Do not be a sucker that ends up paying exorbitant amounts of money for last minute vacations or business travel. You can find deals if you only know where to look.
Avoid Peak Traveling Times
One of the biggest ways to save yourself some dollars on last minute vacations is to not travel during popular travel periods. Holidays and ideal vacation months such as March and April (Spring Break months) as well as summer months are going to be the most expensive, especially at the last minute. And price increases do not only occur in airfare, but hotels, cruises, and rental cars as well. It can put a real damper on your last minute vacations if it costs you twice as much.
Look Out for Last Minute Deals
Airlines are often times scrambling at the last minute to fill flights, and those of you on last minute vacations can benefit from this as well. Just as there are those trying to plan last minute vacations, there are people who are canceling at the last minute as well. Hotels, cruise ships, and rental car companies are also cutting deals because they lose money for every seat or bed they cannot fill.
Use the Internet
The World Wide Web has made a lot of things easier, including planning last minute vacations and finding great deals for them. For last minute vacations, you should browse through for different flight prices, including using consolidator sites such as Hotwire and Priceline. These sites offer ticket prices as close to wholesale prices as possible. And the best day to book flights for your last minute vacations is on Wednesday, when specials are released. The ideal time is Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning when airline computers are loaded with fresh new deals for last minute vacations and any reserved tickets not purchased with their “24 hour window” are released.
Choose Your Days and Times Wisely
Typically Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays cost less than weekend days in most situations. Also, airlines will offer cheaper fares if your last minute vacations include staying over at least one Saturday. If at all possible, avoid flying on Fridays, as airlines are known to jack up prices for this day and especially for people planning last minute vacations or business travel. Another great way to save money on last minute vacations is to be willing to fly on red-eye flights. These flights are generally those that depart between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time, or those that arrive after 12:30 a.m. local time (regardless of when they departed). If you are able to sleep on the plane, these flights are definitely helpful for last minute vacations, as they usually arrive in the morning and leave you the whole day to spend vacationing.
Flight and Hotel Packages
Buying your flight and hotel together is not only convenient when planning your last minute vacations, but can also save you a bundle. Web sites such as Hotwire and Priceline offer package deals with flight and hotel (and sometimes even car rental) that are routinely cheaper than purchasing your flight and hotel separately for last minute vacations.
By Monica Drusch