Helping You Find Discount Flights

The global recession has hit everyday citizens hard. People are cutting back on everyday purchases and eliminating luxury purchases. These tough economic times however mean customers can get fantastic deals on airfare and hotel bookings. There is a science to booking the cheapest flight possible and this guide will take you through the process. There are three major steps to follow when booking a flight.



1. Flight Aggregators (Kayak.com, Yahoo travel)

Airfare aggregators like Kayak are websites that check thousands of flights from different airlines and display the cheapest options for customers. These sites are the first place you should look when booking your flight. They offer an unbelievable amount of information about prices and individual flights. Kayak can tell visitors what day of the month is cheapest to book a flight and yearly trends in airfare prices. The website will email visitors price alerts when airfare is particularly low for specific destination. Aggregators make money through site advertising, which means they do not add any fees for booking a flight through their website. This is a big advantage over sites like Orbitz or Priceline who charge for their services.

2. After you've written down the flight prices found on the aggregators, head over to Orbitz, Travelocity, and Hotwire. These sites are referred to as booking engines in the travel industry. They're sometimes cheaper than using aggregators because they often partner with airlines to offer discount packages. Though it's not often the cheapest alternative, travelers may also choose to look into charter flights as well.  These flights offer supreme comfort and convenience and are more affordable than most peolpe realize.  Sites like Orbitz have agreements with all major airlines to book flights on their behalf in exchange for discounted rates. This partnership leads to some incredible deals if you're on the hunt. Hunt through the major booking engines and look for the best deals. It's also good to sign up for email alerts through them as well.

3. The last place to check is the actual airline websites. Because of the recession, many airlines are trying to undercut sites like Orbitz and Kayak to lure customers into buying from them. Airlines often run monthly specials or offers coupon codes to use on flights. Also check if you're credit card company has any partnership with a specific airline. American Express card members often enjoy incredible discounts on domestic and international flights.

International Flights

A 4th step is available for international flights that can save incredible amounts of money. Travelers should look at companies called airline consolidators. These businesses buy up large chunks of tickets on international flights and sell them slight above wholesale prices. It should be noted however that regardless of where the tickets are acquired getting travel insurance is always suggested.  Airlines do this to eliminate empty seats but they will never admit to using these companies. Google 'air consolidators' and search through the first few results. These deals can be very hit or miss but they are always worth looking through.