I get high whenever I book a flight. It’s a crazy feeling I cannot explain. I love waiting for that final confirmation and getting that email with my itinerary. Then, the countdown begins and I’ve got something incredible to look forward to.
In 10+ years of traveling the globe, I’ve picked up some weird tricks and hacks when booking flights. Sometimes I am on a budget, sometimes I am looking to hack my way into business class. Educating yourself on how to book the best flight possible is advised if you travel more than a handful of times per year.
Here are my top 5 hacks for booking a flight on a budget:
HACKS FOR BOOKING CHEAP FLIGHTS:
Hack # 1: Search Incognito Mode
Warning: you are being tracked! Everytime you revisit a travel site, you are risking a price hike. Ever notice how the price of your desired ticket conveniently changed the 3rd time you checked on it? Sometimes, even the 2nd visit. Make sure to browse privatly and clear your search history every time you leave.
To open an incognito window on Chrome, simply click on the 3 dots at the top right corner and click on “new incognito window”. A new window will pop open in dark mode. Never search a flight any other way. While making a booking in incognito mode, you will not have any of your important contact details automatically filled. This is a good sign that you are not being tracked. Enter your details manually and make your booking!
Hack # 2: Use Skyscanner “whole month” option
If you are flexible with your dates and plan well enough in advance, then I highly recommend using Skyscanners “whole month” option, which allows you to see comparative prices for an entire month in one shot on a monthly calendar.
Simply visit Skyscanner, plug in your travel details and when clicking on “depart”, you will see a drop down calendar appear. At the top you can choose between “specific date” and “whole month”. Click on whole month and compare prices all in one shot!
Hack #3: The time of day hack
Now this one might be considered a myth, but it has worked for me in the past, so I think airlines might be shy about letting people in on this trick. The time of day in which you make your booking matters! My theory is simple: the more traffic on a website, the higher the prices. The less traffic, the better the deals. I’ve actually seen flight prices drop when researching the exact same ticket super late at night or very early morning, incognito mode of course. If you are not liking what you are seeing, come back to it during off peak hours while browsing in incognito mode and see if the price gets better.
Hack #4: The Tuesday hack
Everybody knows that the best day to travel is a Tuesday because it is considered an offpeak travel day. But my Tuesday travel hack is about actually making a booking on a Tuesday for any other day of the week. Most people conduct their travel research closer to the end of the week and on weekends when they have spare time. Try making your booking on an off peak day of the week during an off peak hour, incognito mode. You might notice a price drop or at least a good price stay the same when you’re ready to make your booking 1 day later.
Hack #5: Book separate tickets
If you’re looking to travel to a hot destination, be prepared to pay the price…until you learn this hack. Once again, this requires some flexibility. Try booking a cheap flight to a destination close to where you are ultimately going and then hop on a separate flight to your final stop. For example, flying directly from Miami to Ibiza would be pretty pricey since that’s a popular lag.
Instead, try booking a flight to a cheaper destination nearby. Once you are in the area, getting to your ultimate destination should cost you peanuts. Especially flights within the EU. Airlines are always going to take advantage of international traverls coming into hot destinations within EU, but not all EU countries are priced equal. Stay flexible and start budget hacking!
