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Taking inspiration from fellow Irish airline Ryanair, the much-larger Aer Lingus rolled out a new carry-on restriction policy that limited passengers to one bag onboard (plus a small purse or or a "gents satchel"). But what passengers learned was that no additional bags would be allowed, even shopping bags. So no bottles of whiskey from duty free, no last-minute souvenirs you bought while waiting for your flight to board. And that's when people got angry—including the Irish government. In an article in The Irish Sun, Senator Catherine Noone urged the airline to rethink the policy, calling it “a backwards step" and unfriendly to tourists. This isn't the first time government has intervened when it comes to luggage policies. The European Parliament is attempting to pass legislation to force Ryanair to drop the one-bag policy (the European Commission will vote on it later this year), and the Spanish government already ruled that passengers can not be restricted to one bag. Also irritated with the policy: duty free vendors. The European Travel Retail Confederation reported that sales fell 70% in some areas where carry-on bags were restricted, according to an article in the Moody Report (which covers the travel retail and duty free business). They also found that travelers spent almost 30% more at the airport where there is no one-bag policy. The rules for Aer Lingus now state that you can bring on that addition small bag OR duty-free shopping bag. Progress? Of course, the airline itself says the move came for traveler convenience. Meaning that they were probably sick of people complaining about fellow passengers who bring multiple large bags onboard and hog all the storage space. Which passengers do partly because of high fees for checked bags (for international flights from the U.S. on Aer Lingus, the first bag is free but the second is $60 to check). So the circle continues. Are you as sick of confusing luggage policies as we are? If you had the power to pass a law to change an airline policy, what would it be? MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 7 Common Expenses That Take Travelers By Surprise 11 Surprisingly Lovable Airlines 6 Graceful Strategies for Dealing with an Annoying Seatmate

Looks like Carnival's anti-chair-hogging policy has gone fleet-wide. We told you about the program last month, which was limited to the new Carnival Breeze. It was so successful (and scored so much goodwill with passengers) that the line expanded it to all of their ships. And other cruise lines are jumping on the bandwagon. According to Travel Weekly, Norwegian Cruise Line is testing the waters with on the Norwegian Star—with a 45-minute grace period before your belongings are removed. Unofficial policies are also in place on Holland American and Royal Caribbean, which limit saving to 30-minutes. Don't dilly-dally on some Princess sailings, though—staff is reportedly allowed to remove belongings after just 15 minutes. So three cheers for not having to get up at the crack of dawn to get a good seat by the pool. Now that that's taken care of, where else would you like to see policies like these put in place? MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 10 Common Cruise Myths—Debunked 12 Top Tips from the World's Best Cruisers Your Top 5 Money-Saving Cruise Questions—Answered

Everyone's favorite affordable furniture store, IKEA, will build a budget hotel chain across Europe. The first one will be in Germany, in 2014. Surprisingly, the 100 hotels in Germany, Austria, Britain, Holland, and Poland won't feature the company's famous flat-pack furniture—or even its brand name, according to a scoop in the Financial Times. Though fans hope that Swedish meatballs will still be served in any hotel restaurants. IKEA aims to cash in on the booming trend in "budget designer hotels," as represented in Europe by Motel One, citizenM, Chic and Basic, Leonardo Hotels, and B&B; Hotels. It's great news that budget hotels are finally getting their day in the sun. The much stronger dollar against the euro also means that Europe is becoming a good value again. Let's just hope guests at the IKEA's hotel chain won't have to assemble the beds and dressers ourselves. Or that the instructions for finding your room won't be as confusing as Ikea's diagrams for building furniture. In 2007, Ikea Norway created a pop-up Ikea Hostel. Earlier this year, Ikea created a pop-up lounge in Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport (Terminal 3). But on a more serious note, if IKEA did go ahead and build a hotel that was just like its stores, would you stay in it if the price were right? SEE MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 26 Gorgeous Hotels You Won't Believe Are Under $150 Photos: World's Best New Affordable Hotels 39 Affordable Hotel Chains Only Locals Know

Have you ever felt like airlines were just tacking on extra fees without rhyme or reason? In the case of at least of one airline, you might be right. According to the Miami Herald, just this week, Spirit Airlines—which many of you know as the airline that charges for carry–ons—was hit with a class–action lawsuit by a Miami law firm for misleading passengers into thinking that extra fees were government charges. The fees, which range from $8.99 to $16.99 were tacked on to airfares regardless of how they were booked and were essentially just a tricky way for the airline to raise the cost of flights. Spirit has denied the claims and will fight them in court. Now my question is—is Spirit the only airline instituting this practice or will others be discovered now that folks will be watching pricing more carefully? Only time will tell. But more importantly, how do you feel about this? Will you continue to fly Spirit if the court case comes back and proves that the charges are misleading? SEE MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: 10 Places You'd Rather Be on a Wednesday An End to the Fight Over Deck Chairs? Should Celebrities Be Able to See Museums Separately?