‘I wish traveling the world was free’- a line often shared by many people who wish to travel.
If we end up asking these people, ‘What’s stopping you from traveling the world?’ A common answer will be MONEY. Yes, of course, one can’t easily travel for free.
But proper planning and optimization will make the travel economical. To go on a holiday, the most expensive part will be the flights and accommodation. Affordable airfare is no more a dream.
In this post, I will give my suggestions on finding cheap flights based on my experience as well as a few inputs from my friends. It will guide you on How to save on flights.
This post is addressed to those who wish to travel economically and not for luxurious travelers.
Remember that cheap and best never meet.
Blog Contents
Booking cheap flights
The two best websites to book flights are Skyscanner and Google flights. Both provide users to search for Cheap flight comparisons. One can find several Low-cost air travel flights on these two websites.
Once you select a route, the website redirects you to the airline’s original website or a third-party/agent. All flight searches should be done in the INCOGNITO window as the best flight discounts can be found in this mode.
Step 1: Enter your details in Skyscanner/Google Flights
Log into Skyscanner and enter the departure city, date. Leave the destination location open and proceed with the search.
Now the search result displays a list of all possible countries you can travel from your city. The results are by default listed from lowest to highest price.
The open search option makes Skyscanner the best flight search tool in the world.
Step 2: Enter your favorite country/city
Click on any one country you wish to travel to. Once again a list pops out with various cities you can travel to that particular country. Select a city according to your budget. This is the most important Cheap flight hack.
Step 3: Enter your travel dates/month
Now that you have successfully shortlisted your budget-friendly travel destination, click the option of ‘Entire month‘.
This option displays the price chart for the entire month. Once you confirm your travel dates, proceed with the search once again.
Step 4: Select your desired flight
Now all possible flight options between 2 cities are listed. In general, early morning and late-night flights are the cheapest as fewer people prefer this option. Select your desired flight
Step 5: Book with your favorite travel agent or directly through the airline
A list with all possible booking options occurs. Try booking on the airline’s official website. It is best to book tickets directly on the airline’s original website but most of the time the prices are a little higher.
Third-party online agents such as Flugladen, cheap tickets, last-minute offers for the same tickets at a lower price. The reason is that they don’t assist in case of lost baggage, ticket cancellation, and rebooking.
So go for these agents if you are sure about the travel dates and read all the terms and regulations.
I have used Flugladen a couple of times and didn’t face any problems. If the booking is through a third party, then all dealing should be through them not direct with the airline.
Also sometimes, third-party online travel services don’t update the ticket fares. When you click, a new price pops up. In that case, try once again with other combinations.
Step 6: Complete the booking
Proceed with booking. Remember to skip add-ons like a meal, seat selection, extra baggage, etc. Congrats on the successful booking 👏🏻
Instead of entering a city name, you can also enter a country name in the departure airport and go ahead with an open search. This option is very useful in smaller countries as many airports are in a few hundred km range.
Google Flights also offer almost 80 – 90% of the same services offered by Skyscanner.
Tip: Trustpilot helps the user to find reviews about a particular website. Just enter your desired website and look for the ratings and reviews.
Before you try booking a flight, please read my tips to book cheap flights. They show 8 Secrets to booking cheap flights that allow you to travel on a budget
Follow the steps mentioned, you can easily end up with the best deal.
Happy journey!!
”Book a ticket, get a visa, pack a bag, and it just happens.”- Alex Garland