How to save on Air Travel
To help travellers understand how to find great deals on air travel, AirfaresFlights.com.au has provided a guide below that lists a few tips that can help you in your search. It is by no means an exhaustive list, however should point you in the right direction when looking for that bargain flight.
1. Be Flexible with travel times
The most important way to save on flights is to be flexible as possible with your travel times. The broader your travel window, generally, the better the chances are that you will find a great deal. There are a number of sites that offer flexible flight searches. The first and most obvious is to take a look at the deals listed on AirfaresFlights.com.au, however, other sites have great resources for this including the Flexible travel search at Zuji.com.au. Another option is to browse sites like Best Flights (bestflights.com.au) - which provide links to their best deals.
2. Book Early
Booking your flight early has traditionally been a way of saving money when it comes to travel. A number of airlines offer earlybird fares for travellers that book ahead - ask your travel agent about these deals, the agents also tend to list these on AirfaresFlights.com.au first :)
3. Try the low cost carriers
Low cost carriers such as Virgin Blue, Jetstar, Air Asia, Freedomair & Tiger Airways can offer discount flights- when compared to traditional airlines. The downside to these tickets is that low cost carriers also tend to be the least flexible with changes to travel times and refunds, they also do not offer services such as inflight meals that are standard on traditional carriers.
4. Watch out for taxes, surcharges, service fees & credit card fees.
This leads on from point 3 above. Taxes and service fees can quickly make, what looks like a cheap flight, become an expensive one. Taxes and surcharges in particular can add significantly to a fare, in fact, on some international routes up to as much as 50% of the ticket or more. Not all agents include these prices up front - so remember to include this in the final cost decision.
Service fees also contribute to the price of a ticket an may not be immediately obvious when booking - service fees vary between travel agent, generally within Australia, agents charge anywhere between $5 - $30 on top of the airfare in service fees.
5. Shop around.
Shopping around is key when it comes to finding any type of bargain - travel is no different. Specific items within travel to beware of include sites that guarantee cheapest fares or offer other types of incentives - these offers tend to be full of conditions & aim more to mislead the traveller into thinking they have found the best deal.
6. Consider a frequent flyer program.
If you travel a lot, an airline that offers a rewarding frequent flyer programme could save you money in the long term. Frequent flyer programmes also have the downside of increase loyalty by the consumer (which may not result the the best deal for the consumer). Check to see if these programmes suits your needs and your travel patterns first.
7. Look at hidden extras
Just as taxes and surcharges can add to the price of a ticket (see point 4), so too can other extras such as airport transfers, onboard meals, seat reservation fees etc. Not all airlines fly to the most convenient airport (this is especially true of Melbourne & of low cost carriers). Make sure you factor in the cost of airport transport and any other extras when making a decision on airlines and prices.
8. Domestic flight happy hours
A number of international and domestic airlines offer sales throughout the year. Virgin blue offers discounted happy hour deals, other airlines such as Qantas and Jetstar have periodic sales, savers tickets and companion fare promotions (to name a few). A number of international airlines have sales when booking well in advance (eg. earlybird sales to Europe for example).
9. Companion fares, Senior Fares & Youth Fares.
Special fares can sometimes be great value - in particular STA Travel has a range of student and youth fares available which can be cheaper alternatives to other agents. Companion fares are also sometimes offered
10. Package it and save!
Packaging deals can prove useful in saving money on the entire cost of the trip. Two particular good agents at offering flight + hotel package deals are - Expedia.com.au and Travel.com.au (with their packagesaver option). Try using these searches for holidays.
Thats it! Hope you found the infromation useful.
Have any comments? Feel free to email AirfaresFlights.com.au - admin [(at)] airfaresflights.com.au
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