inflationary may be slowing down, but visitors can still feel the sting flight price — finding cheap airline tickets to your desired destination at the time you want it can be a challenge. For those with a flexible schedule looking for some great deals and inspiration, the range of planning tools available can be confusing and intimidating.
Luckily, TPG is here to help by sharing some of our best tools, tips and tricks for finding the cheapest and best flight tickets. We’ve covered a lot on the topic of cheap airline tickets, highlighting the many tried and successful methods our staff use to book travel that may also work for you.
TPG also regularly posts deal warning on some of the best airfares to make it easier for you to find affordable flights.
Here are our favorite tools, tips, and tricks for securing cheap airfare deals. Be sure to click on the relevant links for more details.
Google Flights
Google Flights Probably the most intuitive, simple and useful flight search engine on the internet. Its many features and functions help you determine the best flight prices and options for both specific flight times and flexible itineraries.
You can also search based on what TPG recommends as best time of day to book a flight.
As you’re exploring Google Flights, check out the map search feature. It can show you the cheapest fares to different destinations, which can be a great source of inspiration. You can also click on the date grid to see flight prices for the entire month at once, and the price chart to see the overall price trend across your target journey.
Another useful feature is Google’s embedded price tracker. The tracker appears on the search results page, allowing you to track the overall price on the route you are looking for. When tracking prices, if you’re signed in to your Google account, you can receive notifications about price changes, new offers, and the expiration date of your saved journeys. You’ll then receive notifications of price changes directly to your inbox, saving you from having to manually search multiple times a day in hopes of a discount.
Note that while this tool covers nearly all airlines, it won’t show fares for some, such as Southwest Airlines.
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Google Flights also recently added a Price Guarantee program that you maybe eligible for a refund of the price difference if it drops. The way it works is that if a “guarantee badge” is next to the itinerary, your flight is eligible for the program if the fare drops by more than $5 — as long as you buy it directly with Google . The difference is capped at $500, and you’re eligible for up to three cruises per year.
For more detailed information on using Google Flights, check out TPG’s how-to guide for some features and tips:
Additional flight comparison sites
Google Flights is a great site to use. However, there are a few other comparison sites that work in a similar way with slightly different features. Just keep in mind that similar to Google Flights, Southwest fares won’t be pulled.
Row
As one of the original fare comparison sites, Row serves as a one-stop shop to find the best prices. The site will pull fares directly from the airlines, and you can also compare them with third-party booking sites, such as Expedia.com and Orbitz.com.
Kayak also offers many advanced filter options where you can search by a specific airline, airline alliance, plane, transit airport, etc.
If your dates are flexible, there’s also a calendar grid that lets you see prices up to three days before and after your desired date, but you need to make sure to include that date in your search. Kayak also goes a step further than some other sites and shows the price of a return flight with two separate airlines — one for the trip and one for the return — if, in fact, the price is cheaper.
Momondo
Momondo is great for those who love a good picture. If your travel dates are flexible, it’s very easy to find the least expensive dates at a glance. The site also offers many filters and allows you to set up price alerts if fares drop. Momondo will also advise you on whether now is a great time to buy or you should hold on, based on recent fare trends.
Unfortunately, however, if booking a return ticket, the site will not show the cheapest airline for the trip and return and will only list the fare for the same airline. This means you will want to search in two dimensions, which can be time consuming.
Skyscanner
If you are looking for a cheap flight to any destination, Skyscanner is the site for you. Just enter your departure city and select “Explore Anywhere” in the “To” field and the world is your oyster. You will then get a list of destinations in order of price. The site is extremely easy to use and can really help you open your eyes to new parts of the world if you’re someone who doesn’t know the destination.
Flight Offer Announcement
If you want to receive real-time transaction alerts without having to search for them yourself, do so Flight deal on Twitter is a great choice. This group is constantly looking for deals (from many destinations) and you may be lucky enough to find one from your home airport.
Take it a step further and set up your Twitter account to receive specific push notifications from The Flight Deal. This means that whenever the team sends out a tweet, you’ll get a notification right on your phone, so you don’t have to constantly check Twitter.
registration site
Many independent travel sites promise to find you the cheapest deals available. However, not all of these sites are worth it and some are blatant scams, directing you to travel agents that may sell more expensive tickets for hidden fees or large surcharges.
When looking for deals, TPG scans several websites that often provide reliable airfare alerts and featured deals. Many of these sites offer premium paid subscription services that may be worth it, depending on your travel preferences and trading passions.
Signing up for regular email deal alerts from these sites and subscribing to their Twitter feeds can provide frequent travel inspiration and alerts on disruptive deals to favorite destinations. your like.
Some of TPG’s favorite airline deals sites:
Note that many of these deals sites include links to “hacker fare” style itineraries involving multiple airlines, round-trip routes, and travel and transit times. lengthen. The discounted fares on these flights may not include mileage bonus features or may not be eligible for status points. So read carefully the fine print and journey on these deals.
Assuming the insights work for you, scanning or signing up for flight deals sites can be a great way to find super discounted flight prices that may not appear on Google Flights or other standard booking platforms.
Related: Transaction page of TPG
Book directly with airline websites
In an attempt to hack the system and find the best “secret” airline ticket deals, people often neglect to search for where many of these transactions originate: the airline itself.
Almost every airline has an offer section on its website. Many of these so-called deals can be dramatic. However, sometimes airlines offer amazing, short-term deals that are likely to be booked in advance of going to some deal aggregator sites.
For example, Southwest Airlines recently had a 40% off deal on all flightsbut tickets must be booked directly with a specific discount code on the Southwest website.
You can find out the latest information by regularly checking airline websites such as american airlines, Delta Airlines And unified airline transaction pages. Many airlines also offer package deals that combine hotels and rental cars, but it’s a good idea to price them individually as the value of these offers can vary widely.
Signing up for the airline’s newsletter on deals can be another way to find out about the latest deals, but you’ll run the risk of your email inbox being filled with destinations you might like to visit. may not care. However, these push notifications may prompt you to take a last-minute vacation that you don’t think is affordable.
Airline websites sometimes also have mileage or status promotions that you can use to maximize your rewards—but usually, you have to book these deals directly. on the airline’s website.
Southwest Airlines is a special case to find airline ticket deals as its fares are often not available on third party websites.
Google Flights will show Southwest itineraries on a sample flight schedule, but won’t show prices. You can book Southwest flights on the Kayak for Business website, but not on consumer searches. So it might be worth double-checking any fare deals you find with similar itineraries mapped on Southwest’s website.
Especially when booking directly on an airline’s website, a branded airline pass can be a good way to gain status and rewards exclusive to those airlines, including United Explorer cardthe Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® and Southwest’s Premier Rapid Rewards Credit Card.
Related: Book travel through the portal or directly? How to decide
Optimize credit card usage
Booking tools can help ensure you find the most economical flight option for your next trip, but it’s important that you use the right credit card to pay for your flight. There are a variety of top travel rewards cards that could fit this bill, but a few stand out:
Related: Best credit card to buy plane tickets
bottom line
Finding the lowest airfares can be more of an art than a science, but a number of strategies and tools can help you in this search.
Everyone’s travel goals and circumstances are different. However, use one of the strategies above and you’ll be on the right track to getting the trip many people want without paying such high prices.
Additional reporting by Bill Fink.
