6 Sites That Will Help You Score Some Major Flight Deals
Travel is one of life’s greatest joys — but it can also be really, really expensive. (Time to start saving money RN!). Whether you’re going on a honeymoon, a girls’ trip or even just a solo jaunt, it’s always great to save money however you can while traveling — and these six sites can help you out in a big way. With post-election stress and the holidays upon us, now is as good of a time as ever to book a vacation, stat. Pro tip: Follow as many of these as you can on social media (try making a Twitter list!) to score even more deals or get to sales first.
1. The Flight Deal: This website only publishes fares that will cost you six cents per mile or less, and has tips to help maximize your miles (points, frequent flyer programs, etc.). It unfortunately really only benefits those that live in select cities such as New York, San Francisco, Dallas and Miami (see the full list at The Flight Deal), but if you live in one of these major markets, this is going to change the way you book flights. A recent post had flights from Dallas to Philadelphia at $68 each way!
2. Scott’s Cheap Flights: This is an industry secret, so listen up. Those amazing international flight deals you see on sites like Travel + Leisure might have come from Scott Keyes of Scott’s Cheap Flights, who is one of the best in the industry for finding mistake fares, sales and more. He even will tell you how he searched to get that specific price. There’s a paid option where he can find intrepid travelers even more specific deals; if you’re a casual browser, this newsletter will seriously inspire you.
3. Skiplagged: If you’ve got flexible dates, you might want to head over to Skiplagged. They’re so good at finding flight deals that they claim United Airlines sued them for it. You enter in your home city and your dates and a grid will pop up with what’s cheap during those dates. This is great for people who want to take a vacation during a certain period of time, but want to find someplace cheap or within a certain distance.
4. ITA Matrix: This is a travel agent’s secret in the simplest interface ever. You just enter your desired flight info and it’ll tell you everything that’s available on the ITA Matrix — everything. (You know how some of those other sites hide airlines they don’t partner with? Not this one.) From there, you can buy directly with the airline or through BookWithMatrix, which allows you to copy your ITA Matrix itinerary for booking options. The system was developed by MIT scientists and acquired by Google in 2011, so you know it’s legit.
5. Travel Comparison Sites: Orbitz, Expedia, Airfarewatchdog, Kayak, Momondo, Skyscanner — there are so many sites out there, and you should sign up for as many as you feel comfortable flooding your inbox. There are often crazy good sales, partnerships you can take advantage of and more. Some even have a “take me anywhere” or “I’m curious” type of button to see what deals can come up. Read the fine print carefully and make sure all connections are doable, but these sites can really pay off so long as you’re on top of your game and eagle-eyed.
6. Airline Websites: Sign up for your preferred airlines (or all of them!) to find secret sales and more. For example, Delta just sent around an email announcing a points partnership with Airbnb (huge!!), and JetBlue and Southwest are famous for their sales. If you’re really picky about the airline you fly, this might be the best way to find deals you’ll feel good about.
Do you have any travel secrets we missed? Share them with us @BritandCo!
(Featured photo via Getty)