discount airline tickets

Peter Gitundu asked:


Some people are fortunate enough to get free airline tickets to use for travel. It’s not easy to get these free tickets. They are mostly given out during promotions. For example an airline has revamped its fleet and wants to attract fliers, they will give out tickets. These tickets may be valid only between certain destinations, so they may be restricting in that sense.

Sometimes a ticket can be given as a way of apologizing for a cancellation on a previous flight. Sometimes the travel agent may be acting as an airline agent and might be given some tickets give out as a means of advertising and attracting potential customers. For example if an airline is introducing a new route, or a new fleet of aircraft.

Sometimes someone could get free airline tickets by winning a raffle or something of the sort. The problem with these free tickets is that they have many drawbacks and limitations when it comes to utilizing them. For example, they might only be valid for a certain number of months, they could be non transferable or might be one way and you have to organize your way back. They could also be to a destination that you have no interest in.

Anything that’s free is always very attractive, and unless you are flexible and don’t mind the restrictions that come with the tickets, you are good to go. And again, as with anything that is this attractive, make sure you always read the fine print. Ask any questions you might have for the person who is giving you this free airline tickets.



MERVIN

Millard Hiner asked:


of airline tickets can sometimes be the bulk of your traveling expense. However if you are a flexible traveler, you may find it useful and cost effective to go online and look for a last minute airline ticket. There are a number of websites who offer such a service and most of the major airlines do as well. Purchasing a last minute airline ticket is the airline industry’s way of ensuring that they are flying as near to full flights as possible. They would much rather fill up the plane, even if it means selling the last few tickets for a discounted price. Flying the plane with empty seats is great for the passenger who gets the coveted 2 seats, but a source of lost income for the airline. There are a few things that you must be willing to do if you are interested in a last minute airline ticket. First you have to be diligent in your search efforts. Obviously the airlines don’t want this to become the mainstream way of purchasing tickets, so you will need to poke around to various sites. Also, you have to be willing to travel at crazy times throughout the day and on any given day.

This method of purchasing tickets works much better when you are traveling to visit friends, for example versus traveling for a vacation. When you are booking a vacation and a hotel, you need for your flight to coincide with the reset of your travel arrangements, such as the days and nights you have booked your hotel. But if you are flying home to visit mom and dad, it doesn’t matter if you come in on Monday or Tuesday, or 12 noon or midnight.

Travelers who buy a last minute airline ticket are usually lone travelers as well, or an extremely flexible couple. You are most likely to find 1 ticket per flight available at the discount. If you are lucky enough to find two, you and your travel companion will most likely not be sitting together. This is a small price to pay though in exchange for cutting down on the expense of flying.

Overall, purchasing discounted tickets at the last minute from an airline is a fabulous way to save money on your travel expenses. If your travel plans don’t dictate a specific day and time that you arrive in your destination, I highly recommend this option. A little planning and a lot of flexibility will save you money better spent on the actual vacation!



KELVIN

Andrew Bicknell asked:


For anyone who has ever traveled by air the thought of paying exorbitant prices on airline fares is enough to make them cringe. If you are one of them you understand that saving money on travel costs is very important and you are not alone. Everyday hundreds of thousands of people go online and using search engines and travel sites type in the following phrase, “I am looking for discount airline tickets”.

Fortunately for you and them there are ways to find and purchase cheap airfares if you know where to look and what to do. Competition is fierce within the airline industry and for the travel savvy flier discounts abound.

Here are 6 strategies you can follow in your quest to find discount airline tickets:

1. Flexibility – If you want to save money you need to fly at off peak times. This works several ways. When making vacation plans to a specific destination try and plan it around the off-season for that particular destination. You can find good discounts on airfare but also on tour packages. You also need to look at flying during off peak times of the weeks and day. For most airlines this is the middle of the week and late evening or early morning hours.

2. Use Airfare Ticketing Search Engines – The internet has given the traveling consumer great flexibility when planning vacations and business trips. The problem for those making travel plans is the sheer amount of information and travel sites to get through. This is where the ticketing search engines can help. They search all the airline and travel sites for you, finding the cheapest tickets for your travel itinerary.

