The Best Way to Find Cheap Airfare

Airlines change ticket prices multiple times every day to beat or keep up with the competition. Knowing when airlines adjust their rates, the cheapest days and times to fly, and other industry secrets can help you to slash the cost of airline tickets.

Tips For You

1. Be flexible. Airfares are often less expensive on certain days of the week. For example, it's common for the price to drop dramatically if you fly on a Monday morning instead of a Sunday morning. Wednesday is also the cheapest day to fly, according to travel expert Rick Seaney of farecompare.com.
2. Compare prices on travel websites to prices directly from the airlines. The lowest fare advertised on a travel website may not be the cheapest available. Not all airlines participate in travel sites and checking directly with the carrier could net you greater savings.
3. Travel off season. Visiting any destination during peak tourist season usually means higher rates for airfare, hotels and rental cars. Do a little research before booking your trip to find out off-peak periods for your destination.
4. Buy your ticket in the middle of the week. It may sound ridiculous but airlines drop tickets prices between Tuesday and Thursday. The price you see when you're researching flights on Sunday afternoon could drop significantly on Tuesday afternoon.
5. Shop ahead. Airline prices are often less expensive three to four months prior to departure, which makes it the best time to buy. Waiting any longer means ticket prices are more likely to rise due to supply and demand. However, some airlines will refund the difference to passengers if the price of your airfare drops. Check with the airline regarding this policy. Some will only refund the difference if the price drops within a certain time frame.

Read More ..... »

How to Find a Cheap Red-Eye Flight

A red-eye flight is any flight that occurs between midnight and 6 a.m. These fares tend to be lower due to the lack of demand and awkward traveling hours. Red-eye flights can be useful for travelers who are on a tight budget or who need to connect to another flight early in the morning.

Tips For You

1. Order your tickets in advance to get the best rates. Use price comparison websites like Expedia, Priceline and CheapTickets to review ticket cost and availability. The prices change every hour so check frequently.
2. Travel during the middle of the week. Be flexible with travel times, and check a week before and after your preferred dates. It is considered cheaper to travel on a Wednesday than on the weekend.
3. Explore the discounts available to you. Some airlines offer discounts to senior citizens, children, and students. Call the airlines directly to see what reductions they can offer you.
4. Fly to smaller airports that have less traffic. Large cities will usually have multiple airports and often one is located on the outskirts of the central city. You can save money by flying to the smaller airports and taking a bus into town.

Read More ..... »

What Does "Web Only" Mean When Booking a Flight?

It's always wise to make sure you're fully aware of the meaning of any terminology relating to a flight you're thinking of booking, whether you're shopping for deals online, over the phone or at a travel agency. If you're searching the Internet for cheap air fares and find yourself confronted with the term "Web only," you may have stumbled across a bargain, but you need to cast a wary eye over the restrictions attached to the offer in question before proceeding to checkout.

Definition

• Airlines and travel brokers have less overhead to cover when they make sales online. They sometimes pass a portion of the money they save by selling flights on the Internet to their customers in the form of Web-only deals. If you buy your air travel tickets online, the company you book with doesn't have to spend money on things such as staff members dealing with your purchase or travel agent commission fees.

Restrictions

• Web-only deals may be cheap, but are not always flexible. They often are offered for a limited period of time for specific travel dates, and typically are nontransferable and nonrefundable. If you book with an airline that lets you change a Web-only flight, you usually have to pay through the nose for the pleasure. Check the terms and conditions of Web-only deals before going ahead with a booking.

Cancellation Insurance

• If you want to protect yourself against losing out in the event you were unable to take a Web-only flight, avail yourself of a travel insurance policy that includes trip cancellation coverage. This would reimburse the cost of your flight and any other expenses linked to your travels, such as hotel accommodations, in the event you were unable to travel because of illness or a limited number of other unforeseen circumstances.

Time to Buy

• As a rule of thumb, Web-only tickets typically become more expensive the more of them an airline or travel broker sells, and may disappear completely once a certain quota has been sold. As such, you'd be well advised to act quickly if you come across a deal that seems too good to be true. If you leave it a day or two to make your booking, you could find your window of opportunity has closed.

Read More ..... »

The Best Time to Book a Flight to Greece

With a relatively mild climate across most of the country, Greece receives visitors year-round to enjoy the country's ancient ruins, cosmopolitan modern culture and postcard-perfect Mediterranean islands. The perfect time to book your flight depends on your planned itinerary, but, generally speaking, you probably want to avoid the sweltering temperatures and crowds of the summer months. Traveling in the spring and fall can also mean lower prices for services and accommodations -- while Greek weather still remains rather pleasant and most attractions are open.

Weather

• While northern Macedonia and Epiros experience harsh, freezing winters, the climate in the rest of Greece is pleasantly Mediterranean -- with even winter temperatures between 55 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit around Athens. In the summer, the mercury soars even higher in the mountainous north, with highs reaching 100 degrees across the country. In terms of precipitation, winters see more rain in most of Greece, with frequent showers from October to February. If you're looking for clear skies and sunshine -- without the heat exhaustion -- your best bet is traveling in the spring and autumn months of May, June, September and October.

Crowds

• The summer months of July and August are the peak of the tourist season in Greece, when some of the best-known destinations -- and especially the Greek Islands -- are absolutely packed. These summer months can be very exciting and are exactly the right time to travel if you're looking for events like the famed parties of Mykonos. If you'd prefer to see the Parthenon or a sunrise over Santorini without the hordes of package tourists and backpackers, however, you should avoid the peak season and travel in the months before or after the summer rush.

Availability and Pricing

• As you might expect, prices in many Greek hotels and tourist restaurants follow rises in the mercury during the summer months. Traveling off-season can save you a few bucks with discounted rates on lodging and other services. Greece's tourist infrastructure is also often swamped by the high season, so be sure you have advanced reservations for everything if you have to travel in July or August. In the winter, many tourist services -- especially on the Greek islands -- are shuttered for the off-season. Nonetheless, you should have no trouble finding lodging, transportation and open attractions in the spring and fall.

Special Events

• Holidays and festival dates can be an ideal time to visit Greece and gain some insight into the local culture. Some of the highlights include the dancing, parades and celebrations of Carnival and the solemn processions and masses of Greek Orthodox Easter -- held around February and April respectively but varying from year to year and not necessarily coinciding with their western equivalents. The cosmopolitan city of Thessaloniki also holds an international film festival in early November. One of the few good reasons to travel to Greece in the summer is the Athens and Epidaurus Festival, with visual arts, music, theatre and other cultural attractions from June to August.

Read More ..... »