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Finding Cheap Airfare
One of the easiest ways to save money on your trip is to find a great deal on airfare. With airlines and travel companies embracing the internet for it’s efficiency, it’s never been easier to shop
around for your ticket. A little patience and time can go a long way to saving you money.
There are several different strategies for finding great deals on airfare. You just need to know where to look. The good news is that if you’re here, then you’re half way to finding the best
deal out there for your trip. From the traditional to the slightly odd, let’s explore the various sources of finding cheap airfare.
Travel Agents
Travel agents use to be the most popular way for people to book their vacation flights. After all, can it get any easier then having someone else do all the work? Of course not, however travel
agents have many customers, and therefore cannot devote as much time to the search as you. Once you give them your information, they’ll find the best available deal at the time, and offer it to you. But
airfares almost always change on a daily basis. A deal available one day might be matched or bettered by a competing airline. For this reason, it’s best to take this task upon yourself, if you are truly
trying to find the best deal out there. Luckily, the internet has opened the flood gates for great deals accessible through tons of websites.
Airline Sites
Major airlines, and the smaller ones alike, have jumped on the internet and made their fares available to the world. It’s never been easier to find out the cost of a flight, and compare it with
those offered by other airlines. You can access all of the airline sites from one directory, Airlines.com. While all of the airlines offer
searches of their available flights, it’s best to only check out these individual sites if you’re looking for a special deal from a specific airline. Otherwise, you will save a lot of time by checking out a
travel website that will search all of the airlines for the best deal.
Online Travel Sites
These websites offer access to unbelievable amounts of information. Two of the biggest and most popular sites are Microsoft’s Expedia.com, and Orbitz.com which is a joint effort created by five of the major airlines, American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, and United. It’s best to start your search at one of these sites, however don’t be fooled into thinking the lowest price you find on your search is the best available. In fact, while most people take the cheapest ticket they find in their initial searches, with a just a little more time and patience, you can find an even better deal. And just think of the sense of satisfaction you will feel knowing you paid hundreds of dollars less for your ticket then the guy or girl sitting next to you on the plane. Read on!
Consolidators
Consolidators are the budget travelers key to finding the best deals on airfare. The majority of travelers buy their tickets at published fare cost. Since it is the goal of every airline to
fill every flight to it’s maximum capacity, seats that don’t sell at published fare cost are sold to consolidators at a discount. Why do airlines go through consolidators instead of offering these great deals
direclty to the public? The truth is that the airlines do not want your fellow flight companions to be irritated by the fact that they paid hundreds of dollars more for their ticket then you did for yours. AirlineConsolidator.net might be the only site you ever need to
visit hereafter. Remember, airfares change daily. Make sure to start your search early (3 months before departure is a good rule of thumb).
Charters
Chartered flights can be inexpensive, and also rather risky. Take this from the author, who had experienced what it is like for his return flight to change departure times within 48 hours of the
originally scheduled time, thus leaving him and 10-20 others left to buy another trans-Atlantic ticket home. Charter flights are risky because the margin of profitability is so low that it’s common for flight
times to change, or flights to be cancelled completely if the organizer doesn’t sell enough seats to make the flight worthwhile. If you do decide to buy a seat on a chartered flight, be sure to follow any
pre-departure directions very carefully, and call the phone number you are given within the time period specified to confirm flight times, before both departures (if you are taking a round trip flight). You’ve
been warned!
Airhitch
Airhitch is a company geared toward the relaxed traveler. In exchange for inexpensive rates, you must be very flexible in the days, times, cities of departure and arrival. If you’re the kind of person that doesn’t require a lot of structure in life to be happy, then this might be a service you are comfortable using. Read a few Airhitch customer experiences here.
Courier Flights
Feel like earning your cheap (and sometimes free) ticket while providing a valuable service? Then you might want to check out a courier company. Courier companies will use your baggage limit
to ship packages. Therefore, you will only be able to bring gear that will fit in the overhead compartment. But if you’re packing light, that’s what you should be doing anyways. Check out Global Courier Travel to get a feel for how these companies work.
Have you had an experience good or bad using one of the above flight options? Is there a service or company you would like to praise or warn others about? Please submit your experiences here.
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