Use These Sites to Find Cheap Flights
There is no shortage of travel websites and online travel agencies for finding and booking flights, but when it comes to getting the best deal, using a combination of sites often gives the best results. If you have a little time and opportunity to play around, here are some you can bookmark for your next trip.
Track Skyscanner Prices
You can set alerts on sites like Skyscanner or Airefarewatchdog if you have the flexibility to choose when you want to travel. In addition, you can check the price lists and kayaks of the world in incognito mode as well as directly on the airline’s website. For example, Southwest flights don’t appear on search engines like the aforementioned ones or Google Flights, so it’s worth going straight to their website.
Add a short stop
Airwander is a site that adds a 24 hour (or more) stopover to your route, allowing you to visit a new destination and save money. If you have some flexibility, you can also use something like Google Flights to add nearby airports to your search criteria for better fares.
Be careful with Hidden Cities fares
One popular trick is to book a connecting flight, which is actually your final destination, which the Skiplagged search engine makes it easy to find. These “hidden city fares” may be cheaper than direct flights, but they are also discouraged by airlines.
In fact, United sued Skiplagged, but the suit was dismissed. However, “The National Airline Passengers Association warns that the fine print on most air tickets generally prohibits hidden city fares,” NY1 reported . They can hold onto your bags or kick you off your original flight.
Also, “never buy a round-trip ticket when using this strategy,” suggests Business Insider . “If you do not get off the plane at the specified destination, the airline will cancel the remainder of your trip.”
Book one way tickets
As we wrote earlier , “One-way tickets are becoming an increasingly affordable option for international travelers.” But for this you do not need to look for, for example, a ticket to Paris and back. Better to use a service like Google Flights to find cheaper flights to and from neighboring countries. Take advantage of low-cost carriers such as Norwegian Air and Ryanair. Kayak’s Hacker Fares can also help you find a couple of cheap one-way tickets.
Look for the flights of the fifth freedom
As we recently reported , Fifth Freedom flights allow a carrier to “sell tickets for selected routes between cities in countries in which they would otherwise not be able to operate,” as long as they are on a route that starts or ends in the airline’s home country, according to Airfare Watchdog . You will find better times, prettier planes and, in some cases, cheaper or more direct routes. Check out some of the options here .
For all this, a little flexibility is the key to a good rate if your schedule allows it. And here are some more tips to keep in mind.