 | "Granted, flying to Hawaii for the Christmas holiday sounds very appealing when your home is under several feet of snow, but flying there in the summer can be much cheaper. I, for one, found Hawaii in July to be very enjoyable – especially with that extra cash for Mai-Tais on the beach." A Wiser-Than-I-Used-To-Be Traveler |
Cheap airline tickets are out there to be had, and seasoned travelers are taking advantage of them. But you won't hear many in the travel industry talking about the REALLY cheap tickets – at least not without you first asking about them. If you want to get the cheap flights, and I mean DIRT-CHEAP airline tickets, you are going to have to do some research on your own. This article will get you on the road to cheap travel. The following basic tips are available to anyone (i.e., they don't require "insider connections" to achieve good results, though you'll find tip number 10 will give you those connections).
1) BOOK YOUR FLIGHT FAR IN ADVANCE: Not exactly news, I know. Nonetheless, it can save you big money. Reserve your flight a month in advance, optimize your discount. Reserve your flight the week before, expect to pay premium prices.
2) FLY OFF-HOURS, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS "TAKING THE RED-EYE": If you insist on flying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. – when available seats are at their minimum – then plan on paying higher prices. Airline flight is a supply-and-demand business, after all. Flying "the red-eye" – when LOTS of seats are available – can greatly lower the cost of your ticket.
3) FLYING OUT OF OR INTO AN ALTERNATE AIRPORT: Try checking flights from nearby alternate airports. Sometimes, you'll get a better deal by driving to a larger, metropolitan area, rather than insisting on a flight departing from your local "community" airport. On the other hand, Angelenos, for example, know that driving to one of the smaller airports – NOT in Los Angeles and NOT known as LAX – can save them mucho dinero. So it's worth checking around.
4) IF CURRENT PRICES ARE CHEAPER THAN WHAT YOU PAID, ASK THE AIRLINE TO ADJUST THE PRICE: Few people do this – or even KNOW about this – but the airlines will adjust the price if you ask them to. Just don't expect them to do it without your prompting them first. And, of course, you would only asked them to adjust your ticket if the prices have gone down since you booked your ticket, not up.
5) AVOID AIRPORT PARKING, IF POSSIBLE: Parking fees amass quickly – and might even offset all of the savings you managed to get through your other money-saving efforts. I once took a trip to Hawaii when I was fresh out of high-school, and upon returning to Denver after two weeks, the cost of parking the car for all of that time came to over $100, leaving the four of us who went on the trip arriving home with nothing but coins in our pockets and fumes in the gas tank by the time we completed our 300-mile car ride home from the airport. Obviously, not parking at the airport isn't always an option. So, at the very least, make sure you consider the cost of parking your car in your budgeting plans.
6) PLAN YOUR TRIPS FOR "OFF-SEASON", WHEN POSSIBLE: Obviously, flying to Hawaii for a holiday sounds very appealing – but probably even more so when your home is under several feet of snow. But flying there in the summer can be much cheaper. I, for one, found Hawaii in July to be very enjoyable - especially with that extra cash for Mai-Tais on the beach.
7) LOOK AROUND FOR PACKAGE DEALS: You might find that you can save a lot of money by purchasing a package deal, where you buy your flight, your motel room, and possibly even a rental car all in one "package deal." You might even get some extras thrown in, like a luau (in Hawaii), or an off-Broadway show (in New York City).
8) BE A PART OF A GROUP TRAVEL PURCHASE TO RECEIVE BULK DISCOUNTS: Traveling in a group can bring you bulk discounts. Sometimes organizations or communities arrange trips for their members, saving each individual some cash in the deal. Senior communities commonly do this with trips to Las Vegas, for example.
9) LOOK AT SEVERAL AGGREGATOR WEBSITES: These outfits – aggregator websites – will compare multiple airlines and travel agencies, at once, finding you the best deal from all the places they dig around into. Of course, not all aggregators check ALL travel outlets, so try a few aggregators if need be, and then try going directly through the airline that the aggregators deemed cheapest. You may find that the "going direct" to the airline of your choosing might reap better discounts for you, through frequent-flier programs and such – not to mention allowing you to bypass the travel agency fees (minimal though they are).
