Every economical traveller has come across the problem of tiring and time-consuming searches for the cheapest flights. Fortunately, this process can be shortened thanks to a few tips that make cheap travelling a lot easier. Remember that in order to save on flights, you always have to put in a bit of effort. However, the opportunity to save hundreds of zloty or euros is worth spending some time on. If you plan your trip early enough, you have a good chance of finding a really cheap flight. This guide is for all those who want to save a little on air travel, with particular emphasis on students for whom wise money management can be especially important.
Flight price comparison sites
Price comparison sites are obviously the basic tools when looking for the most cost-effective flights. Some of them even have their own apps, so that you can conveniently check various offers on your mobile. A good habit when looking for cheap flights is not to limit yourself to only one comparison site – it’s best to use several at once! No tool is perfect, and what’s worse, there are even some that inflate the price. That’s why it is worth finding those that offer the best discounts on selected routes. It’s always good to filter the search results. For example, focusing on airports located slightly further away from the cities, and at the same time serve cheaper airlines. Despite some distance, even more distant airports are well connected with large cities.
It is also a good habit to search for flights only in incognito mode. You have probably noticed more than once that ticket prices from the same carrier can change every time you visit the website. Unfortunately, this price never goes down, on the contrary – travel costs can only increase. This is due to cookies stored in your browser. This way, individual carriers are trying to convince people looking for flights to book a ticket as soon as possible. After all, every time you check the prices, they keep rising! Therefore, when looking for a ticket for a given route, use the incognito mode in your browser, which clears all cookies after a given tab is closed. This will allow you to get lower prices and save money when travelling to college or returning home at the end of the semester.
Limit your luggage when using low-cost airlines
Students more and more often choose to study abroad (be sure to check out BaseCamp dorms!), so they become regular passengers of the airlines on the hometown-university route. For this reason, resourceful people follow new information from selected low-cost airlines on social media and on their websites on an ongoing basis. By using this method, you have the chance to be informed about special offers and big discounts before they are used by others.
Airlines offering low ticket prices, however, also have their disadvantages, so when using their services, it is worth being flexible, as well as learning about their requirements, restrictions and rules of operation. Cheaper tickets often mean less legroom, no free food and drinks, an extra charge when checking in at the airport, and additional fees for many different options. Luggage is the most important thing – make sure you choose and pay for it correctly.
Low-cost airlines introduce numerous additional charges, and the most common way to increase the ticket price is the fee for additional luggage. Again, knowing these offers can be very helpful. It often happens that an airline, while charging a bit more for a ticket, allows you to take much more luggage within the basic price. However, let’s not delude ourselves – our belongings will still have to meet much more stringent criteria. It is worth limiting the number of things you take, because this way you can also reduce the ticket price.
Flight insurance and foreign currency purchases
As already mentioned, it is best to plan your trip in advance, whenever possible. However, there is a catch – this way it is more difficult to predict a possible change of plans. Therefore, it is not worth considering cheap flights with only the basic prices in mind. You can purchase flight insurance by paying a small amount. This way, in the event of a booking cancellation, you will get back the ticket price. When planning a trip several months in advance, you cannot predict some factors that may interfere with your trip. Without the insurance, it may not be possible to cancel the booking and get your money back.
Another way to get cheap flights is to pay in foreign currency. Sometimes it happens that you have to pay for the ticket in the currency of the country you are departing from. However, this is not always the case. If you have a credit card that offers no extra charges when paying for foreign transactions, it is worth checking whether paying for the flight in a different currency is cheaper.
Avoid the high season
Planning the right day for departure is important for several reasons. First of all, it happens that on certain days airlines offer cheaper tickets than on other days. Usually, it is more cost-effective to travel on weekdays. To find out which day in a given month is the cheapest, use the quick display of prices for the entire month on a specific route for one-way and return travel. Of course, the academic year has its own rules and you won’t always be able to choose the best combination, because you may still have classes to attend. Nevertheless, by using this method, you will be able to plan the most economical option on the chosen date. Remember that some airlines offer a discount when the ticket is ordered earlier and not necessarily during peak traffic times, e.g. just before Christmas.
