Post your best airplane ticket buying tips/secrets

[darthsidious]

Most of us have to buy airline tickets fairly oftern, and I'm the first to admit that I'm not super-savvy about getting the best price. I just search the major online sites (expedia,orbitz,sidestep,jetblue) in reasonable advance of the flying date and buy the cheapest one. I'm sure there's better ways to optimize the ticket buying process, so I come to ATOT, the repository of all knowledge. Please post any tips/ideas you have to buy airline tickets as cheaply as possible. I'm sure this information will be useful to many here...

 

[Ns1]

99% of the time the cheapest price will be direct from the airline's website. not to mention it'll be alot easier for you if you have any modifications.

BUT if you're 100% into getting the CHEAPEST tickets possible...

book your flights during peak times. Ideally when business travelers go. Try to find the flights most likely to be overbooked. Get bumped, get vouchers/comps. Fly cheap. This method works pretty well for hot routes. I got a 500 voucher for continental, waiting for another one so me and the GF can get a heavily subsidized vacation.

here's a buncha links for you

http://www.airlinecreditcards....dont-want-you-to-know/
http://www.flightbliss.com/
http://www.farecompare.com/

 

[LS21]

*most* of the time, you're best going straight to the airline's website. #1 is that airfares are no longer cheaper, or atleast substantially cheaper, from using discount brokers. #2 is that you accumulate better frequent flyer miles booking through their websites

if you dont fly that much, and are willing to use any carrier, you could try hotwire.com ... i found it pretty good

for multi-segment, intertional flights, etc, kayak.com is a good tool. you can book from them, or atleast get a basis of price comparison

 

[Mermaidman]

I used to think that airline websites always had lower fares than the major travel sites, but have since occasionally found better fares on Expedia, Orbitz, etc. Still, I book most of my tickets directly with the airlines. Also, Orbitz gives the most comprehensive lists of flights, IMO, so it's a good place to start.

 

[HannibalX]

I use Allegiant Air to fly from TN to FL. Most of the time the flights are $35. Sometimes if I watch the specials I can fly for $12 (one way).

http://www.allegiantair.com

 

[ranmaniac]

I concur with other posts, the cheapest price is right from the airlines website, whereas the travel sites usually have a markup of some kind.

 

[Mermaidman]

Originally posted by: ranmaniac
I concur with other posts, the cheapest price is right from the airlines website, whereas the travel sites usually have a markup of some kind.

That's because the airlines stopped giving travel agents a commission years ago. So now the travel sites need a source of revenue--hence the fee (usually less than $10.00).

 

[Gibson486]

usually if places like orbitz have cheaper flights, you will find that they are gonna add a fee which negates any savings (does not show until you are about to pay). I just go straight to the airline website.


That said...anyone have any tips on getting to Florida on Sat from Boston? My gf and I have been so preoccupied with moving and job searching that we forgot to buy tickets t go see her parents. cheapest we found was $164....but JetBlue jacked up the price when we were about to buy.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
usually if places like orbitz have cheaper flights, you will find that they are gonna add a fee which negates any savings (does not show until you are about to pay). I just go straight to the airline website.


That said...anyone have any tips on getting to Florida on Sat from Boston? My gf and I have been so preoccupied with moving and job searching that we forgot to buy tickets t go see her parents. cheapest we found was $164....but JetBlue jacked up the price when we were about to buy.

this late in the game you're pretty hosed.

usually if I can't find a flight, RT vouchers for SW are about $350 on CL.

 

[elektrolokomotive]

I've had some good luck with Hotwire lately. $275 r/t from Seattle to Chicago O'Hare... leaving on Saturday for a week.

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: Ns1
99% of the time the cheapest price will be direct from the airline's website. not to mention it'll be alot easier for you if you have any modifications.

BUT if you're 100% into getting the CHEAPEST tickets possible...

book your flights during peak times. Ideally when business travelers go. Try to find the flights most likely to be overbooked. Get bumped, get vouchers/comps. Fly cheap. This method works pretty well for hot routes. I got a 500 voucher for continental, waiting for another one so me and the GF can get a heavily subsidized vacation.

here's a buncha links for you

http://www.airlinecreditcards....dont-want-you-to-know/
http://www.flightbliss.com/
http://www.farecompare.com/

wait....so you purposely try to fly with the intention of not flying so you can get vouchers?

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: Ns1

Originally posted by: Gibson486
usually if places like orbitz have cheaper flights, you will find that they are gonna add a fee which negates any savings (does not show until you are about to pay). I just go straight to the airline website.


That said...anyone have any tips on getting to Florida on Sat from Boston? My gf and I have been so preoccupied with moving and job searching that we forgot to buy tickets t go see her parents. cheapest we found was $164....but JetBlue jacked up the price when we were about to buy.

this late in the game you're pretty hosed.

usually if I can't find a flight, RT vouchers for SW are about $350 on CL.

