How to spend less at the airport — and how the airport makes you spend more

1. Be aware of your surroundings. Airports might seem chaotic and all over the shop but loads of thought goes into how they can get us to spend more money. And we are the easiest of pickings. For starters, we’re an entirely captive audience with little else to do but spend money. And once we’re through security, we’re relieved and in better form. That’s when the “golden hour in the dwell zone” starts. What’s that? you ask. It’s the 60 minutes we have in the shops before we even consider heading towards our boarding gates.

2. Ask yourself why the airport monitors are so late saying what gate your flight is leaving from. Airport authorities say it keeps boarding gates clear but it has a handy side effect as the mystery keeps us shopping for longer. Airports and airlines probably know now what gate that Ryanair flight to Madrid at 8am on February 21st, 2023 will be leaving from but if they keep us in suspense until the last minute, we keep shopping. Oh, and the reason the monitors tell us how long it takes to walk from the shopping area to the gate is not because they are super helpful but to stop us setting off too early and missing out on precious spending time.

3. If you’re going to spend, spend wisely. Before you buy anything remotely expensive, use your phone to work out how much it costs either in your destination or closer to home. And only buy if it’s good value. Electronics are rarely that in airport shops, while neck pillows and toys are often wildly overpriced. Souvenirs are spectacularly bad value for money and beyond useless. These are impulse purchases. The reason airports all over the world are crammed with ridiculous tourist tat is because they know people buy it, not because it is of any value or because anyone we know wants it, but because it is shoved in front of our faces and we are acting on impulse. And we’re bored.

4. Bring plenty to read, watch or play. There’s a reason airports sell books and magazines by the truckload. We’re bored and spendy. So, before you head off to the airport, get your reading material ready and download fun things to keep you entertained on to your phone or tablet.

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5. Don’t forget your lunch. We eat in airports and on planes to fill time and – sometimes – to distract ourselves from the fact that we are eight miles high, in a thin metal tube full of highly flammable materials going at more than 500km an hour. Bring your own fruit, snacks and treats. They’ll save you money, distract you, and be much better for you. They also come with added smugness.

6. Ask yourself hard questions before you buy cologne, make-up, sunglasses, silly shorts or that massive Toblerone. Do you really need it? Is it good value? And will it make your life better? If that answer is no, or even I don’t know, just walk away. Save your money for your final destination.