10) GO TO DIRT CHEAP TRAVELS: Follow the above tips and you'll be well on your way to getting yourself some cheap airline tickets. But for some truly awesome money-saving travel tips, check out my website: DIRT CHEAP TRAVELS. I think you'll especially like all the insider secrets provided by the many travel-industry insiders! You'll also be able to use OUR built-in aggregators, DealFinder. Our DealFinders will, at the click of a few buttons, check many up-to-the-minute sources – including our competitors' sites – to help you get the best deal for your next airline tickets, cheap hotels, rental car or cruise, anywhere in the world.
Happy Travels,
A Wiser-Than-I-Used-To-Be Traveler
1) BOOK YOUR FLIGHT FAR IN ADVANCE: Not exactly news, I know. Nonetheless, it can save you big money. Reserve your flight a month in advance, optimize your discount. Reserve your flight the week before, expect to pay premium prices.
2) FLY OFF-HOURS, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS "TAKING THE RED-EYE": If you insist on flying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. – when available seats are at their minimum – then plan on paying higher prices. Airline flight is a supply-and-demand business, after all. Flying "the red-eye" – when LOTS of seats are available – can greatly lower the cost of your ticket.
3) FLYING OUT OF OR INTO AN ALTERNATE AIRPORT: Try checking flights from nearby alternate airports. Sometimes, you'll get a better deal by driving to a larger, metropolitan area, rather than insisting on a flight departing from your local "community" airport. On the other hand, Angelenos, for example, know that driving to one of the smaller airports – NOT in Los Angeles and NOT known as LAX – can save them mucho dinero. So it's worth checking around.
4) IF CURRENT PRICES ARE CHEAPER THAN WHAT YOU PAID, ASK THE AIRLINE TO ADJUST THE PRICE: Few people do this – or even KNOW about this – but the airlines will adjust the price if you ask them to. Just don't expect them to do it without your prompting them first. And, of course, you would only asked them to adjust your ticket if the prices have gone down since you booked your ticket, not up.
5) AVOID AIRPORT PARKING, IF POSSIBLE: Parking fees amass quickly – and might even offset all of the savings you managed to get through your other money-saving efforts. I once took a trip to Hawaii when I was fresh out of high-school, and upon returning to Denver after two weeks, the cost of parking the car for all of that time came to over $100, leaving the four of us who went on the trip arriving home with nothing but coins in our pockets and fumes in the gas tank by the time we completed our 300-mile car ride home from the airport. Obviously, not parking at the airport isn't always an option. So, at the very least, make sure you consider the cost of parking your car in your budgeting plans.
6) PLAN YOUR TRIPS FOR "OFF-SEASON", WHEN POSSIBLE: Obviously, flying to Hawaii for a holiday sounds very appealing – but probably even more so when your home is under several feet of snow. But flying there in the summer can be much cheaper. I, for one, found Hawaii in July to be very enjoyable - especially with that extra cash for Mai-Tais on the beach.
7) LOOK AROUND FOR PACKAGE DEALS: You might find that you can save a lot of money by purchasing a package deal, where you buy your flight, your motel room, and possibly even a rental car all in one "package deal." You might even get some extras thrown in, like a luau (in Hawaii), or an off-Broadway show (in New York City).
8) BE A PART OF A GROUP TRAVEL PURCHASE TO RECEIVE BULK DISCOUNTS: Traveling in a group can bring you bulk discounts. Sometimes organizations or communities arrange trips for their members, saving each individual some cash in the deal. Senior communities commonly do this with trips to Las Vegas, for example.
9) LOOK AT SEVERAL AGGREGATOR WEBSITES: These outfits – aggregator websites – will compare multiple airlines and travel agencies, at once, finding you the best deal from all the places they dig around into. Of course, not all aggregators check ALL travel outlets, so try a few aggregators if need be, and then try going directly through the airline that the aggregators deemed cheapest. You may find that the "going direct" to the airline of your choosing might reap better discounts for you, through frequent-flier programs and such – not to mention allowing you to bypass the travel agency fees (minimal though they are).
10) GO TO DIRT CHEAP TRAVELS: Follow the above tips and you'll be well on your way to getting yourself some cheap airline tickets. But for some truly awesome money-saving travel tips, check out my website: DIRT CHEAP TRAVELS. I think you'll especially like all the insider secrets provided by the many travel-industry insiders! You'll also be able to use OUR built-in aggregators, DealFinder. Our DealFinders will, at the click of a few buttons, check many up-to-the-minute sources – including our competitors' sites – to help you get the best deal for your next airline tickets, cheap hotels, rental car or cruise, anywhere in the world.
Happy Travels,
A Wiser-Than-I-Used-To-Be Traveler
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