anyone with secrets on how to get cheap airfare? (Paris, hostels, airlines)
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I would love to be able to travel. Pretty much anywhere and everywhere is what I'd like to see.
At my current job I am allowed plenty of time off so finding the time to go somewhere isn't a problem. Once I get to wherever I'm going, I know how to be budget concious. I don't mind (actually prefer) staying in hostels, using public transportation if not walking etc.
Of course, I have to get there first and if "there" is overseas, the plane is the most likely way to go.
I know that there are "secrets" with finding cheap airfare. (ie when to go, where to go etc) I want to find out what some of them are.
I use to know quite a few "secrets" but that was before all these new security measures. I know some of them could still be used to day, such as taking a "red-eye" flight in the middle of the week but I'm not sure about others.
I don't know about all the secrets, but I personally found that flying out of Tampa is cheaper than flying out of Bradenton. I guess the same is true on the other end of the equation. Flying into larger airports is almost always cheaper...or it seems that way.
Location: God's Gift to Mankind for flying anything
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Te best *secret* is to get a job, however menial, with a commercial airline .....
I know it works, because I have a friend who *had* a very good job, then early retired and now works for an Airline Company as a desk agent, at less than 25% then what he used to earn.
He flies all over the planet ....
There are no huge secrets, just the obvious - be flexible with both your dates of departure and selection of embarkation/disembarkation airports. Choosing red eye flights and midweek flights is part of the obvious. Then choose a website with a good airline search engine (any will do, they all have the same publicized airline rates in spite of what the commercials say) to check these flexible options. You will save $100's of dollars by just being flexible.
It's cheaper to fly on Tues Wed and sometimes Thursday.
The search engine "bing" has a travel section that can advise you to buy or wait. (I recent took the advise and saved over $400.00 on two tickets).
Sign up for Southwest Airlines "ding" Sometimes they have specials.
I also will use seach engines to see who's the cheapest then go directly to the airline's website to buy. For two reasons....
1) Most of the time the rates will be lower.
2) If for any reason you have to change or cancel...you will only have the airline's change/cancellation fee to pay. If you use expedia, travelocity ect...they also have a fee.
Always click the "flexible dates" and the "surrounding airports".
Some hubs are cheaper to fly into, like London or Cancun. Cancun can offer some really cheap flights and you don't have to stay there--watch the Sunday papers for those. The best way to save on flights though is to stay longer in any one place. If you're going to buy a ticket to Oz, for instance, then stay at least 3 months and try to work while there, or save money by wwoofing.
Some of my deals
Los Angeles (LAX) to London Heathrow nonstop roundtrip for $750; ticket purchased in Apr 08, flew out last week June 08
LAX to Frankfurt, Germany 1 stop roundtrip for $500; ticket purchased in May 09 flew out last week June 09.
The key is to be very flexible on dates and to constantly check this website daily. Some deals will get sold out in hours. Be flexible in the city you fly into. I have never had success with orbitz or expedia for cheap international flights. Just because you buy far in advance does not mean you will get a bargain, especially in this economy.
Some of my deals
Los Angeles (LAX) to London Heathrow nonstop roundtrip for $750; ticket purchased in Apr 08, flew out last week June 08
LAX to Frankfurt, Germany 1 stop roundtrip for $500; ticket purchased in May 09 flew out last week June 09.
The key is to be very flexible on dates and to constantly check this website daily. Some deals will get sold out in hours. Be flexible in the city you fly into. I have never had success with orbitz or expedia for cheap international flights. Just because you buy far in advance does not mean you will get a bargain, especially in this economy.
Days of the week: best time I've found is mid-day saturday, for both departure and return. I think because most people either want to already be wherever they are going by Saturday afternoon, or don't want to return until Sunday evening. Of course if you are traveling to other continents, this becomes complicated because departure time is different than arrival time. And I would always recommend not arriving too late in the evening, particularly on a Saturday night--its hard to get your bearings in a strange city in the dark, and if there are any issues with your trip, the airline office, the banks, and the consulate will not be open the next day.
and Bing Travel Bing has 'farecaster' technology which will predict whether or not the fares for a particular itenerary is likely to increase or decrease, helping you get the best possible fares for the trip you want. It will also tell you by how much the fare is likely to decrease, helping you decide whether or not its worth waiting for a cheaper fare. It only works for certain destinations, unfortunately, but still worth a try.
And always look at 'hubs' for particular airlines. For example, for the US - London you might look at American Airlines via Raleigh-Durham to Gatwick.
Stepka - regarding that travel website - I just did a search on Newark to London for a flight 3 weeks from now. The price in highlighted font stated $305 - but take a look to the right and see the taxes and fees - the total price of the ticket is $686.05. That is pretty steep. Also, you get a direct flight outbound, but on the inbound there was 2 stops. I could get a non-stop ticket from the Continental site for $594.
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Once I get to wherever I'm going, I know how to be budget concious. I don't mind (actually prefer) staying in hostels, using public transportation if not walking etc.
