Budget airlines can sometimes be the best thing to ever happen. You find an amazingly cheap flight, gather your friends together, and have an awesome adventure to an exciting destination with a low price tag.

Other times, they can be a surprise - and not the good kind that come in pretty wrapping paper and ribbon. These surprises are more like the kind where some sneaky person steals your wallet in the subway and later leaves you at the checkout counter of the grocery store asking, “Where’d my money go?!”

Overall, budget airlines are great for the low-budget traveler, but to avoid any “surprises” in the future, one must pay special attention to some key factors. Here are a few:

Some budget airlines will charge anywhere from $5-20 for taking a checked bag. If you are a backpacker, this can pose a problem since you are probably not going back to the city you are flying out from, meaning you can't conveniently store your unnecessary luggage and pick it up later. Add that $20 to the price tag and the flight is turning into only a mildly budget flight afterall.

Budget airlines will list the big-named city that most people want to go to when in actuality the airport you are accessing might be a 45-minute bus ride away in a small town. Remember to check how long the transport to and from the airport will take, along with how much it costs before purchasing your tickets.  Ask yourself the following questions when factoring in the airport's locations:

• Is the flight still budget?
  
• Is the extra time in transport worth the amount of money you save? 
  
• Will you actually save money after you factor in the cost of airport transfers?

Perhaps this occurrence is rare, but make sure to not get too excited until the website actually lets you book. The main budget airline operating in Ukraine - Wizz Air - does not accept American credit cards on their website. What this means is you have to book through a travel agency, and of course, they charge an extra fee. Add that to the cost of bringing a bag and getting to/from the airport and the price tag is not looking quite so good. This fact has affected me personally when it led my friends and I to a disappointing realization about our trip budget.

Like stated before, budget airlines are generally great for budget travelers. Just be aware of the above points and you won’t find yourself surprised later on. Good luck and happy travels!