In a day and age when traveling can be as expensive as trying to buy a house, we know people are always looking for ways to save a little money from time to time. Luckily there are some things you can do in order to save a buck and maybe even save yourself some time and energy. Airlines are not setting out to make sure you save money but at the same time, they do offer up some features so that you can find a kind of life hack in order to take advantage of the airline and the airline gets all its tickets sold so they benefit as well. Check out these 10 sneaky tricks for getting the cheapest flights and then come back and let us know if they worked to save you money.
Travel During Off Peak Season
Ticket prices are going to be lower if you are traveling during the “off peak” time of year. Summer and Christmas time are the peak seasons so plan your trip for early spring or early fall.
Use Social Media
If you know you are traveling at some point soon, start following the airlines on social media. You’ll find out about sales and deals quicker and easier on these sites.
Fly Singletons
Even if you are traveling with a group of people, you should search for seats singularly. When people search for several seats at once, the airline will return the most expensive offerings. Saving some cash is small price to pay to not have an assigned seat next to your friend. You can always ask other passengers to switch seats once you’re on the plane.
Red Eye Flights
This isn’t the best kept secret in the world, but Red Eye flights continue to be among the cheapest in the airline industry. If you can stand it, book these and save cash.
Fly Early
If you cannot take a late night “Red Eye” flight, then book as early in the morning as possible. These are usually the second cheapest flights because they have the most open seats.
Use Layovers
People want nonstop flights because they get there quicker. Flights that have layovers built in are usually cheaper for this very reason.
Bundle
If you can, always book your flight and hotel in a bundle. There are many sites that offer deep discounts for doing it this way. You might be able to get further discounts if you need to rent a car and add that to the bundle.
Use More Than One Airline
If you book a flight going one way and use another airline coming back, you’re likely to save more money than if you just book a round trip on one airline. In some cases, this can save you hundreds of dollars.
Travel On These Days
Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays are days when most people aren’t traveling. Fly on these days and you’re likely to find reduced fares. Most airlines even run big time sales on Tuesdays.
24 Hours For a Refund
If you buy tickets directly through an airline, you will usually have 24 hours to change your mind and get a refund. Once you buy a ticket think long and hard about whether you want to use it.