3. Pick up the Phone – If you call the airlines direct and ask them what discounted tickets they have available for you itinerary you may be surprised. Airlines normally offer special deals everyday but they are not usually advertised. By taking advantage of their daily ticketing system updates you can save even more money as well. Call between midnight and 5 or 6 in the morning because there are usually cheap tickets available.

4. Plan Ahead – The sooner you can make your travel plans the better. Inexpensive tickets can be had at least 4 months before your scheduled departure date. Once you get inside of 18 to 24 days before your flight your chances of finding good savings are greatly diminished because the airlines can charge premium prices for last minute reservations.

5. Discount Airlines – There are many no frills discount airlines that offer cheap airfare with great service. Jet Blue, Spirit Air, and Southwest are a few examples.

6. Free Tickets – There is a way to get free tickets but you have to be very flexible once you get to the airport. The airlines have a bad habit of overbooking flights which is why you here that announcement at the gate asking for people to give up their seats. If you won’t be greatly inconvenienced by traveling on the next flight to your destination you should consider this because most airlines will give vouchers for free tickets to anywhere they fly.

Understanding the airline ticketing system is the first step to savings success for those people looking for discount airline tickets. And just think how nice it will feel having that extra money in your pocket once you get to your destination.



SONNY

John Lopinto asked:


Availability of a vast array of airline ticket prices is one that is perplexing to most airline travelers.  Only a handful of people who control the complex formulas that go into the science and art of Revenue Management inside the caverns of today’s airlines understand it.  To both the seasoned and occasional traveler alike, getting the best value in an airfare is the elusive dream that is difficult to consistently achieve.

However, there are some time proven axioms that one can follow to put the odds on your side in helping you to reduce the cost of your air travel:

#1 Change the Time You Travel

Don’t be rigid on the time of day you want to travel.  Going between New York and Los Angeles, for example, may have one airline offering as many as seven or eight flights on a particular day.  If you want to leave in the morning, investigate the three or four departures offered during that time period.  Moving your departure time by just one hour, on your departure or return, may save you a significant portion of the ticket price.

#2 Change the Day You Travel

Even if you require traveling on a particular airline or time of day, look at moving your desired departure or return day by one or two days.  It is often the case that a particular flight may be cheaper on a Tuesday than a Wednesday, or a Saturday instead of a Sunday.  The side benefit of this might be a free one-day “vacation” as the savings in airfare can more than offset the additional cost of a hotel room and meals. 

#3 Change the Route You Travel

Yes, we all like to travel directly from where we are to our destination as quickly as possible and without changing planes.  But how much is this worth to you?  Airlines often make connecting flights from your origin to destination less expensive than their non-stop flights.  It may add a couple of hours to travel time but it may be worth the hundreds of dollars you might be saving.  Airline websites, unfortunately, are designed to show you the most direct and shortest time between the cities you request.  If they have an option to “search by fare” use that option with maximum number of results possible and drill down deep in the results to make sure you see all the fares available. 

#4 Change the Airline You Use to Travel

Competition is a wonderful thing!  Many routes are highly competitive and it can force an airline with traditional dominance in a market to drop its airfares, sometimes dramatically, in response to a new competitor or fare sale from other competing airlines.  Often times these “sales” will happen on a moment’s notice and may only last for a few days.  If you have a favorite airline you wish to use, subscribe to their email alerts for your favorite cities so you can be kept up to date on any fare changes.  But, don’t limit yourself to just one airline.  Do it for all the airlines in your market.

#5 First Class Cheaper Than Coach?

No discussion of airfares would be complete without talking about the new currency for airfares: the frequent flyer mile.  More and more of us are accumulating these frequent flyer miles that pay for airline tickets.  Our first inclination when trying to redeem these miles is to seek out a coach seat using the lowest amount of miles, typically around 25,000 miles.  However, it is usually the case that the airline does not have any seats at the lowest mileage redemption level when you would like to travel but may have them if you use twice the miles.  Before giving in to this requirement, ask about business or first class awards.  You may be surprised how many times discounted business or first class awards may be available to and from your destination for the same or less or slightly more miles than for double mileage coach awards.  The extra comfort and perks are the icing on the cake!

