Airfare is arguably the biggest expense in any travels and it could easily bust your budget if you aren’t careful in booking. Whether you are planning a short break, are planning to live and work abroad or want to take a longer epic trip, there are lots of ways to save money on flights.
You really don’t have to spend a fortune on flights, check out these simple steps and get a much cheaper price for your next trip.
1. Research
Regardless if you’re looking for Los Angeles flights or just local flights around the Philippines, researching online and offline can help you save a lot of money. Check out various online flights consolidators websites and compare prices. As soon as you find a good deal, check the airlines’ website and compare their prices again. You’ll get a good chance of finding a great deal. Also check for various promotions from different travel companies.
2. Be Flexible with Dates
When you are booking online, check the nearest date from your desired flight date. Sometimes there’s a significant price difference that will make you consider booking your flight on another date instead. Search aggregators like Skyscanner allow you to expand your search options to include days before or after your preferred date and show you the cheapest prices.
3. Plan Ahead
Most airline promotions are serving future travel dates. Most of the times, the promotions are for flights a few months ahead of the booking period. Take advantage of these great promotions and you’ll surely be able to save some money from your airfares.
4. Use Travel Credit Cards
You might be able to enjoy some travel freebies and other perks if you use travel credit cards or credit cards that has a partnership with airlines or frequent flyer clubs. Some credit cards offer free access to airport lounges, travel insurances and other stuff. Some credit cards could also give you points for your purchases which you could also redeem for some free flights. Check with your bank to learn more information. If you don’t have one yet, contact various banks and compare the benefits.
5. Sign Up to Miles
If you travel a lot, you should sign up to the frequent flyer miles club of the airlines that you use. You might get free upgrades if you reach a certain miles status. If you’d be able to bank enough miles, you might be able to redeem it for free flights to various destinations.
6. Search by City, Not Airport
If you live in New York, you are lucky to have three major airports all just about equidistant from my front door. While you might prefer JFK, nearby Newark International is a hub for different airlines and is accessible by public transportation, so always keep an open mind. When you’re doing a flight search, search by city, not airport—in this case, NYC versus JFK.
7. Sign Up for Cheap Flight Alert E-mails
Yes, this might clog your inbox a bit, bit it’s worth it for a cheap flight. Check out Orbitz, Travelocity, Airfarewatchdog, and loads of others for tailored emails based on your departure city. Expect a list of deals from your hometown. So just think about which CCS destinations draw you in, and keep an eye out! This is different from the fare alert emails I mentioned in my last post because they aren’t route specific.
8. Take Public Transportation to the Airport when Possible
If a loved one isn’t available to see you off, don’t take a cab! Car sharing ideas like Super Shuttle or public transport are not only better for the environment, they can also cut the price of a trip to the airport in half.
9. Age Appropriate Discounts
Some travel companies offer extra discounts if you’re college-aged, or AARP for the older set. They both work as aggregators to seek out discounts on flights. If you fit into one of those categories, consider a membership to help save on a flight prices.
10. Work for an Airline
If you work for a travel company or airline you will usually benefit from getting discounted prices. Apply to work as cabin crew and you can literally get paid to see the world!
We hope these steps help you find cheap flights from wherever your destinations may be. What else are we missing? How else have you saved money on a flight? Let us know in the comments section below!