Hack: /hak/ verb
use a computer to gain unauthorized access to data in a system.
Although the act of “hacking” things came about long before, the general public started becoming aware of hacking in the 1980s, when War Games played in theaters.
People have been hacking ever since. Although the term still usually goes hand in hand with computers, data, etc., it’s since spread out to other aspects of life.
“Travel hacking” can be relatively innocuous as using a VPN to appear as if you’re in another country to get a better airfare, or it could involve getting into a bank’s credit card site and stealing peoples’ frequent flyer miles. The term has also expanded to include non-computer-based things, such as how to create a desk (or a second desk, if there are 2 people) in a hotel room, or how to override hotel thermostat settings in hotel rooms.
A hack is always a way to get around something. Sometimes it works out fine for all involved. And sometimes, well, it doesn’t end as well as one would have liked. These are some examples of why you should always think twice before certain types of travel hacking.
Skiplagging
Skiplagging is when you book an itinerary with a stopover and that stopover location is where the traveler actually wants to go.
Say you’re in location A and you want to go to location B. However that flight costs $300. But there’s a flight to location C, which has a stopover in location B, and that flight’s only $200. Skiplagging is when you take that flight with the stopover and just leave at location B, without continuing on to location C.
Skiplagging isn’t illegal but, obviously, the airlines don’t like when people do it. So people have gotten sued, or have had the threat of their frequent flyer account being frozen.
We don’t skiplag and here’s why (it includes the above reasons, as well as several others). You might want to consider if it’s worth the risk before you try it.
Avoiding fees for carrying on bags
Version 1
Although nearly all airlines charge for checked bags, a handful of them also charges for carry on bags. One woman figured out a way to try to avoid that fee – click here to learn how. I think she meant it facetiously. But in the second half of that page, also read about the poor guy who tried the same thing, for real. I’m not sure if he wound up going to the hospital or not but yeah – I’d think twice about that.
Version 2
Another guy figured out a different way to avoid paying for his carry on bag, by manipulating the airline’s website. However it was illegal, he got caught and is now banned from that airline. A pretty high price to pay for trying to avoid paying $41.
When a thermostat hack goes terribly wrong
Many hotels have installed programmable thermostats in their rooms that either doesn’t go as low or high as you’d like, or that shut off unless you’re in the room and moving around (my husband can attest that waking up in a steaming hot room in the middle of the night, and literally waving your arms so the motion detector “sees” you, is not fun). There are ways to get around a lot of them and we collected hacks for the most common ones. We list the ones we have in this post, which are updated on an annual basis.
There are other techniques that may or may not work, and we have ways to try to get around those, too. This is is the most simple way hotels have tried to thwart hackers (and potentially the most dangerous to get around, since there’s a risk of falling/injury)
We always say Your Mileage May Vary as to whether it’s a good idea or not to try to bypass the controls set by the hotel. Of course, they don’t want you to mess with their thermostats. Besides potentially using up more energy than the hotel intended, you run the risk of breaking their equipment. It’s a pity these guys didn’t heed that warning.
Every travel hack has a potential gain, as well as potential problems. Consider both sides before trying a hack, to determine if the risk is worth what could happen if things go wrong.
Feature Photo: Picpedia.org
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
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