There is one specific thing about travelling that majority of people would not want to spent a lot on. That is airplane/ bus/ train tickets. And any type of travel tickets. The worst money sucking vacuum I've ever known! I mean why would I like to spend more if I can spend less?
1. Fly or drive?
If you are planning on flying the quickest way is to use Skyscanner, Momondo, Kiwi, JetRadar etc . It will scan through all the possible companies and prices. Also when on Skyscanner try to be flexible, you have the option to choose the cheapest month for the desired destination. If you just feel the urge to travel but you do not have a particular destination in mind, you can try to check for the best deals and the cheapest destinations for this year for instance. Also not always but sometimes it works out cheaper to buy one way ticket instead of return, sometimes it's worth to check and book a flight and return with two different airlines. You could also check websites like Omio, it's also a great way to check the best and the cheapest prices of flights and compare them with prices of buses and trains, usually surprisingly the train works out to be the most expensive option.
2. Book through aggregators or an airline itself?
I think it's great and fast to search for the cheapest flights and scan through multiple airlines at ones, however they will not always give you the best prices. When we look at the last minute price drops or charter flights. It is sometimes better to subscribe to certain airlines and get the email with deals and book straight from them.
2. Internet Hacks
Avoid cookies , try to use the private window when researching for travel tickets. Unfortunately majority of websites use cookies, so when they see you researching something extensively, they will raise the prices for you and try to fool you into believing that all the deals are gone.
3. Combine your routes
Sometimes it works out much cheaper to have a 24h stop in a different city, than taking a direct flight. Some airlines offer a night in a hotel included in a price of a flight. Think about it as a great adventure. I myself chose to have a long stop in Shanghai before getting to Bali, that way I will have a chance to explore a different place and save few hundreds on a direct flight prices.
4. Try to avoid peak seasons
There is no secret in that I know, but I think it is an important part of travel planning worth mentioning. Travel off season. Travel websites also often put up the ' best value ' destinations of the year, where you can check which destinations rule in a low price tickets and when.
5. Book early or last minute ?
That's always been one of my struggles. A lot of people were saying book last minute it will be cheaper, more cautious ones would advice to book it early. And really and truly both will work, however it's all about the airline you're flying with. For instance when we look at the prices during Christmas Time for European and American Airlines they are horrendously high, even for the budget airlines. However research shown that Asian airlines are usually the cheapest at that exact time of the year. So if you are planning on travelling during Christmas try to choose Asian airlines. In terms of Asian Airlines they get filled up pretty fast, especially when looking at cheap flights, the best way to get a good deal is to book your travel ticket at least few months in advance. When it comes to saving on a last minute flight, I would probably look into two UK charter airlines : Thomas Cook and Tui.
Let me know about your experiences and how do you book your tickets? :)
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