How to find cheap flights
When people ask me how I find cheap flights, it’s a variety of ways to find them. I use Google Flights mainly, but am also super flexible with my dates. I’ll fly to another airport to fly from there way cheaper. I’ve saved close to $3000 on 4 trips by being selective about my flights. Here are my tips for finding cheap flights:
Tip #1: Know When to Buy
You’ll read that Tuesday afternoons are the best days to buy, but there is no set day or time when flights are cheaper. Prices vary based on demand. However, you can see how the prices fluctuate if you look at tickets from a month view like you can on Google Flights. Being flexible with your dates is key to finding a cheap flight as I’ve seen prices fluctuate by over $200 if you leave on a Wednesday instead of a Friday.
Tip #2: Take advantage of search engines
There are so many search engines out there to utilize. Skyscanner, Google Flights, kayak, Kiwi, etc. all have their merits; however, Google Flights and kiwi are my favorite. I love these because you can see how the dates fluctuate from a high-level, and you don’t need a specific destination in mind. You can simply put which airport you want to fly out of and type in “Europe” or “South America” and it will show you the cheapest dates and locations from your airport.
Tip #3: Learn how to use Google Flights
I said earlier that Google Flights is my favorite, and I truly believe it is the best option there is for finding cheap flights. It’s user friendly, intuitive, and a clean website. You can search multiple departures and destinations at a time to optimize finding cheap flights. Here are my top 3 tips for using Google Flights:
Be flexible with your dates. You can search on Google Flights by month view, and toggle at the bottom how long your trip will be. This will drastically change your prices. Typically, the longer you go, the cheaper the flight.
Search multiple destinations. If you live in a city with multiple airports, you can search prices from all of those airports, or even just type in “New York City” from departure and you’ll see prices from each airport in that area. Also, check destinations like Dublin, London, or Amsterdam since they have flights there often. Once you’re in Europe, it is so easy to hop around on a budget airline or train. This is mostly true for everywhere except the United States. So just getting to the same area, will typically help you get to your final destination cheaper.
Use Discover Destinations. If you simply want a vacation, but don’t have a set place in mind, use this tool. You can search by general area, interests, and/or dates. Great for those who just want a beach trip and don’t care where the beach is :)
** Be mindful of the length of your flight. Sometimes flights will be cheaper because it is a 33 hour journey when it should only take about 12 hours. If this is the case, try toggling the length of your trip or find a different airport for your departure/arrival. Keep messing around until you find that cheap flight!
Tip #4: Sign up for Airfare Deals Subscriptions
I use Scott’s Cheap Flights and LOVE them. I’ve been able to go to Poland for $500 from Chicago, Berlin for $371 from Mem, and have shared with my friends resulting in $400 flights to Rome from Memphis and $300 flights to Paris from Memphis. Scott’s Cheap Flights has 2 options for subscriptions: a free service and a premium subscription. I have the premium subscription and it is worth it. It’s $49/year and I’ve already saved that amount and way more by using their subscription. The free service will send you deals from random airports, while the premium subscription allows you to pick your airports.
Tip #5: One way vs Round trip
Sometimes purchasing 2 one way tickets instead of a round trip ticket is cheaper. I did this for my Mexico trip and saved about $250. You can also look at open-jaw flights, which means you fly into one city and fly out of another. If you aren’t sure of a return date, I’d find the cheapest RT flight and then pay the $200 change fee to change the departure date. If you use Scott’s Cheap Flights, you can find some killer deals and even with the change fee, it’ll still be cheaper than a typical ticket.
Tip #6: Check alternate airports
One of my favorite tips is flying from your city into a larger one to find cheaper flights. For example, I can fly to Chicago or NYC for around $200-250, and then from those 2 cities to Europe for under $500. Thus making my entire trip around $700-800 whereas I’m looking at a minimum of $1100 from Memphis to anywhere in Europe. Or, I could drive to Nashville (3 hours away) and either fly to Dublin direct for around $700 and catch a flight on Ryanair (their budget airline) to anywhere in Europe for around $30. Or I can fly Nashville to Boston for around $100-120, then fly to Europe for under $500. Some don’t want to do the extra hopping around, but if you are genuinely wanting to find a cheap flight, this is my preferred way of doing that.
PSA: if you buy 2 separate tickets like I mention in tip #6 and your first flight is cancelled or delayed and you cannot make your second flight, they will not help you the way they would if you missed a connection on a single ticket. I haven’t had this happen to me, but I always try to budget for additional time and try not to book flights during the winter when snow might be an issue. I also try to stick to airports where I could drive to it if necessary.
I would also like to point out that while we should all be cognizant of our carbon footprint, airplanes only account for about 2% of the world’s carbon emissions. While I am all for being aware of your carbon footprint, it is not feasible for the average person to sail to every destination. Instead, I encourage you all to find other ways to off-set your carbon footprint. Whether that is eliminating single use plastics on your trip, recycling your clothes, using a refillable water bottle, or finding another way to be green, please do so! If you have any green tips for travelers, drop them in the comments below :)
I hope these tips helped, and if you are still confused or overwhelmed, e-mail me and I can help! All hail cheap flights!