Not necessarily. I have been watching flights from DTW to SAN for months. Now with just a few days left til the dates, prices are the lowest they have ever been ($220pp R/T) whereas 3-4 weeks ago it was closer to $400.

 

[ColdFusion718]

I get my tickets through this travel agent (family friend). For example, if the cheapest I could find it online is for, let's say $1500, she can get it for me for $1400. I usually save $100 off from the cheapest price I could find.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: Ns1
99% of the time the cheapest price will be direct from the airline's website. not to mention it'll be alot easier for you if you have any modifications.

BUT if you're 100% into getting the CHEAPEST tickets possible...

book your flights during peak times. Ideally when business travelers go. Try to find the flights most likely to be overbooked. Get bumped, get vouchers/comps. Fly cheap. This method works pretty well for hot routes. I got a 500 voucher for continental, waiting for another one so me and the GF can get a heavily subsidized vacation.

here's a buncha links for you

http://www.airlinecreditcards....dont-want-you-to-know/
http://www.flightbliss.com/
http://www.farecompare.com/

wait....so you purposely try to fly with the intention of not flying so you can get vouchers?

No, I fly with the intention of getting my flight delayed so I can get vouchers.

Ex)on a recent trip from NJ -> LA. the flight is 8am -> 1pm. Overbooked. They first offered $350 voucher and a flight on a 5pm plane to volunteers. fuck that shit. after bout 5 minutes, they bumped it up to a $500 flight and miraculously found another plane that took off at 845. Layover in Denver. Flight from 845a -> 5pm. Was actually quite comfortable- since it's not a hot city (like LA...) the plane was hardly full. I got the rows to myself both on the NJ -> Denver flight and the Denver -> LA flight. All in all it was some 11 hours. 5 hours of inconvenience for a $500 voucher; worth it in my book

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: Ns1

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: Ns1
99% of the time the cheapest price will be direct from the airline's website. not to mention it'll be alot easier for you if you have any modifications.

BUT if you're 100% into getting the CHEAPEST tickets possible...

book your flights during peak times. Ideally when business travelers go. Try to find the flights most likely to be overbooked. Get bumped, get vouchers/comps. Fly cheap. This method works pretty well for hot routes. I got a 500 voucher for continental, waiting for another one so me and the GF can get a heavily subsidized vacation.

here's a buncha links for you

http://www.airlinecreditcards....dont-want-you-to-know/
http://www.flightbliss.com/
http://www.farecompare.com/

wait....so you purposely try to fly with the intention of not flying so you can get vouchers?

No, I fly with the intention of getting my flight delayed so I can get vouchers.

Ex)on a recent trip from NJ -> LA. the flight is 8am -> 1pm. Overbooked. They first offered $350 voucher and a flight on a 5pm plane to volunteers. fuck that shit. after bout 5 minutes, they bumped it up to a $500 flight and miraculously found another plane that took off at 845. Layover in Denver. Flight from 845a -> 5pm. Was actually quite comfortable- since it's not a hot city (like LA...) the plane was hardly full. I got the rows to myself both on the NJ -> Denver flight and the Denver -> LA flight. All in all it was some 11 hours. 5 hours of inconvenience for a $500 voucher; worth it in my book

that's awesome!

Too bad JetBlue and Airtran do not over book. I suppose I can try this with Southwest, though.

 

[sciencewhiz]

http://farecast.com/

 

[LS21]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

that's awesome!

Too bad JetBlue and Airtran do not over book. I suppose I can try this with Southwest, though.

Southwest overbook often (theyre a mass discount carrier), but also offer cheap vouchers... im talking 99$

Real carriers offer much more money, obviously depending on distance, time, etc.

Once my SW flight got held 30 minutes past take-off, because nobody would offer their seats for 99$. Of course -- why would they?

Also Once I received 400$ from Continental to trade seats for a 2 hour delay going from Phoenix -> Houston.

 

[HannibalX]

Originally posted by: LS21

Southwest overbook often (theyre a mass discount carrier), but also offer cheap vouchers... im talking 99$

Real carriers offer much more money, obviously depending on distance, time, etc.

Once my SW flight got held 30 minutes past take-off, because nobody would offer their seats for 99$. Of course -- why would they?

Also Once I received 400$ from Continental to trade seats for a 2 hour delay going from Phoenix -> Houston.

Every airline overbooks every flight. Thats just the way they do business. Something like 10% will not show up for a flight they have prepaid for. The airline will book 110% of the flight's capacity and have "exactly" enough seats when it's time to hit the air. Sometimes you will get bumped - it's part of air travel.

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: LS21

Originally posted by: Gibson486

that's awesome!

Too bad JetBlue and Airtran do not over book. I suppose I can try this with Southwest, though.

Southwest overbook often (theyre a mass discount carrier), but also offer cheap vouchers... im talking 99$

Real carriers offer much more money, obviously depending on distance, time, etc.

