As you budget for your next travel adventure, you've probably noticed that flights tend to be one of the most expensive. Air travel can be costly, but the good news is, it doesn't have to be!
While prices may fluctuate, there are small and simple steps you can take that'll end up saving you big bucks. And let's be honest, who doesn't like saving money?
Keep reading to find out the tried and true ways to save the big bucks and find cheap flights anywhere you wanna go!
How can I find cheap flights?
This seemingly simple answer can be quite complex to answer, so let's break it down into biteable chunks.
Once you've figured out where you're traveling and when, the first step for you to take is to start looking at the prices.
One of the easier ways to find cheap flights is to be flexible about when you're traveling. Summer travel or travel in December (especially over Christmas and New Year's) will come with a significantly higher price tag. That being said, the best way to find cheap flights is generally online!
Before we dive into the best websites to check, there are some general tips to help you find cheap flights:
- The more flexible you are with your dates, the more likely you are to find a great deal
- If you can shop around for destinations, one airport might be cheaper than another
- Go with budget airlines if it's a short flight, or if you don't mind the compromise in comfort!
- Book your flight early - prices go up the closer to departure you get!
Taking these steps should save you quite a bit in ticket costs already, but if you're here, it's most likely you've already followed them to no avail.
Don't worry and keep reading, for we've got more tips to spill!
What websites can I use to find cheap flights?
When it comes to finding cheap flights, you have so many options from which to choose out there.
If you're a student, you can use sites like StudentUniverse to find deals and cheap flights worldwide. They offer exclusive fares to students, and you can filter flights by quickest, most affordable, and overall best routes to get to your destination.
If you can be flexible with your dates, Google Flights is an excellent tool to start your research. You'll be able to see what dates offer the cheapest fares so you can save the most money! You can head directly to the airline's website to book the cheapest dates!
Airlines occasionally run deals or fare specials that you can take advantage of directly through the airline.
To get notified of these, be sure that you've subscribed to any alerts from airlines you like to use and have joined their rewards program if you can. Otherwise, other top websites to check out include:
AirFareWatchDog
Unlike automated websites that search the internet using an algorithm, AirFareWatchDog has real employees looking out for error fares and discount deals. They track trends so that you can see any trends, and you can even set up alerts so you'll be the first to know of any price drops.
Expedia
You've probably heard Expedia in travel ads and on our blog several times, but they can help you get great flight deals! You can filter specifically for flight deals they currently have or search your route to see what options are the cheapest!
Skyscanner
Well reviewed by fellow travelers, Skyscanner allows you to input your travel details, and it will pull up all the flight options, including the cheapest and the fastest options. It easily shows you what airlines you would be flying and any restrictions the tickets may have. They also have labels for "greener choice" flights, where emissions are lower!
Skyscanner even has a choice to say you want to travel "everywhere" to see the cheapest flights to any destination.
For more insight on top websites to find general travel deals, check out our blog post here!
How can you find cheap flights for spontaneous travel?
Just because you might have flexible dates doesn't mean you don't want to get any sweet travel deals!
Traveling with flexible dates can make it a little harder to nail down any date-specific deals, but it can give you more freedom to find the cheapest fares.
In addition to all the sites we've mentioned, you can use TravelZoo to find last-minute travel deals. They specialize in finding last-minute travel deals, so if you're flexible with dates and destinations, you can sometimes get a fantastic deal! If you want to learn more about Travelzoo, we've got an in-depth review you can read!
If you're able to book flights as soon as deals crop up for any date, or even any destination, consider subscribing to some email lists, such as:
Scott's Cheap Flights
Scott's Cheap Flights is an email list where you can subscribe to get deals straight to your inbox! You select your airport of origin, and then you'll receive any fare errors or deals on flights departing from that airport. You can even tailor the emails based on where in the world you'd like to travel. You typically only have a few days to book, so you must be ready to purchase the fare if you see one you want!
Jack's Flight Club
If you're hoping to find cheap fares within the UK, Ireland, and Northern Europe, Jack's Flight Club is your subscription service! While this might not help you get to your destination if you live outside of Northern Europe, it can be great for inter-continent travel and cheap flights within Europe!
Dollar Flight Club
Dollar Flight Club offers deals delivered to your email for international flights if you're willing to pay for a premium subscription service. You can select a home airport and receive alerts whenever there's a price drop in flights from that airport.
How to find cheap flights to Europe?
If you're looking to travel cheap for your next Europe trip, you might be wondering how you can find cheap flights to get there. If cost is your priority, you can go about this one of two ways. You can either start with a destination and search for the cheapest fare or the cheapest destination for your dates.
If you're set on starting in a specific destination, start with Google Flights to see when it might be cheapest to fly. If you don't have any flexibility with your dates, you can still use Google Flights to see which airline will offer the cheapest route.
If you're visiting multiple cities in Europe, try the Google Flights method for every city you want to visit to see if one may be cheaper to fly into or out of when you leave. It can take time to track it all, but you can sometimes save loads by changing your arrival and departure cities!
Once in Europe, you can check out airlines like RyanAir, EasyJet, Vueling, or TAPAir for cheap fares. Be sure to check out baggage restrictions, and add on costs for those cheap fares, though!
Start saving big by planning early!
Now that you've gotten a flight with a great deal, you can start planning the rest of your trip!
If you plan on purchasing your ticket ahead of time to save money, make sure you use Pilot to save your travel tickets, itineraries, and documents all in once place!
