Flying can be a necessity as well as a luxury. Some people need to fly for business, while others fly to visit family or simply go on vacation somewhere. The problem with flying is it’s incredibly expensive and only getting more so with every passing day. Most people have just accepted the fact that they are going to have to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars to fly to destinations. The truth is that in many instances, people can be flying much cheaper than they are now. There’s several methods which can allow for cheap flights. Now, it should be noted that not every method is going to work for every person or for every flight. People with structured needs may struggle to find the discounts others can, as flexibility is often one of the best things for saving some money.
Make Use of the Budget Airlines
Some people wonder why some airlines can afford to offer incredibly inexpensive flights while others are hundreds of dollars more. It comes down to weight and budgeting. Discount flights tend to account for only the person in their seat. They take out any luggage from the equation. In this way, it’s much less expensive fuel wise to fly someone from destination to destination. In Europe, you can often get prices under $100 for flights if you have no baggage. The United States is rarely that low, but airlines like Spirit, JetBlue and Southwest offer a large number of highly discounted flights.
Why aren’t everyone flying on them then? It’s the cuts that are needed to get to those prices. Adding checked baggage comes with large fees and even carry on baggage often has a large additional fee. Other amenities onboard like food and snacks are often cut back to the most minimal amounts as well.
Regular flyers who need to fly often to a destination may decide that it’s not worth it for them to have to add all of the baggage fees. For someone who is consistently going to the same destination for something like business, it may be worth it to bring a suitcase and store it at the destination in a locker. Simply clean the clothing while there and then store it again before your return trip. These consistent fees can add up, so this can save hundreds. If you can fly light with minimal luggage, discount airlines can be a great choice.
Try for Vacation Flexibility
Many people know that flights will drop in price drastically when they are not selling enough tickets. While this can happen months in advance, it’s more likely to occur in the last week or two before they take off. No airline wants to send a flight up with an empty seat, so will discount heavily.
Making a last minute trip plan, or flying standby can offer some really cheap flights. The problem is that your destination may be more expensive than you had expected if you’re not careful. You only want to fly last minute if you’re adept with finding an appropriate hotel at a reasonable rate at your destination and if you don’t have particular plans lined up for a vacation.
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The internet unsurprisingly has a large number of resources to assist people with finding discount flights. While it can be tempting to just check a travel website and assume that’s the cost, looking for more sources can produce results. Avoid airlines too. They tend to offer watered down discounts that they try to make seem great. They often inflate the “regular” price too so that it seems like you’re getting a deal. Look for blogs or websites that focus on a single airport. This may sound odd, but if you’re flying out of an area, you want something that is more focused on the airport you fly from specifically. A great deal on the other side of the country is pointless. Many airports will have blogs or other websites dedicated to finding great deals. These may be limited time or could be on any airline, but will undoubtedly save a huge sum of money.