Be flexible, keep current on airfares, explore all your routing options and look at all the ways frequent flyer miles can be redeemed.

About the Author

John Lopinto is Partner and co-founder of Expert Travel Services, LLC which owns and operates ExpertFlyer.com, the leading online information service for frequent flyers.  A 100,000+ mile a year frequent flyer, Mr. Lopinto travels extensively throughout Asia, Europe and North America to bring his unique perspective to the travel industry for the frequent flyer.  As a top-tier elite member for an international airline and alliance, Mr. Lopinto has first hand knowledge of life as an air traveler at all levels of service and experiences.

Mr. Lopinto also is President of a manufacturer of fiber optic transmission systems and high-performance computer-video interface products.  Mr. Lopinto previously held various technical and managerial positions in the Broadcast, Satellite and Cable TV industries.

Mr. Lopinto holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering degree. His professional affiliations include the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers and the International Communications Industries Association.

To learn more about how you can travel cheaper and smarter, log onto to http://www.expertflyer.com



FRED

Andrew Bicknell asked:


Many people dream of traveling to a foreign country but the cost of international airfare is enough to scare most people off. If this is something you’ve always dreamed of doing but the prohibitive cost of airline tickets has kept you from doing so then its time to learn the secrets of finding cheap discount international flights and airline tickets.

The one thing that most people are not aware of is the fact that airline ticket prices change on a daily basis. This is important to remember because when you find a really good deal you need to take advantage of it. If you wait until the next day to think about it there is a good chance that the price will have changed.

You can take advantage of this daily price change is you know what to do. Or more importantly who to talk to. Call the airlines ticketing representatives directly and simply ask what kind of ticket discounts they currently have running for their international flights. Most airlines run specials every day of the week, they just don’t advertise the fact.

The time you choose to call can also be important because most of these discounted specials are first come first serve. The airlines update their computerized ticketing system everyday at right around midnight so calling in the early morning hours stands a good chance of finding some really good deals on international airline tickets.

There is also the issue of knowing how far in advance to buy your tickets because you want to take advantage of any early booking discounts the airlines may be offering. The general for early booking is to make your reservations between 4 months and 21 to 14 days before your scheduled travel dates. You won’t save much if you try to book a flight beyond 4 months out and once you get inside of the two week travel window the airlines know they can charge full price because most people traveling are either business travelers or traveling on short notice.

Another good tip to finding inexpensive airline tickets is to travel during the off-peak seasons. Because the demand for tickets isn’t as great during these times the airlines will offer pretty good discounts to put warm bodies in their cabins.

Finding cheap discount international flights and airline tickets is relatively easy if your timing is good. Once you learn the ins and outs of the airline ticketing system you will soon find yourself traveling with more spare cash in your pockets no matter where you go.



JULES

William Dean asked:


To find cheap flights you need not to go anywhere. There are numerous ways that you can cut down the costs of your next flight to anywhere in the world. Finding the best deals for cheap tickets and discount airfare has just become easier. You can book your return tickets also at same time. In the past, if you wanted to find cheap airline tickets and discount airfares you had to contact a travel agent and explain where and when you wanted to go. They would do some research and eventually get back to you with a deal.

Find Discount Airfares & Travel Deals Here

Now days you can seek out and find cheap tickets and discount airfares, just by entering a few words into a computer right from your own home. Are you looking for the best deals around? Well, in a few minutes you can find a plane ticket that will take you anywhere you want to go. You can search out the cheapest, most Discounted airfare originating from anywhere and going to anywhere around the world. 

You choose your destination, you choose your schedule, you choose which ticket price suits YOU best and when you’re finished, you complete the transaction, right from the comfort of your own home. Getting Cheap airplane tickets and discount air tavel deals is never as easy before! 

The best Cheap Tickets and Discount Airfares resource you’ll find. When shopping online for cheap tickets and discount airfares, be sure to compare prices with flight departure times and schedules. Seasonal variations can affect travel prices and flight schedules. You’ll find that searching for and purchasing a plane ticket online is easy and fun. 

