While many travel websites advertise the deals they offer, you have to ask yourself if a bargain is really being offered. It’s worth your time to search around and truly find the best deals out there. Make sure to take into account your needs. If you’re looking for service, be prepared to pay a little more. If you don’t care about bells and whistles, you’re bound to find great deals if you take the time to do so. It can be tricky to find travel deals on airline flights, hotels, or car rentals, but by keeping a few tricks of the trade in mind, you should be able to avoid being tricked into a not-so-hot “bargain.”
Shop around for deals
Would you lock into a mortgage rate with only one quote from one bank? Probably not. Then why would you spend $300 - $700 of your money on an airline ticket, yet only consider one vendor? Travel deals on airline fares can vary widely between the airline itself, travel agencies, and online websites. For whatever reason, airlines seem to offer the highest prices on their tickets, leaving travel agencies or online dealers to offer better deals.
Advertised deals do not usually include taxes and fees
If taxes and fees were really included in the advertisement, travel deals on airline fares would not seem like that much of a bargain. In some cases, such as for overseas flights, taxes, security fees, and individual airport fees can cost as much as half of your round-trip ticket (or, as much as you’re paying to go one way).
One or two passengers?
Check the price for both. While it makes sense that it would be less expensive to purchase multi passenger tickets in a bunch, the quoted price may be higher than for a single passenger.
Additional tips
- Fly at off-peak times; airplanes won’t be so full and the airlines will be in need of your patronage.
- Limit your travel days to during the week.
- If you’re flying domestically, check out the airline prices offered by some of the smaller airlines (e.g., Midwest Express or Southwest Airlines).
- Check online fares at 15 minutes past midnight. This is when tickets that were put on hold during the past day are released and deals are juiciest.
- Sometimes you may receive deals for booking all of your travel plans at once. For instance, at www.cheapfares.com, you can book your airline flight right along with your hotel reservation.
Online deals
Buying airline tickets online is a good idea when:
- You need a last minute ticket.
- You want to save a lot of money, at the risk of buying a non-refundable ticket.
- You want a good deal. Some websites offer deals on airline fares, but you may not know your departure or arrival times or your seat assignment until after the ticket is bought.
- Most deals purchased online are either non-refundable or partially refundable. You may be left in the lurch if an emergency arises and causes you to miss your flight.
If these conditions do not bother you, and the travel deals are appealing to you, plan away!
By Virginia Zignego