301 redirect is the most efficient and Search Engine Friendly method for webpage redirection. It's not that hard to implement and it should preserve your search engine rankings for that particular page. If you have to change file names or move pages around, it's the safest option. The code "301" is interpreted as "moved permanently".
I totally agree with you, once moving pages or changing URL's or even a whole site make sure to redirect every single url using the "301" redirection, need more info about it? just Google it