How to find deals on flight tickets

It is fairly straightforward, and even in times of crisis such as these, one of the best ways to get amazing deals when it comes to airline tickets is planning to purchase your ticket a number of months ahead of your planned departure. Many airlines will dish out extremely affordable rates if tickets are acquired far in advance. Hence, planning is king here!

There is no real secret when it comes to the days of travel, as prices fluctuate. Prior to COVID-19 business travel was Mondays through Thursdays and Fridays, however, much of that has changed. Saturdays may often contain cheaper rates, hence starting your journey on a weekend may work for you, supplying you do it differently than most individuals who are traveling on the weekends for city travels. On top of this, it is likewise essential to avoid travel throughout peak seasons. Peak travel seasons such as Christmas, Easter, or school holidays in certain countries (or other vacations) will not just postpone your flight times and force you to challenge massive crowds, but likewise will cost you more. However, most families with school children are bound to the school year calendar, hence it might be interesting to book an all-inclusive holiday in advance. Now, while this isn’t for everyone, it is an alternative.

Another tip to obtain cheaper travel tickets is what is called – red-eye flights, in other words, flights that are taken during hours when most other people like business travelers, etc. would not fly because of the time inconvenience. You can save quite a substantial amount if you are willing to travel late-night routes. This may not always be ideal for families or for children, but as parents, one should know whether your child is up for a trip during these times. In most instances, it might even be beneficial depending on the age of your child to use the travel time for sleeping. On top of the so-called red-eye routes, check stand-by routes. In many cases, airline companies will offer tickets at an excellent discount for flights that are under-booked.

Another consideration is how long you plan to stay at your destination. Many airlines will offer affordable costs assuming you stay at your location for longer than a week, and return within a few months. And most families will probably stay more than a week at holiday destinations, especially those visiting summer locations and the beach.

While many people think direct flights are the most inexpensive – it is frequently more affordable to go to your last location via connection centers. Yes, this may not be environmentally friendly, however, when you are willing to take flights via connections, you can potentially save several hundreds of Euros, depending on where you travel to, and for families with children traveling this way may make or break a vacation. Using connecting flights is ideal for people who travel lightly and do not have a great deal of luggage with them (preferably carry-on only). So if you manage to pack all your things for you and your children in carry-ons then utilizing connecting flights may be an alternative – especially for older school children and teens. Traveling with babies, one most likely wants to book directly. Again, this is a personal choice.

The Internet is a big benefit for travelers, as it allows us the ability to see flight information from several vendors in such a way that even travel agents and ticketing agents from airline companies themselves were not able to see a decade earlier. Yet one thing to note here is also that the published rates online may not always be the best or even cheapest. In a lot of instances, you can call a travel agent and potentially find a better deal – but that often may come with a bit of luck. You can likewise sometimes find discount rates at the airline companies by calling them straight instead of purchasing a ticket from an online agency.

However, as we previously stated, one of the most important things when it comes to finding deals online is planning ahead and purchasing your tickets early. At times buying last minute may get you a good deal depending on the day, route, and destination, however often you’ll find that prices are significantly higher that way than what you would pay if you purchased your tickets well in advance. Lots of websites including Expedia, and Travelocity will note the great rates from a variety of sources that offer flights from nearly any location to the destination. Therefore, we recommend utilizing a variety of services and compare them versus each other. Yes, you read that right! All these services, will often not have every airline ticket listed for a variety of reasons (source, partnerships, availability, etc.).

Hence, ultimately, it’s just about timing the trip correctly. There are no real secrets to when and what to book. If you are flexible, great. Especially with younger children not yet in school, and not bound to the school calendar. If you find a good deal to where you want to go and feel that that is a price you are willing to pay, then do so!

Do you have any other tips in regard to booking tickets? Any other thoughts, then please comment below and share with the community! With that, we hope you and your family enjoy your next trip!