12 Simple tips for always finding cheap flights!

For most tourists, airfares are the most expensive part of a trip. Although transatlantic flight prices have decreased in recent years, they remain a significant expense for any travel budget. Whether you're accustomed to travelling alone for business or organising family holidays, finding a good deal on flights can greatly help reduce your budget!

If flights seem too expensive, you might constantly postpone your trip and put a lifelong dream on hold.

Yet, every day, airlines release great offers – from mistakenly published fares to special promotions and price reductions to compete with other companies. Cheap fares exist and can make your dream trip a reality, if you just know where to look! A good solution is to always start with travelo.gr

Here's how to find cheap flights. Follow the steps below and you'll never pay more than other passengers!

Here's how to find a cheap flight, regardless of your destination:

# Ignore the Myths

The first thing to know about finding cheap flights is that there isn't a magic formula or secret trick. There are many myths online about how to find cheap flights. You've probably come across several of them in your search for the best deal.

All these myths are misleading. Below are the most popular:

– It is NOT cheaper to buy air tickets on Tuesday (or any other specific day).

– There is NO evidence that searching in incognito mode will help you find cheaper deals.

– There is NO specific date or period to book your tickets.

You cannot predict airline prices, and websites that claim to do so are simply making a hypothetical estimation.

Airlines use advanced algorithms and pricing strategies to determine their fares, taking into account factors such as season, demand, weather, major events/festivals, time of day, competitor prices, fuel costs, and much more. The booking system is now highly sophisticated.

# Be Flexible with Your Travel Dates and Times

Flight prices vary greatly depending on the day of the week, the time of year, and upcoming holidays such as Christmas, New Year's Eve, Easter, and popular public holidays. August is a popular month for travel in Europe, and everyone wants to go somewhere warm in winter or travel during school holidays. Simply put, if you want to fly when everyone else is flying, your ticket will be more expensive.

The solution is to travel on dates that are not particularly popular. Look for alternative dates to find the best deal. The more rigid your plans are, the less likely you are to find affordable tickets.

Try to be flexible with your dates. If you want to visit Paris, go in spring or autumn, when there are fewer tourists and airfares are lower.

Furthermore, it's almost always cheaper to fly in the middle of the week than on a weekend, because most people travel on weekends and airlines raise prices then. Prices are cheaper if you fly after or during a major holiday. Early morning or late-night flights are also more economical, because fewer people want to travel at those times (who wants to wake up at dawn?!). Fridays and Mondays are expensive because that's when business travellers fly.

On search engines, click on the date field to view the calendar and you'll immediately see the cheapest months to fly. For example, if you search for flights from Athens to Paris, you'll see that travelling in September, November, or December would cost half of what it would in June or July.

Airlines are not foolish. They know when a festival like the upcoming Olympic Games, a celebration, a holiday, a major sporting event, or school holidays are approaching – and they increase prices accordingly.

Being flexible with your dates and times will save you money.

# Be Flexible with Your Destinations

If you can't be flexible with when you fly, at least be flexible with your destination. Ideally, you should be flexible with both, but if you truly want to save money and find cheap flights, you must be flexible with at least one of them.

Flight search engines have made it very easy to search the entire world to find the cheapest ticket. You no longer need to manually search, city by city, day by day. There are explorer tools that allow you to enter your departure airport and view a global map with all available flights. This allows you to easily compare multiple destinations without having to think of every possible option. You'll probably even find destinations you hadn't considered!

The truth about air tickets is that there's always a deal for some destination – it just might not be your first choice. However, if you're flexible about your destination, you'll always find a good option and save a lot of money.

# Always Look for Special Offers

Before you start looking for specific tickets, make sure you've subscribed to airline newsletters, as this will give you access to the best deals. Of course, 99% of these might not fit your desired itinerary, but keeping an eye on offers will ensure you don't miss an amazing opportunity.

Most of the time, cheap flights are available only for a limited period (usually 24 hours). Additionally, airline newsletters often offer bonuses for frequent flyers. These points and miles can be used for free flights and awesome upgrades.

# Fly with Low-Cost Airlines

In the past, if you wanted to fly between continents, you were mostly forced to choose traditional expensive airlines. This is no longer the case. Today, you can travel almost anywhere in the world with a low-cost airline. They might not be as comfortable and you might have to pay for additional services such as luggage and meals, but they allow you to travel without spending a fortune.

Low-cost airlines primarily serve short and medium-haul routes. While many budget carriers (such as Norwegian Air) phased out long-haul routes during COVID, new companies like PLAY, Norse Atlantic Airways, and French Bee have emerged to fill the gap.

Currently, low-cost airlines operate mainly on regional routes, making it easy to find cheap flights, even in this era of increased prices.

Here is a list of the most affordable airlines worldwide:

European

Vueling / Ryanair / EasyJet / Eurowings / Norwegian Air / Wizz Air / Transavia

Middle East 

Pegasus / flyDubai / Air Arabia

Canada

Flair Airlines / Swoop / Air Canada Rouge / West Jet / Air Transat 

United States 

JetBlue / Frontier / Southwest 

Asia

Air Asia / Hong Kong Express / Spice Jet / Nok Air / Lion Air

Flying with low-cost airlines is a good alternative to traditional major carriers. You might have fewer perks, but you will save significant amounts on the ticket.

