How To Find Cheap Airfare
by: Steve Gillman
To find cheap airfare, you need to do a little research. Start with the well-known sites, like Expedia, Travelocity, Cheap Tickets, Hotwire or Priceline. The travel agencies just can't compete with the discount sites any longer. You can also find cheap airfare by using the search engines. Type in something like "cheap plane tickets" and the destination.
I just checked fares from Tucson, Arizona to Traverse City, Michigan on the five sites mentioned above. Tickets ranged from $704 to $432 for the cheapest at each site (and up to $500 more for the most expensive). It isn't important which was cheapest (oh, okay, it was Expedia). It isn't important because you never know from day to day which sites will find the cheapest flights. It changes all the time
When you search, always check at least three places. It would mean a savings of $272 in the above example. Flight durations were within minutes of each other, by the way, and the food is probably equally bad on all the flights.
Find Cheap Airfare With Flexibility
Sometimes it's cheaper to buy two tickets. The lowest rate from Grand Rapids, Michigan to Tucson, Arizona is $451 roundtrip as I write this. Las Vegas to Tucson is $161, however, and there are $199 specials to Vegas from Grand Rapids. Is saving $91 worth booking two flights? Your call (It saved us over $1000 when we went to South America). Careful on the timing, though. You probably won't get a refund if you miss the connection.
More flexibility is the way to find cheap airfare. Check different departure and return dates. Click on "2 or more connecting flights," and mark "anytime" for departure. Even if you don't want to leave at midnight, the savings might change your mind, so try all the options. When the savings aren't enough, you can always book first class, direct flights, or whatever you prefer.
Purchasing ahead of time gets you cheaper airfare. Less than a week away tends to be expensive, although you never can tell in the mysterious realm of airfare pricing. At times the "last minute specials" are the best thing going.
Place a bid to find cheap airfare. Priceline still has a "Name Your Own Price" feature. You make your bid, and the airlines say yes or no, according to whether they have empty seats to fill. The way to use this is to first search for the cheapest tickets you can find online, then go and bid lower than that. If the bid is rejected, return to the website where you found the best deal and book it.
Package deals, where you pay for plane tickets and your hotel room, can sometimes save you money. Personally, I haven't had much luck with these, but it can't hurt to look at them.
Really Cheap Airfare
I once took a bus from Michigan to Miami, and flew from there to Ecuador. At the time saving hundreds of dollars was worth 38 hours on a bus. Usually this won't save you much on domestic flights. For example, at the moment, taking a bus from Traverse City to Detroit, then flying to Los Angeles, would only save about $70 (allowing for cab fare to the airport) compared with flying directly.
Other options are beyond the scope of this article. For example, courier flights can be a great deal if you don't mind letting a company use your baggage allowance (you get carry-on only). Then there are the stand-by deals, last minute deals and other ways to find cheap airfare.
About The Author
Steve Gillman hit the road at sixteen, and traveled the U.S. and Mexico alone at 17. Now 40, he travels with his wife Ana, whom he met in Ecuador. For travel stories, tips and a free e-book, visit: http://www.EverythingAboutTravel.com.
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Little Secrets
Little Secrets
by: Steve Gillman
Little secrets can be useful. An example is knowing that hotel mattresses are less worn and more comfortable on the side away from the phone. Or knowing that listening to Mozart's sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, K. 448 for ten minutes can raise your IQ 9 points.
They can also be just interesting. Did you know that the furthest point from the center of the earth isn't Everest, but the top of Mount Chimborazo, in Ecuador (due to the bulge in the planet near the equator)? Here are some little secrets that are a little of both.
- Find money in bibles. Hotel owners report that visitors tuck money in the bedside bible, and forget to take it with them. Check those bibles!
- Find treasure in hotel rooms. Treasure hunters have found that businessmen take off and hide their wedding rings in hotel rooms, before they head to the bars. They sometimes forget them when they check out. Where would you hide something?...
Little Secrets
Airfare > Little Secrets
Reward your Employees with Travel Incentives
Reward your Employees with Travel Incentives
by: Sheryl Strasser
Motivating employees, especially highly competitive employees like inside and outside salespersons and telemarketers, can be a challenge. Sure, everyone likes cash, but what if you could offer a incentive that was worth more than cash? That's what travel incentives are all about.
What do you think would generate more excitement among your employees; offering $50 to the person who sets the most appointments in one day, or offering a 3 day and 2 nights hotel stay in Hawaii including airfare? I'll bet that you didn't have to think about that for too long. The Hawaii trip wins hands down.
I'll also bet that you're thinking "sure, I would love to give away a travel incentive deal like that, but how can I afford it?" Prepare to be shocked. You see, travel incentive coupons sell for pennies on the dollar. The key to success in offering travel incentives is their perceived value...
Reward your Employees with Travel Incentives
Airfare > Reward your Employees with Travel Incentives
Hilton Head Island: Golf Vacation Paradise
Hilton Head Island: Golf Vacation Paradise
by: Shawn Kosloff
Imagine yourself playing a round of golf with names like Nicklaus, Palmer, and Player. While you may never actually get to play a round with Jack, Arnie, and Gary, you can walk in their footsteps while you play a round or two on one of their championship golf courses on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.
You may have heard of a few other golf course architects that have designed a course or two in the area. Names like Pete Dye, George Fazio, Fuzzy Zoeller, George Cobb, Tom Fazio, Arthur Hills, Robert Trent Jones, and Clyde Johnston. It doesn?t matter if you?re a duffer or a scratch golfer, there are a wide variety of courses with unique layouts and challenges for golfers of all skill levels.
Planning Your Hilton Head Vacation
Beginning in the 1960?s, developer Charles Fraser developed a master plan for Hilton Head Island in which all of the homes, structures, and facilities...
Hilton Head Island: Golf Vacation Paradise
Airfare > Hilton Head Island: Golf Vacation Paradise
10 Travel Tips
10 Travel Tips
by: Jeff Lakie
Going away on vacation should be an enjoyable experience but everyone has a horror story to tell. Perhaps your hotel room was robbed, or perhaps a careless spouse accidentally gambled away more money than they realized, or perhaps you simply lost your wallets somewhere between the airport and hotel. Here are 10 ways to make sure that your trip is a success in spite of those obstacles.
1. Use a hidden wallet to carry most of your valuables and identification.
2. If you feel comfortable sending it in the mail, mail a money order or a traveler's checks to yourself at your hotel so that even if you lose some of your money, more will be coming.
3. While you don't have to be too strict, you should have an agenda and leave it with someone at home. This way, if something happens in the area where you are vacationing, your loved ones will be able to have a fairly good idea of where you are.
4. Keep copies...
10 Travel Tips
Airfare > 10 Travel Tips
Find Out How You Could Find Low Airfares
Find Out How You Could Find Low Airfares
by: John Navata
Unless you are planning a short domestic trip, the cost of airfare is usually a deciding factor in an overseas trip. Most people with moderate incomes simply can't afford to fly regularly, as much as they would like to. There are, however, some people out there who are flying all the time on regular incomes. The secret to achieving this is a willingness to be flexible and shop around with airfares, as well as employing some tried and true discount travel techniques.
The key to getting a cheap flight is to shop around, and the internet makes this easy for almost anyone to do. There are a plethora of websites that will conduct searches around the world for cheap airfares. Although the internet is a valuable tool in discovering cheap airfares, it's important that you don't rely on it entirely. Many sites claim they are searching "all flights" for the cheapest possible fare, but you really...
Find Out How You Could Find Low Airfares
Airfare > Find Out How You Could Find Low Airfares