How to Find the Cheapest Airline Fares

Many people need to fly regularly for business or personal affairs. Others save up for the occasional vacation getaway. Either way, airfare can be quite expensive, especially if you buy tickets without researching first. Finding the cheapest airline fares may be slightly time-consuming, but it can be well worth the effort if you have some flexibility and patience.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Tips for Finding Cheap Airfare

Step 1

Buy your plane tickets as far in advance as possible. This is generally the best way to save money on airfare, especially during heavy travel periods like Christmas. For domestic flights, try to book your flight at least three weeks ahead of time. Airline tickets often increase in price intervals three weeks, two weeks, one week and three days before the departure date. Book even farther in advance for international flights. The best deals are usually available when you make reservations three to six months ahead of schedule.

Step 2

Look for last-minute deals if you feel like a spur-of-the-moment trip. Some great airfare deals can be found around the deadlines for impending flights. When airlines fail to fill their planes with passengers, they announce special offers for cheap tickets to fill planes to capacity. Check the weekly newsletters and update pages of airlines flying to your desired destination for last-minute deals. You can also visit sites like lastminutetravel.com for money-saving airfare deals.

Step 3

Be as flexible as possible with your travel dates. You can often find the cheapest tickets if you have some flexibility on departure or return. Travel midweek since weekend flights are usually more expensive. Many airfare booking websites have flexible-date ticket search engine that show you a variety of travel options around your desired dates so you can pick the most affordable combination of flights.

Step 4

Check the round-trip ticket prices when you book flights, even if you are flying one way. Strangely enough, airlines sometimes charge more for one-way tickets than for round-trip. This is not always the case, but you should generally consider buying round-trip tickets to see if you catch a price break.

Step 5

Shop around before purchasing your tickets. Do not buy tickets after looking at only one or two offers. There are many different airfare websites out there designed to help you book lower fares. Ticket prices are constantly rising and falling as well, depending on a complex series of factors. Sign up to receive email alerts regarding airfare discounts to your desired destination with various travel companies. Check out sites like kayak.com, travelocity.com, orbitz.com, skyscanner.com and priceline.com to compare rates. You can also research what airlines fly to and from your desired destination and visit the company websites to see if their fares are lower than those of other travel companies.

Tips & Warnings

Be patient and flexible. Finding cheap airfare often requires extensive website searching and a bit of luck.

Do not book a flight without first comparing the prices of other competing websites to the same destination. Keep receipts and records of all purchases to avoid any potential problems or complications in the future.

Do not book a flight without first comparing the prices of other competing websites to the same destination.

Keep receipts and records of all purchases to avoid any potential problems or complications in the future.

Article Written By David Thyberg

David Thyberg began his writing career in 2007. He is a professional writer, editor and translator. Thyberg has been published in various newspapers, websites and magazines. He enjoys writing about social issues, travel, music and sports. Thyberg holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pittsburgh Honors College with a certificate in Spanish and Latin American studies.

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