How to Compare Flights

Whatever your stripe of outdoor adventure, it always seems that most of the best places to pursue it lie far from home. Many of them are outside of the United States. Going to Nepal for trekking and climbing or to the Maldives for diving are great ideas, but it is also expensive. A big part of getting those travel costs down starts with the travel itself, and to do that you need to be ready to compare your flight options.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Step 1

Determine what your area airports are and what the round-trip travel costs for those airports are. For example, if you live in the Washington, D.C. area, you have access to Baltimore-Washington, Dulles, and Ronald Reagan National airports. Each can be reached by a variety of methods, depending on what day of the week it is. Have that information handy so you can add those travel costs to the cost of your flight.

Step 2

Search with online travel agencies on as wide a basis as possible. Using a cross-indexing website like Kayak.com, which will run multiple searches for you at the same time, is a good way to go. Make a note of any flights that interest you.

Step 3

Follow-up on noteworthy flights by checking what the actual airline has to offer for the same or similar routes on the airline's own website. Sometimes the airline itself will offer a better deal.

Step 4

Include all taxes and fees in your flight costs. For example, some airlines charge $50 for a second bag on international flights, which might tilt the balance for someone hauling ski equipment. Also, not all online travel agencies include taxes and fees in their initial quote, and there are plenty of countries that charge a departure tax at the airport that is entirely separate from the fees assessed as part of your ticket. All of this needs to be added in to gain an accurate picture

Step 5

Factor time into your considerations. It might not prove the best use of your limited vacation time to make a pair of 3-stop, 40 hour flight to get to and from your destinations, for example. Cost is not the sole consideration, and it might be worth it to pay a little more if it saves you time.

Article Written By Edwin Thomas

Edwin Thomas has been writing since 1997. His work has appeared in various online publications, including The Black Table, Proboxing-Fans and others. A travel blogger, editor and writer, Thomas has traveled from Argentina to Vietnam in pursuit of stories. He holds a Master of Arts in international affairs from American University.

Editor's Pick

5 Top North American Wildflower Hikes

Springtime brings a sense of new beginnings and new life as flowers begin to bloom and fill the air with their sweet and pleasant fragrance. Luckily we can see wildflowers all summer long, since spring hits at different times throughout North America. See flowering cactu...
More National Parks...
Popular Article

National Park Substitutes: Great Spots Without the Crowds

Coping with crowds at national parks can get tiresome, especially during the peak tourist season. If you want to escape from the herd, or just take a breather from the bustle of bigger attractions, the United States has plenty of less-visited but still worthwhile spots t...
More National Parks...
Featured Destination

Prevent Yourself from Getting Lost While Hiking

When you're hiking you're going to want to make sure you stay found. What I mean by that is that you've put an itinerary in the car, you know the area that you're hiking to, you know the route and the trail you plan on being on, you know what the trail markers are going ...
More Camping Basics...