Liyer Spirit House, where Liz Gilbert had her palm reading
When it comes to finding the cheapest flights we always need to go for flexibility. If you want to fly on that exact day and arrive at that exact time at a particular airport, you are completely stuck with those prices without any leeway. On the other hand, having flexibility allows you to choose the cheapest price without worrying about days and time schedules. That way you will save a lot of money on plain tickets.
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Where to search for the cheapest flights
When it comes the time to buy those flights it is important to know where to look for them. I love that part where I'm on the computer looking for the best prices, especially when I don't have a specific destination I want to go to and I'm just looking for a getaway somewhere.
. Skyscanner
. Momondo
. eDreams
These are the apps I use to find the best prices. They filter all the existing flights, from all airlines in one search, so you can see all the options. That way you save a lot of time compared to searching only one airline at a time. I have bought flights from airlines that I didn't know existed and that I would have missed if I didn't use this search method. Using these apps to search for flights also has the advantage that, from your starting point to your final destination, all the layovers in between that are presented to you may be from different airlines, that way, once again, you don't need to spend hours on searches as you can see the best deals right away.
Personal Tip: I often only use these apps to find the best prices and choose my flights, but I buy through the airline itself.
If the price difference is not too significant, for security reasons, it is better to buy on the airline website, because if there is any complication and you need to request a refund, the process is much faster and easier if you talk directly to the airline agency.
What to search for
These are the things you should look out for when searching for flights
Which airlines to choose:
As much as it may be appealing to fly on Emirates, TAP or British airlines for their comfort and the amount of things they offer you on board we have to be aware that these airlines will charge you a lot more for the fact that they are well known in the market. Take a look at companies like Thai Airways, Vueling, Ryanair, Easy jet, Wizzair, Turkish Airways, that charge you a lot less for the same destinations.
Your departure airport:
Don't make the nearest airport your only possible point of departure for your flight. Think about it, maybe you live in Lisbon (Portugal) and you want to travel to Sweden but the tickets are much cheaper when departing from Porto. You will still be flying from the same country, but you took a bus from Lisbon to Porto which saved you, for example, 200€ on the price of your plane ticket.
Your arrival airport:
Just like being flexible with the airport you're leaving from, the one you're landing at can also save you a lot of money. Let's say you're flying from London to Bangkok (Thailand). It might be much cheaper to fly to Chiang Mai, another Thai city, and take a domestic flight to your final destination. This is also a great way to explore a little more of the country if you choose to stay for a day or two in the city you landed.
The best days to buy:
Usually buying flights on a Tuesday is cheaper than at any other day of the week, such as flights departing on a Tuesday, so try to look for that day.
Again, flexibility is the key to get cheap tickets. When you're looking for them, search for the whole month instead of just specific days. Often the difference from one day to the other or from one week to the next one can be quite significant.
Direct flights or flights with stopovers
Most of the flights I take have stopovers and the main reason isn't because they don't have direct flights, but because it is much cheaper if you do it.
I use Skyscanner to look for the best deals and then I'll try to change the stopovers that will have an impact on the total price.
Also I usually look for the cheapest destinations from the country I am in and then look from there to my final destination. Go after what is cheaper.
How long in advance to buy the tickets
Without there being a completely correct answer to this, I believe that to find even better prices the further in advance the better. As soon as you know you're going to buy that ticket, go for it whether it's early in advance (around a year before departure), eight to six weeks before departure or two weeks before departure.
Good flight prices come up all the time. You just have to look for them.