Amitex and the intelligent consumer

Welcome to another year of excitement at the Amitex - the showcase for all the major tour operators. It is easy to get carried away by the glitz and glamour, by the subtle and not so subtle advertising, targeting you and your pocket. You will be bombarded by brochures, impressed by stands, attracted by special offers and so distracted by the fun of the moment that you might even relax your guard and forget to ask the right questions before parting with your hard-earned euro.

Adverts can be misleading!

Have a check list ready of what matters to you when you are booking a holiday - don't just look at the price.

The following are the four points to keep in mind when weighing up the options:

(1) How far is the hotel from the main attractions? Is it central?

For example, take Garda, a popular destination with Maltese families. The location of Garda on Lake Garda makes it a wonderful resort. A central hotel in Garda gives added value as you can walk to the lake from your hotel. After spending a day on an excursion to some beautiful places such as Limone, Malcesine, Bardolino or Sirmione, the last thing you want is to start riding buses or taking taxis in the evening for a journey of approximately 10 kilometres in each direction, which is a round trip equivalent of the distance between Valletta and Ċirkewwa.

San Zeno di Montagna, which is a paradise for hikers and climbers, may not be the ideal choice if you do not want to add costs. Typically, a taxi fare from San Zeno to Garda will add another €25 to your holiday, in each direction, per day. That is a total of €350 on top of the price you thought was the final cost of your holiday for a week.

(2) Why should entrance fees be advertised as approximate? Doesn't the tour operator do his homework well?

Entrance fees should be known to professional tour operators at the time brochures go to print and should be stated exactly.

Take Lourdes, a beautiful place of spiritual pilgrimage from where one can take popular excursions to places like Artouste. A cable car takes you up into the mountains from Artouste for a fixed price of €21. It is possible that certain entrance fees can change during the year but the cable car fare is fixed so it begs the question: Why print "approximate cost" when prices are actually known in advance? This is like saying that the value of the euro in Maltese lira is "approximately" 0.4293 when, in fact, the value of the euro is exactly 0.4293. So why play with words?

(3) Are there any hidden extras neatly covered up with language that stands up in a consumers' court?

Let us take a look at charter flights versus low-cost carriers. The Maltese tourist would do well to investigate the reality of how this affects both the pocket and the quality in terms of availability and convenience. Low-cost airlines are cheap on certain dates and periods, however, the summer months, which are the peak months when the majority of people travel, cause prices to shoot up.

Operators may advertise packages that include flights, giving you the impression that you can make a "bargain" by hunting for a low-cost flight... as low as €0.01. Let us take specific destinations such as Costa Blanca/Benidorm or Costa Brava/Barcelona. As the British like to say, "nothing is free" and if it looks like an amazing bargain, there is probably a catch somewhere. Let me save you some time by getting to the point quickly, the catch is that, during the summer months, the real cost is in the region of €90 not €0.01. One of the reasons is that you have to pay extra for luggage and credit card charges; another is peak demand.

(4) Flying to your destination... Does it really matter where you fly to?

Distances in Malta are short and if we haven't visited a destination before we may not be aware of the added inconvenience of landing in one airport as opposed to another. For example, the Austrian Tyrol is conveniently serviced by Innsbruck airport whereas Munich is farther away, adding time and cost to a package.

The Maltese traveller is becoming more and more sophisticated and understands that value for money does not necessarily mean the cheapest advertised price. Asking the right questions when booking a holiday can make all the difference between a well-earned, relaxing holiday or a nightmare of hidden costs and stress.

Enjoy Amitex and be aware of your right to be treated as an intelligent consumer.

Mr Farrugia is chief executive director of Britannia Tours.