Once my SW flight got held 30 minutes past take-off, because nobody would offer their seats for 99$. Of course -- why would they?

Also Once I received 400$ from Continental to trade seats for a 2 hour delay going from Phoenix -> Houston.

do you have to bitch to get those vouchers? or do they just hand them out when something happens?

but a $99 voucher is not bad at all. Basically $99 off a flight. All the flights to orlando are $250 now....I would not mind paying $150.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: LS21

Originally posted by: Gibson486

that's awesome!

Too bad JetBlue and Airtran do not over book. I suppose I can try this with Southwest, though.

Southwest overbook often (theyre a mass discount carrier), but also offer cheap vouchers... im talking 99$

Real carriers offer much more money, obviously depending on distance, time, etc.

Once my SW flight got held 30 minutes past take-off, because nobody would offer their seats for 99$. Of course -- why would they?

Also Once I received 400$ from Continental to trade seats for a 2 hour delay going from Phoenix -> Houston.

do you have to bitch to get those vouchers? or do they just hand them out when something happens?

but a $99 voucher is not bad at all. Basically $99 off a flight. All the flights to orlando are $250 now....I would not mind paying $150.

it's a 2 part process. first, if they're overbooked, they will offer vouchers + incentives to people to volunteer to get bumped.

second, if nobody volunteers, they will bump certain people off the plane. if THIS happens, they will follow their carriage contract (or whatever it's called). IIRC, if you get delayed for 2 hours they have to give you $200, 4 hours $400 (mandated by FAA). Also they must fly you on the next flight home, regardless of carrier, regardless of class. This ONLY applies to bumps that are their fault, not due to weather or other "acts of god"

read their contract of carriage (or whatever it's called) before you board so you don't get hosed.

 

[Parasitic]

I only fly Southwest domestically so I use the corp website.
Internationally though our family uses a travel agent.

 

[LS21]

Originally posted by: Pale Rider
Every airline overbooks every flight. Thats just the way they do business. Something like 10% will not show up for a flight they have prepaid for. The airline will book 110% of the flight's capacity and have "exactly" enough seats when it's time to hit the air. Sometimes you will get bumped - it's part of air travel.

every southwest flight is booked to the gills.

almost every AA flight is 70% full. i used to live next to DFW - their main hub - flew them lots. great for getting 2 continuous seats

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: LS21

Originally posted by: Pale Rider
Every airline overbooks every flight. Thats just the way they do business. Something like 10% will not show up for a flight they have prepaid for. The airline will book 110% of the flight's capacity and have "exactly" enough seats when it's time to hit the air. Sometimes you will get bumped - it's part of air travel.

every southwest flight is booked to the gills.

almost every AA flight is 70% full. i used to live next to DFW - their main hub - flew them lots. great for getting 2 continuous seats

I told my aunt that I got a southwest flight to come back from florida. Her response:

"You tried to get a PS3, right? This will be ten time worse. It's gonna be like a zoo. Get there 3 hours early"

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

Originally posted by: Ns1
This ONLY applies to bumps that are their fault, not due to weather or other "acts of god"

FYI for those who do not fly often: Almost all delays are blamed on weather. A common ocurance is that the flight crew (or one member of it) will get stuck in another city because of weather. Until they get to your plane that delay is considered to be due to weather and not staffing issues. So yes, on bright sunny days you will get "weather" delayed.



<---Got to sleep in LAX earlier this year with no voucher, hotel, anything because of this BS.

 

[MixMasterTang]

Originally posted by: LS21

Originally posted by: Gibson486

that's awesome!

Too bad JetBlue and Airtran do not over book. I suppose I can try this with Southwest, though.

Southwest overbook often (theyre a mass discount carrier), but also offer cheap vouchers... im talking 99$

Real carriers offer much more money, obviously depending on distance, time, etc.

Once my SW flight got held 30 minutes past take-off, because nobody would offer their seats for 99$. Of course -- why would they?

Also Once I received 400$ from Continental to trade seats for a 2 hour delay going from Phoenix -> Houston.

Actually Southwests policy is:

Volunteers
If you volunteer to give up your seat in an oversale situation and we can rebook you and accept your ticket on the next Southwest Airlines and (if applicable) connecting codeshare airline flight(s) to your destination, we will also give you a travel voucher in the amount of $100 plus an amount equal to the face value of your remaining one-way flight coupon(s).
If the flight(s) to your destination immediately after your originally scheduled flight is/are booked to or beyond capacity, you will be placed on a ?priority standby? list and your compensation will increase to a travel voucher in the amount of $200 plus an amount equal to the face value of your remaining one-way flight coupon(s). If you are not accommodated as a standby Customer, we will confirm you on the next Southwest Airlines and (if applicable) codeshare airline flight(s) with seats available to your destination. You will not incur an increase in fare