The Best Flight Deals

Cheap Flight Deals: Find and Book Bargain Flights

Ahoy pirates, are you looking for your next adventure and in the mood to plan your own route? Maybe the idea of a vacation package is not your thing and you'd prefer to do a little more exploring or you just want to travel around the world?

Look no further than our flights section. We not only share cheap flights on budget carriers, but we also share incredible deals on 5-star flights on airlines such as ANA and Qatar!

We also feature flights for the intrepid traveler who wants to go hiking in Nepal, or the laid-back vacationer looking to chill on a beach in Hawaii.

Never write-off our flight section if you are looking for some creative travel options that have been hand-selected by our skilled travel deal hunters. Don't worry—we'll keep finding and sharing the best flights across the U.S., Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and everywhere in between.

When should I book flights?

When it comes to finding cheap flights, patience is a virtue. If you already know your plans you can start looking up to 11 months in advance, checking back in weekly to see how prices fluctuate. If you're more of a spur-of-the-moment traveler, you can try your luck with last minute flights, which can bring you big savings.

It may be hard to believe, but the day of the week definitely plays a role when booking a flight. Airlines are smart, but you can outsmart them. The prices for flights start to rise once you plan your departure for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. This is because the weekends tend to be the easiest time to travel for most people. However, you should book your flights to leave on a Tuesday or Wednesday, then you’ll avoid the weekend rush and save some cash!

Better keep those eyes peeled for last minute deals. Last minute is the magic word here because, at the end of the year, the airlines want to sell their last seats as quickly as possible. You can get in on some great last minute deals such as $250 round trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands and escape the frigid winter weather on a Caribbean island paradise.

If you have the opportunity to spontaneously go on vacation, then we can highly recommend booking in November and December. Also, be sure to keep a lookout for Cyber Monday sales cause you could end up getting a flight to Hawaii for under $300! Once you've found a bargain, then you shouldn't wait too long to strike, because—especially for long-haul flights—the cheapest options get snatched up the quickest. For example, if you find an offer from LA to Tokyo for around $400, then you shouldn't wait 'til the next day, because we can guarantee you that this flight will be gone.

Summary:

1. Book flights to depart on Tuesdays & Wednesdays

2. Check last minute deals in November & December

3. Look out for Cyber Monday deals

4. Don't wait too long to book a bargain for long-haul flights

1. Book round trips instead of one way

Even if you're only looking for a one-way flight, it makes sense to look for a return flight. One-way tickets can be significantly more expensive and the cheaper option may be booking a round trip flight. It doesn’t matter whether you actually end up taking the return flight or not.

2. Use longer layover stops

Although it may seem annoying, flights with several or longer layovers are usually cheaper. This means that you can use the extra time to explore a new city and get the chance to experience much more on your journey!

3. Uses current flight offers

Instead of searching for a specific destination, just look for the cheapest flight tickets to wherever! Is jetting off to Bali too expensive? Well, then might as well fly to Vegas $66 instead. For example, with Skyscanner you can explore their map option to find great offers on flights. All you need to do is put in your departure airport and the month you’d like to travel in, then you'll be shown the cheapest ticket prices to destinations around the world!

4. Look for alternative airports

If there is more than one airport nearby, then check it out! The more options you have, the sooner you'll be able to find a cheaper price. Many budget airlines fly to airports a little bit further from the city, but you can easily find a bus, train or taxi to get you to the city center. There are also often cheap open jaw flights where you fly to one destination, but don’t necessarily return to the same destination. With all of these options available you can save a lot of money and as they say: the journey is the reward!

5. Sign up for frequent flyer programs

Many airlines offer frequent flyer programs where you can earn miles and points. You can use them for upgrades, free flights, or status benefits. For many airlines, premium members receive access to exclusive lounges at the airport, even if they only fly economy that day. Another advantage of these memberships is: Priority Check-in, Priority Security, and Priority Boarding.

6. Use foreign booking sites

Sometimes you can get certain flights for a cheaper price if you use the foreign site of a booking provider. For example, instead of booking through Expedia.com you could use Expedia.nl.

7. Sign up for price reports and newsletters from airlines and travel blogs

It may just seem like adding more spam to the inbox, but there are a ton of great deals to be found in newsletters. If you want to keep your personal inbox decluttered, then you can create a new e-mail address that you only use for newsletters from airlines and travel blogs, this way you’ll never miss out on a deal! Plus, many airlines and travel blogs also offer an "alert function” to keep you up to date on the best deals. Whether it's through the newsletter or an app, you can easily find out about the current prices to your desired destination.

8. Follow airlines on their social networks

By now, most airlines have made it onto various social media networks. Airlines and travel blogs often publish their bargain offers first on Facebook, then Twitter, Instagram, etc. In addition, lotteries or freebies are often raffled off on these platforms as well. Could you be the next winner? Another advantage of following airlines is that you’ll be quickly informed about the latest information on flight cancellations, price changes, delays, etc.

9. Do you have to go to Bali right now?

Want to go to Indonesia, but don't have enough money saved up yet? Then don't spend too much time dwelling over it and look for alternatives instead! You can’t always immediately afford to travel the whole world, but more often than not you can find your dream vacation much closer to home.

In the end, finding the cheapest flights is mostly a matter of luck. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but if you win, then there is probably no better feeling than booking a really cheap flight. With these tips and tricks you can increase your chances of saving some money for your travel budget, but if not, then know that TravelPirates will always be there for you! ;)