Finding discount tickets for your next air travel can save you lots of money. The best way to find airline discount tickets is to search around at several popular sites. Cheapest airline tickets are worth the work it takes to find them!

Find Cheapest Airline Tickets Here



RILEY

James Brown asked:


Planning a trip, looking around at prices and feel your jaw dropping when you get to airline tickets. It is no longer as cheap as it used to be. Rising fuel costs, extra security, fewer people flying all add up to an increase in flight costs. Luckily, if you take the time to look you can find online vouchers that can help you defray the cost of your airline ticket or might help you get an upgrade on your ticket for the same price.

Paper tickets are also almost outdated and are used only rarely. Many times, you purchase your flight print out your receipt and take it in to the terminal where they handle your tickets.

Online vouchers for airline tickets can be found in a number of locations on the web. They may come as part of a vacation package, or separately offered by travel agents or by the airline companies themselves in order to boost sales. Online vouchers are also available even through discount airline ticket companies these companies usually purchase large volume so they can pass the savings on to you, then they might offer additional savings in the form of online vouchers in order to get you to spend a little more.

You still end up saving money or with an online voucher, you might be able to upgrade from economy to business or business to first class at substantial savings or for no cost at all. This definitely makes looking into online vouchers for airline tickets a worthwhile endeavor. Depending on the site you choose and whether going through the airline’s website or through a travel agent, you can also sign up for notification through e-mail that will advise you if any new deals are available to save you even more money.

When looking for airline tickets online, do not forget to take the time to look for online vouchers. Online vouchers can be a great way to save money when purchasing airline tickets online. These vouchers depending on the voucher can save you on the actual cost of the flight, allow you to upgrade your ticket to the next seat grade up. Online vouchers are a great way to save money there are hundreds of sites that cover vouchers for just about anything you could be looking for. Everyone who is considering air travel should look for online vouchers.



HARRISON

Helping to decide asked:


I have a friend who works for an airline compay and they have offered to buy me plane tickets with their employee discount.

The thing is, i only travel from Melbourne, Australia to El Salvador to visit family and usually i get charged 2,500 to 3,000 (Australian dollars) per economy ticket. This flight goes through the US (stop over in LA) and then straight to El Salvador.

But my friend says he could get them for 1,200 - 1,500 (US dollars). That is a HUGE savings, if they are right. I’ll be getting them almost at half price.

Could this be real?? Is there a set amount airlines charge on each tickets (20%-50% etc..)???

Thanks

ORVILLE

**Mizz Phatty** asked:


See, my fiancee is a Ranger in the US Army and he is gettin ready to deploy to Iraq. He was supposed to be able to come down to say his goodbyes but we just BARELY found out that it’s not going to happen. Because of the fact that it’s so last minute and for other personal reasons, we don’t have the money for a full priced round trip ticket for me to go see him. Could anyone help me in gettin some kind of a discount ticket or something?!?! I’m not expectin anthing free, of course…I would just really appreciate any help! THANKS!!!!!

STEFAN

Peter Gitundu asked:


Discount airlines can be described as low cost carriers, low budget carriers that have no frills. These airlines will many a time provide service between cities in the same country or region, or between neighboring countries. The aircraft that are used are smaller than those used for long haul flights. They use for example large jets or the airbus A320. An example of one of these airlines is Frontier Airlines, which flies to domestic destinations in the U.S as well as to some cities in Mexico and Canada.

By no frills, we mean that these airlines, might offer extra services on board at an extra cost. For example, you might pay a little extra to seat in your seat of choice, or you will find that is not an option, because it is open sitting for all passengers. You might have to buy your food, or bring it on board, or pay to rent earphones for the duration of the flight.

You will find that these airlines operate many short haul flights, and so in a day may have up to ten flights between two cities. This makes it easy for you to just drive to the airport, buy a ticket and hop on a flight. For example flights between San Diego and Las Vegas.

Something else to note about discount airlines is that they are popular with business travelers who just want to jump on a flight, with no fuss, get to their destination, get their work done and get back home in the evening.



IAN