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With the too-many-to-count
options available to today's business and pleasure travelers alike, to buy
airline tickets at a truly discounted price can be both elusive and
sometimes frustrating. How do you know you got the best deal available?
Fortunately, there are several effective strategies known to seasoned
travelers that you can also use to find the best airfare deals. If you
follow some of these tips, you, too, can buy airline tickets at a real
discount:
Anytime you can book your own travel arrangements instead of working with a
travel agent or an airline's reservation agent, you should save some money
since those staffing costs aren't passed along to you. There are many
"self-serve" reservation websites out there for you to use (Priceline.com
and CheapOAir.com are two of the best known), and the airlines' own websites
are also very user-friendly. You can always get assistance from the airlines
or travel agencies to buy airline tickets if your travel requirements are
complicated enough to warrant asking for their help.
To buy airline tickets weeks in advance of your departure can also save you
money. A purchase made seven days prior to traveling is usually the minimum
needed to realize any discounts; even better would be buying your tickets 2,
3, or 4 weeks in advance. (Although tickets bought at the last minute are
usually the most expensive, some travelers consciously use that as a
strategy to save money; more on that approach is below.)
Since travel during the typical Monday - Friday week is heavily
business-related, those airfares are generally higher than those at other
times. If you're able to, schedule either your departure or return on a
Saturday or during the weekend. Plan on staying overnight at least one night
to be able to buy airline tickets at a meaningful discount.
One of the most effective ways to buy airline tickets at a discount is to be
as flexible as you can be with your travel schedule. Just as the day of the
week can make a difference, so can the time of day you choose to fly.
Flights departing earlier than 7:00am, mid-day, and after 7:00pm are all
usually priced less than those during peak periods.
Traveling for an extended stay somewhere and just want to buy a one-way
airline ticket? In some cases, buying a round-trip ticket and then simply
throwing away the return portion of it can be less expensive than a single
one-way ticket; check and compare the prices for both types of reservations.
Just remember, though, that airlines will frequently cancel the return
segment of the ticket if you "no show" for the initial part of it. Be sure
to check your carrier's policies for credits, refunds, re-booking fees, etc.
Put these little-known secrets to work for you the next time you buy airline
tickets, and plan on saving some money!
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