Just watch out for fees. That's how they make their profit! Low-cost airlines often charge fees for luggage, carry-on bags, printing boarding passes, using a credit card, and anything else they can charge for. Calculate the total cost of the ticket AND the fees to make sure the price is lower than that of a larger airline.

Also, check the location of the low-cost airline's airport at your destination. These airlines often fly to and from airports quite far from the city, with limited and expensive transport options. For example, the bus to Beauvais airport, the budget airport for Paris, costs 17 EUR one way. If you're flying return, you need to add approximately 34 EUR to your ticket price to see if you're truly saving money.

# Don't Always Fly Direct

Besides being flexible with dates and destinations, it's also good to be flexible with your route. For example, sometimes it's cheaper to fly to London and take a budget flight to Amsterdam than to fly directly to Amsterdam.

You can also check other departure options. Often, it might be cheaper to depart from a nearby airport. For long international flights, it might be worth investing a little more time.

If you book multiple flights to reach your destination, make sure you have at least three hours between connections. This will give you a buffer in case of a delay, as your second flight won't wait for you (assuming you've booked with a different airline).

Leaving a three-hour window will also cover you for an insurance claim, as most insurance companies require you to be delayed by at least 3 hours to be able to make a claim.

This method is more time-consuming, as you have to check different routes and airlines. However, it can significantly reduce your flight costs.

 

# Remember That Not All Search Engines Are Created Equal

To find the best deal, you need to search multiple websites. Many large search sites do not list budget or smaller airlines, as these don't want to pay commissions. Others don't list booking sites that are not in English, while some only display prices directly from the airlines.

In short, not all flight search websites are the same, and all have their pros and cons. With travelo.gr you will find the most economical flights from all airlines operating in Greece!

# Take Advantage of Student Discounts

If you are a student (or under 26 years old), there are many discounts available to you. You can usually find prices 10-20% lower than the regular fare. 

Additionally, remember that most student discounts also apply to airline partners. 

If you're unsure which airlines offer discounts (it's not easy to find this information), visit their website or call them. Taking a little time to save 20% (or even more) is well worth it!

# Mix and Match Airlines

When you book directly with an airline, you'll only be able to fly with that airline and its partners. This means your options will be limited regarding the perfect itinerary or saving money.

Usually, this is sufficient. However, if you want to save more money, try booking your tickets with different airlines. This allows you to find the best deal for each leg of the journey. It's more work, but the savings (and flexibility) are worth it. Many third-party booking sites, such as Kiwi.com, construct trips using various airlines to ensure you get the lowest price.

If you're looking for the lowest possible price and aren't satisfied with what you find on the airline's website, try booking in separate segments. You might find a very good deal!

# Use Points and Miles

Once you decide you want to travel somewhere, you should sign up for a travel credit card. Using points and miles is the number one way avid travellers earn free flights, travel perks, and free hotel stays. Travel credit cards offer large welcome bonuses, credit for common rides like Uber or Lyft, access to airport lounges, travel insurance, and much more.

If you're smart with your money and collect points and miles, you can travel around the world for very little money (and often for free). 

# Search for Single Traveller Ticket Prices

If you're travelling with friends or family, do not search for and buy multiple tickets in a single purchase. Airlines always display the highest ticket price for a group of tickets, which means you'll end up paying more money.

Airlines have many different prices for tickets, based on various factors. They want to sell tickets at the highest possible price point, and when grouping tickets, they always list prices at the highest tier.

For example, if you are a family of four and are looking for four seats, the airline will find four seats together and display your fare based on the highest ticket price. So, if seat A is $200, seats B and C are $300, and seat D is $400, it will price those tickets at $400 each, instead of summing the individual ticket prices. If the price difference is large, this translates to significant additional cost.

For this reason, always search for tickets as a single person. Then, during the payment process, you can choose your seats so that you sit together with your family. And even if you don't end up sitting next to each other, that's a fair trade-off for saving a few hundred pounds.

# Book Early (But Not Too Early)

Airline fares continue to rise as you get closer to the departure date, but there's an ideal point where airlines start either lowering or raising fares depending on demand. Don't wait until the last second, but don't book too early either. The best time to book your flight is about 2-3 months before your departure, or about five months in advance if you're going to your destination during peak season.

This is not a strict rule, but a guideline. Airlines increase prices closer to departure because last-minute travellers are often business people who are not concerned about the price. Therefore, don't book at the last minute!

Finding a cheap flight requires flexibility and creativity. It might take some effort, but deals are out there if you're willing to look. Follow the tips above to get started, but don't spend hours chasing a cheap flight. If you're spending more than an hour booking a flight, you're spending too much time.

Once you find a deal that suits you, book immediately, as prices change constantly. Remember that you have a 24-hour window to cancel your booking if needed.

Even if you're not sure about your plans, it's best to start searching today!