clubcard. A simple swipe at checkout and a whole host of freebies and discounts could be yours.

Right, ready?

So many people think Tesco Clubcard vouchers only have to be spent in Tescos. £2.50 in vouchers is £2.50 of free food, toiletries, homewhere or any of the 101 things that Tescos sells is it not? But what if you could magically quadruple their value?

By simply visiting http://www.tesco.com/clubcard/deals/ you can exchange your vouchers for up to 4 times their value for days out, dinner and travel to name but a few (I have Tesco Clubcard to thank for getting me to Paris for just 50p as they have a deal with Megabus).

What's more, Tesco often sends you bonus vouchers, such as 100 extra points if you spend over £10, extra points for buying certain items and money off other products. Whilst I'm still learning that just because I have a voucher for something doesn't mean I have to buy it, it's great way to boost your points balance. Just make sure they have the right address for you so your vouchers aren't being appreciated by someone else like a few friends I know!

Drivers don't forget you can also earn Clubcard points at Esso garages. Whilst it may only be 1 point per 100 litres or something daft (just kidding it's 1 point per every £3 spend), as Tescos themselves say, every little helps!

Plus, if you use http://essopoints.co.uk/ to check where your closest Pit Stop station is you can ask the crew for an additional treat of 20 Clubcard points when you fill up 15 litres* (just found this out when checking the points system online)! 

Whilst vouchers and coupons can get a bit fiddly at checkout (and make sure you don't use the automatic machines as you can only use two vouchers before it calls a staff member over to check), it's a great feeling to head out for dinner knowing it's entirely paid for using Clubcard points and the only thing you need to pay for is the drinks, although unfortunately it doesn't work with any other deals (such as the TasteCard below). 

And if you really don't fancy making the most of these deals I can always have a spare few Tesco ClubCard key ring fobs so you can always use mine!

Happy saving,

Ems x

* Coupon only valid until August 31st 2014. Only one coupon can be used per transaction

TasteCard

Ok, so maybe it seems slightly contradictory to talk about saving money then discuss eating out, but the TasteCard is one of my top all-time money savers! The card gives you 50% off or 2 for 1 at 7,951 restaurants* up and down the UK, including quite a few down here in the 'Diff! It means whenever Andrew and I have our 'date night' we try and find somewhere new on the Taste Card app first (you can also use the 'near me' function when you're in a different town or city and it'll show you restaurants in the area signed up to the scheme).

Whilst it has some pretty popular chain restaurants included such as the ones pictured below, there's quite often some local gems added on there, including La Creperie de Sophie in High Street Arcade that a few friends and I visited for the beautiful Anna's last day in Cardiff.

The RRP is usually around £79.99 however like DFS there's always a sale on and at the moment if you buy a TasteCard from http://www.tastecard.co.uk/avoca you can buy a year's membership for £49.99 and get a free Avoca 7 tablet. If you're not too fussed about a tablet that's likely to break after the first three uses then you can usually find them for around £35 (or free with a Natwest Graduate account which is why I have two)!

The deals are usually valid for 2 diners per card, however there are some restaurants that allow up to 6 diners per card, so if a couple of you have them it's perfect for a cheap get together!

And don't worry if you want to try before you buy, there's always the option of a free 30 day trial before buying an actual card. And at around £35 - £50/year for membership, you only need to dine out a few times using the card before you've paid the card off and start saving money. And if you don't believe me, 1,544,978 TasteCard members can't be wrong.*

They've also recently added TasteCard+ that gives you discounts such as up to 40% off cinema tickets, 50% off days out and 'fine dining', 60% off entertainment and 70% off hotels although I'm yet to try any of these offers yet - please let me know if you do!

The only thing that could make TasteCard even better would be if I was getting commission for sales, I already recommend it to everyone hehe.

Happy saving,
Ems x

*Thanks TasteCard for the stats!

In the beginning...

University can be a steep learning curve, not only academically but also financially. Unfortunate enough to have a student loan that amounted to a few £100s less than my yearly rent, I had to come up with a few canny ways to survive living on an annual income of -£253. Despite now working full time, I've still kept to the money saving techniques in a bid to pay off my monstrous student loans and two graduate overdrafts (eep!) and be able to give what I would have spent on material, unnecessary items to more willing causes.

Inspired by Freedom's Multiply series and requested by friends within my Church's Catalyst group, I've created this blog to share the best of the best when it comes to money saving deals and freebies! Welcome to my inexpensive life...