ULTIMATE TIP: be as flexible as you can. It can get you MEGA savings.
The more flexible you can be, the more you will save. But, even a little bit of flexibility can go a long way in savings.
Be flexible with your flight timing
Flying one day earlier or later, or going through a different airport, can save you $100’s.
I recently helped a co-worker find a $500 flight to Hawaii by making her dates changing her flight days slightly. The previous flights she was finding were over $1000! Ten minutes of searching a wider range of dates got her a half-priced flight.
There are a few websites that make this very easy.
Momondo and Kayak are very similar and great sites to use to find cheap flights to specific locations, within certain dates, and still see some flexibility options. The work by comparing all the flight deal sites at once and showing you them all together.
I have used Kayak most in the past, but have recently started using Momondo more. I feel like I have been seeing better flights and prices recently.
It lets you look multiple airports if a destination has more than one. Certain airports may have a cheaper flight option.
My favorite feature is the dates +/- option. It is a great way to save money because it lets you see what days are the best deals to fly in and out on. Sometimes a small shift can save you $100’s!
I like to always set it to +/- 3 days both ways because it lets me see more options all at once.
When you select the +/- option you get a grid of all the cheapest flights if you leave those days. When you click on the flight for the days you want, you can see all the available flights and choose the best one for you.
You can then adjust your parameters to select your best flight based on times, layovers, baggage, etc.
The sites also offer the option to compare to other flight deal sites, like Expedia and Priceline, so you know where the best deal is.
Kayak works similarly; with flexible dates, the ability to narrow down your flight, and compare to other sites.
Skyscsanner has a powerful tool that finds you the cheapest flight possible. It’s the view whole month tool and the cheapest month tool.
This tool is powerful! It allows you to know the best time to travel for a cheap flight during the entire year.
For the same Denver to Berlin example I was using earlier, I quickly found tickets for less than $280.
Flexible with location
Being flexible with where you go is an amazing way to score a cheap flight.
You will always be able to find a good deal on a flight if you are not particular about where you go. Some of the best deals I have bought were times when I was willing to go where ever I found a good deal to.
For example, I just bought $300 tickets to Barcelona because I cared less about where I went than just going on a trip for a good deal.
There are a few great websites that really help you find great deals if you are flexible in location.
I LOVE this guy. He makes it almost effortless to find amazing cheap flights.
You sign up FOR FREE and you get an email whenever they find a great deal on a flight. The email will have instructions about how to buy the flight on sites like Google Flights or Momondo.
If you want the very best deals and mistake fares (when airlines put in the wrong price on accident), buy the premium membership. It’s only $50 a year and is 100% worth it because it will pay for itself many times over in one ticket.
It’s also very cool that they don’t make money off of the flights they send you. It’s all about just getting people great deals to see the world. Which I love because that’s why I started this blog in the first place.
Here is an example email:
Allows you open both the times AND destinations to max flexibility.
Yep. I chose from “United States”, to “Anywhere”, when “All upcoming months”.
My cheap flight searching mind is blown.
This is also a great place to find mistake fares.
Use the “explore” feature on flight discount sites
I have a whole post all about how you can use this super money saving trick.
Kayak.com has my favorite explore feature because it lets you see a visual map of everywhere you can go with your budget.
Say I want to go on an a cool trip but only can spend $500 on a flight. I decide my absolute parameters (such as price, timing, departure airport, stops, etc.) and look what is available.
By setting my parameters of price and departure airport, I quickly found a flight to Beijing for $333 roundtrip!
I like to play around with the parameters a little to see what other good deals are available. For example, I know flights from Denver to Vegas or LAX are usually cheap, so I check flights departing from there also.
Momondo also lets you choose a flight to anywhere.
Consider flying to a different destination first
It may be cheaper to fly into a different destination first and then travel to your actual destination. This is especially true if your fly in destination is a much bigger airport than your actual destination airport. Bigger airports have more flights that come and go, and therefore usually have cheaper flights.
Places like Europe are great for this because there are so many airports close together. There is also great infrastructure, so it’s easy and reasonable prices to grab a train or drive.
For example, when we wanted to go to Paris, we flew in to Amsterdam. We then took a train (which is much more comfortable than an airplane) into Paris. The countryside and Brussels were beautiful as we went through. We came back from Paris a few days early so that we could have a few days in Amsterdam also. It was cheaper and we got to see two different places!
Another example, Scottscheapflights send tickets that are great deals but don’t fly out of an airport near me. If I do the math, it is sometimes still a cheap deal if I buy another ticket to that airport from my home airport.
In recap: be flexible with when you go, where you go, and maybe both if you’re up for an adventure on a tight budget!
Great cheap travel potential here guys! How have you been flexible and found great flights?
2 comments
$280 Denver to Berlin. YES PLEASE!! Once you are in Europe it becomes super cheap to fly from one country to another. 🙌🏻
100%. Make your transocean flight the one you worry the most about, it’s the expensive one. If you need little flights to get to your real destination or to leave from the cheapest airport, you still can get a great deal! Just do the math beforehand. 👍