I always wondered what were the tricks to cheap flights? Was it having a buddy pass? Working as a flight attendant? or COVID (you know before, anyone knew what would happen). While, those are all things that could get you cheap flights. I’ve found over time these hacks Im sharing today have helped me get some steals to get away.
In this post i’m giving you all my hacks I use, to get cheap flights. Through my experience with my brothers ‘last minute’ flights to my ‘get me out this country flights’ and ‘I just need to save coin’ moments . I’ve found all these tricks have helped me secure flights for the low low.
Apps
- SkyScanner
If you haven’t read ‘My Favourite Travel Apps’, I talk about this app here. Basically, it’s a great tool to have to secure cheap flights. The only con is: You will typically get flights with layovers.
2. Hopper
This App is basically a two-for one, I love Hopper! I use this religiously and i mean RELIGIOUSLY. This app predicts prices for flights and hotels, with 95% accuracy up to 1 year in advance. It also shows you the dates where flights are the most expensive. This helps me with my planning process which I talk about in this post (See Number #1) on “How to Start a Solo Adventure’
General Hacks
- Fly Budget
Honestly, a lot of people are afraid to fly budget but to me the risks are equal in comparison to bigger airlines.
Below is a list of budget Airlines:
2. Don’t Always Fly Direct
Not only does it help to be flexible with dates and destinations but being flexible with the route you take is another way to get a cheap flights. For example, sometimes it’s cheaper to fly to a major city than search for another flight. See an example below
I did precisely this when I was going to Bali. The flight from the CA was $1300 CAD, but I could fly to Thailand for $700 and get a $60 flight to Bali (round-trip). It meant more flying time, but savings were added to food and activities that my girl Alexis made me do lol.
To use this method, send me a comment or email and I’ll help you through the process.
3. Newsletters
Before you start looking for specific lights, make sure you’ve signed up for some newsletters. As annoying as it can be, when you know you’re going to be travelling soon I recommend signing up so that you don’t miss any deals.
**HACK – Secret Flying is a great tool I use to find cheap flights and deals. You can also catch nice 5-day specials from time to time.
4. Search Multiple Sites
Honestly, not all sites are the same and sometimes they can search you over. Below are my top three for flight searching:
5. Search Incognito
Now, some people say this is a myth but honestly, not for me! It has taken me a long time to figure this out but I realized the longer you use the same browser, same sites they track your interest. Much like an Algorithm therefore, they KNOW you want this flight and when time is ticking eventually you’ll select whatever is available.
By using Incognito, I’ve been able to snag some cheap flights without the computer jacking up the price.
6. Take Advantage of Discounts
Typically, companies/ employeers may have a ‘discount’ for their employee’s. Dont pass this up, as a Teacher I commonly look at the discounts and monitor what is available to me.
For Students, (or if you’re under 26) here are many, many discounts available to you. You can usually find prices 20-30% off the standard fare. Travel agencies usually offer this at times. So just take a quick look at those options.
7. Use Points and Miles
I rarely use this (Credit Card Point Wise), but it is worth mentioning to check your Airmiles card. The KEY to this I found is making sure your Air-miles card is set-up to add points to your *Travel* points verses Free Items, etc.
8. Book Early But Not Too Early
Play it smart! I like to think of finding flights as playing Russian roulette. Airline fares will keep rising the closer you get to departure, but there is a sweet spot when the airlines begin to either lower or increase fares based on demand. Don’t wait until the last second but don’t book far, far in advance either.
9. Book between Monday-Wednesday
Airlines post new prices on Monday. Book your flight Monday-Wednesday because price changes come after Wednesday into the weekend. Usually for the worse, lol.
10. Check your fly out dates.
Flying out Tuesday/Thursday and returning Sunday, Tuesday, or Wednesday are the cheapest days to fly, typically.
Thank you so much for reading, and I’ll see you in my next post.
Don’t forget to leave a comment, xoxo.
