All over the Web, people are searching for discount airfares-- often with the nagging feeling that a better deal dangles just a click away.
Many factors affect success: how close you are to a major travel hub, how flexible you can be.... Read tips, below. Before searching, check local newspapers for fares so you'll know a bargain when you see one. Then be ready to act fast: some bargains expire quickly, and airlines' fares can change several times a day.
You probably already have a favorite fare-searcher web site, such as Expedia, or Travelocity, or perhaps About's affiliate, kayak.com. These sites are great because they search dozens of airlines.
Look for a feature that searches flexible travel dates: fares can vary wildly from one day to another, even for flights on the same airline.
Another feature to look for is flexibility about airports: for example, searching all London or New York airports; or searching alternative airports within, say, a 100-mile radius.
Note that farefinder sites dont search every airline: Southwest Airlines, for example, has excellent budget airfares but you're going to have to go directly to www.southwest.com.
Other tips:
- Check out bargain airlines, such as JetBlue: they don't fly everywhere; but if the routes fit your plans, you could save big-time.
- "Kids Fly Free" deals: these deals appear seasonally; typically the family books a vacation package (with hotel etc.), and one child (up to age 12) can fly free with a paying adult. For example, a Kids Fly Free to Disneyland promotion typically runs every year on several airlines; Kids Fly and Ski Free deals often appear as well. Check out popular vacation packagers such as Alaska Airlines or United Vacations.
- Visit airline sites online: you might find an Internet Special that doesn't show up in farefinders.
- Sign up for email newsletters, twitter, facebook, and other ways for the airlines to keep you notified about bargains.
- Bundle in your hotel: when you search for airfares at a major travel site, you'll probably be offered lodgings too. Often, you can save with these airfare + hotel packages.
- For travel in Europe (where discount airlines often sell flights for $10 or less (plus fees and taxes) head to Flylc.com, which covers Ryanair and other low-cost airlines, and shows which airlines fly where.
- Fly to - Wherever: another strategy in saving money on airfares is to be flexible about your destination, and grab a flight to wherever's on sale. For example, lastminute.com sells last-minute vacations; just enter your departure city, and see what bargain getaways pop up.
- Make a bid: Priceline.com started as a bid-based travel site: customers bid a price they were willing to pay for a flight (or hotel etc.) and were then committed to buying. Priceline's model has changed but it's still from a different mold than other travel sites, and worth checking out, perhaps. .
