Are you your family’s travel planner? I am currently hunting for the best airfare for my son’s spring break (to Maui) flights. And I’m afraid I waited too long. Wow, are they ever pricey.
So that got me wondering, what are some tricks to get the best airfare?
Plan Ahead
Sometimes I get lucky and find last-minute deals on airfare. However, more often than not I catch the best deal by starting my planning process early. Once we have approximate plans (location, rough dates), I start looking at fares. I usually have a $ value in my head ~ once it gets close, I book.
Another thing I do is make sure my seats are selected and luggage (if we plan on checking) is paid for. I’ve found luggage is often cheaper if prepaid rather than waiting til check-in time. Of course, some loyalty plans include free luggage, so that always factors into my decision-making also.
Be flexible
Flying on the weekend is almost always more money. You can typically save on airfare by flying on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.
Get creative with your route
Direct flights are definitely best, but sometimes flights with layovers are significantly cheaper. I catch myself shopping for the same route (with same or similar layovers), or the same airline (airmiles definitely a consideration). Try searching on Kayak or Google Flight Search to see what other airlines fly to your destination of choice and if a layover in different city makes a difference on the price. Keep in mind, not all airlines will be shown on the aggregators (like Southwest).
Don’t book a round-trip ticket
Don’t book a round-trip ticket, book two 1-way tickets so it’s easier to make a change if one of the legs goes down in price and you want to cancel and rebook or do a price match.
Check your loyalty points
Maintain miles with several airlines, there are often perks. Check your airmiles or points. Any chance you have enough to cover the flight, or at least part of it?
Here are a few extra pointers, things I’ve learned the hard way in my family travel planning.
Book all legs of your flight on the same airline
Don’t get too creative. You could get in real trouble if there are delays or flight cancellations. Once I booked the first leg of my trip on United (IAH-LAX), the second on Hawaiian Airlines (on points) (LAXOGG). I had planned a 4-hour layover at LAX which should have been plenty. Nope, that United flight ended up being 4 1/2 hours delayed and Hawaiian left without me. I ended up spending the night at LAX and paying a fee to reinstate my points for the missed Hawaiian flight and for another ticket the next day. Legally United didn’t have to help me at all, they had delivered me to LAX, albeit late. I did get lucky, a kind customer service agent comped me a hotel room and a couple meal vouchers. Sometimes it pays to be friendly and not freak out.
Double-check the airport details
Have a layover? Have you accounted for enough time to get to your next gate? Just because the airline lets you buy a flight with a 45-minute layover, doesn’t mean you will make your connection. Are you flying internationally? Do you have enough time to clear customs (a big one when flying from the US into Canada, for instance.)
Don’t get carried away with booking that deal
Pre-Covid this would happen a lot. Airlines would add flights closer to Christmas, perhaps unaware that accommodation was filling up fast. Then a few weeks prior to Christmas they would slash prices as they had half-empty planes. Every year we’d see people with cheap tickets frantically trying to find a last-minute opening within their budget. Know your budget, and double-check the availability of in-budget accommodations before buying that deal of a flight (and vice-versa). Incidentally, I still look for those lastminute pre-Christmas airfare deals. They haven’t been as prevalent in recent years.
Consider the time of flight departure and arrival
Check the flight departure and arrival times and the length of any layovers. Nothing is more miserable than having to wait around in an airport for your next flight, to be able to check in to your accommodations… Remember to check your flight for delays before heading to the airport too.
By the way, have you used the MyTSA app? You can look up current and estimated TSA wait times which helps plan how early you need to arrive at the airport (keep in mind, things can always go awry). Pretty neat.
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What tips do you have? I would love some additional advice! Especially as I try to figure out these spring break flights. Check out my tips for finding the best rental car rate. Remember, to get the best deal on your vacation rental, always book directly (on our website or by email to me) and save the 15+% service fee on Vrbo and Airbnb.