The Truth about Airfares – How to get a bargain

The Truth about Airfares – How to get a bargain

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  1. In the spring, the airlines issued their usual press releases to scare everyone into buying their tickets for summer travel.  ‘Fares are rising $30 for summer,” was heard on every news station and glaring from every headline in the papers.  Friends and family called to tell me that I better go buy my plane tickets.  Did I rush to the computer?  No, I just smiled.

    First of all, when you look at the statement of raising fares $30 you have to ask — $30 on top of what?  When was the last time you saw an airfare with a consistent price?  You haven’t, because there is no such thing anymore.  Airfares go up and down these days as the wind blows.  Sales that are “ending at midnight tomorrow” are almost always followed by another price war.  It all comes down to one simple thing… no one wants to fly a plane with empty seats.

    With all this inconsistency over airfare prices I am often asked when the best time to buy a plane ticket is.  That’s a very easy question to answer – there is no best time.   The days of needing to get your plane ticket 14 days in advance are long gone.  The lowest fare may be offered a month before or a day before.    In fact, I’ve found some of my best bargains within a few days of travel. You just need to get a good feel for what a good price for your destination is by checking fares frequently. 

    One trick to getting good airfares is to be open to other airports.  I fly out of three different airports consistently and leave myself open to three others.  If you can save $200 on a plane ticket I consider it well worth driving for an hour, or even two.  Also pay attention to the day of the week.  Weekends are traditionally a big selling time for the airlines so you won’t see a lot of great deals.  Many of the airfare price drops expire on Thursday and don’t start again until Monday or Tuesday.

    The bottom line is simple —  If you get the urge to hop a plane tomorrow, don’t fight it.  If you see the lowest fare you’ve seen for your destination a month before, grab it.  Sign up for fare alerts from your favorite airlines (for me it’s American and their NetSavers, but I’ve seen some great bargains in my mailbox from Air Tran lately).  Smarter Travel is also a good newsletter to get as they’ll alert you to many of the airfare sales.  Visit websites like Travelocity, Orbitz and Expedia where you can check airfares for a variety of airlines at once.  Then get packing!

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