Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
that I use often. If you are flexible with where you want to go (as in anywhere but home), this is a great way
to start researching your next trip.
I always enter in my departing airport and search for “anywhere.” Whatever comes up the cheapest in an
area I want to explore is often where I go!
Fly Budget Airlines
In America, there are only a handful of budget airlines. In Europe, there are dozens and competition has
kept prices there very low. In Asia, Air Asia has led to a huge drop in fares and is a great budget airline to
fly. Often these low-cost airlines offer no-fare tickets; you pay just the taxes. Flying the budget airlines is a
good alternative to flying the majors whenever possible. You get fewer perks, but you can save a bundle in
ticket costs. But be sure to check out how far the airports are from the city center; sometimes transportation
from the airport to the city can actually make a budget airline more expensive.
More and more budget carriers are doing long-haul, cross-continent flights (for example, Norwegian to
the United States or Air Asia to Australia or South Korea), and these airlines represent a big savings op-
portunity. Be sure to fly them. Momondo (momondo.com) and Skyscanner (skyscanner.com) have the best
listings of budget carriers.
Find Alternative Routes
Not only is it important to be flexible with your dates, but try being flexible with the route you take. There
are so many budget carriers around the world that taking advantage of a good deal to another city and then
hopping on a budget flight to your destination is sometimes the best way to go. I had to go to Paris once.
The flight was $900 USD but I could fly to Dublin for $600 and get a $60 flight to Paris. It meant more
flying time, but the $240 I saved was worth it. I use Google Flights to look for a cheap major airport to fly
into and then Skyscanner or Momondo for a budget flight to my final destination.
By working various airlines and special offers, you can save a lot. This method is more work as you
have to figure out lots of different routes and check different airlines, but it will often shave money off your
flight, giving you more to spend at your destination.
CHECK MULTIPLE SEARCH SITES
Whenever most Americans do a web search for airline tickets, they search the big three: Expedia, Trave-
locity, or Orbitz. People make a big mistake by only doing that. You need to search as many flight search
websites as you can to ensure you are leaving no stone unturned. Many sites don't list budget carriers be-
cause those airlines don't want to pay a booking commission.
It's important to check multiple booking sites because all websites have their weaknesses and do not
include every airline. You aren't going to find Air Asia, Ryanair, or most other budget airlines on large US-
based sites. All booking sites have blind spots since they don't cover every region of the world and every
airline equally. Check multiple sites. I search the following websites when I look for a plane ticket:
Skyscanner:
skyscanner.com
Momondo:
momondo.com
Google Flights:
google.com/flights
