If you’ve read my other blog posts, you’ll know how much I am OBSESSED with trying to find cheap flights. Once I find them, this is usually the inspiration which usually kickstarts all the travel planning and everything which comes after. Here are my best tips for how to find and book cheap flights. If you have any more suggestions, please leave a comment!
- Use Flight Comparison Tools
- Be Flexible with Your Dates and Times
- Stay Open to Destination Options
- Book Smartly/Timely Based on Your Route
- Track Prices and Wait for Deals
- Travel Light to Avoid Extra Fees
- Use Rewards and Travel Credit Cards
- Consider Multi-Stop Journeys
- Think Outside the Plane: Alternatives to Flying
- Additional Tips
- Summary
Use Flight Comparison Tools
Google Flights & Skyscanner: Both tools allow you to compare fares across airlines and provide insights into fare fluctuations.
Search Multiple Airlines: Probably the best tip which I take for granted these days, is to make sure you search multiple airlines, across all countries, including both major carriers and budget carriers. If you use Skyscanner or Google Flights, they will do this automatically. However, you can still tweak it to your preferences, if you want to fly with your favour airlines only or with just one specific carrier, you can filter for this.
Using third-party booking agents? I believe this is a personal preference. Usually, third-party booking agents which are recommended on Skyscanner or Google can be cheaper. However, I always prefer to book directly with the airline if possible, as it can be easier to manage any changes or cancellations. The only exception I’ve made recently was some of the domestic flights in Southeast Asia, which I booked on booking.com as, in both instances, booking.com offered FREE flight date changes.
Be Flexible with Your Dates and Times
Why It Helps: Prices can vary significantly depending on the day of the week, season, and even time of day. Mid-week flights or flights through the night are often cheaper. If you’re not tied to any specific dates, then opening up your search to any day can show you the full picture and make some great savings.
Tips: Use fare search tools that offer calendar views (like Google Flights – my absolute fave) to identify the cheapest days to fly.
Example: For my flights to Ecuador in 2022, I was flexible on the dates, so I opened up the search to any departure date in April, any length (between 2 and 3 weeks) and therefore any return date. There’s an example of this in the pictures below.
Stay Open to Destination Options
Why it helps: If your dates are fixed (for example to school holidays, or when you can get vacation days approved) you can instead be flexible and use “Anywhere” searches on Google Flights. You can “Explore” all potential options and this might give you a destination you’ve never considered before. For example, my trip to Uganda back in 2018 was because I opened up to “Anywhere”. I noticed flights to Entebbe for very cheap which inspired me to plan a trip here and eventually book those flights. It wasn’t on my watch list at all before then!
Side Benefits: This also helps you consider New Destinations: Some lesser-known destinations may have excellent flight deals, giving you a unique travel experience at a lower cost. Another example recently is our trip to the Maldives… For our year of backpacking, we planned to start in India, but – as I was open to the destination city, I searched for “Anywhere” and it was only then that I noticed that the flights to the Maldives were only £300. So we started in the Maldives first before flying onward to India afterwards.
Book Smartly/Timely Based on Your Route
Short-Haul Flights: These are usually best booked 3-6 months in advance for the best rates. However, you can still find some last-minute deals if you’re lucky.
Long-Haul Flights: While planning and booking in advance is generally better, there are occasionally last-minute deals on long-haul flights.
Tips: Looking for flights well in advance is not a bad plan, but you don’t necessarily need to book them straight away…
Track Prices and Wait for Deals
Set Alerts: Most of the time I actually do know which dates I want to book, as I always try and maximise my vacation days around bank holidays. So I often set up price alerts to a few places I want to go (at the minute, I have price alerts for Costa Rica, Mexico, Chile, and Madagascar… haha). In Google Flights, you can save a flight search and set an alert to get regular updates if the prices increase or decrease. If the flights decrease a lot, then book them! Google will even tell you if it’s a good deal or not!
Consider Flight Price Trackers: Hopper, for example, can predict the best time to book based on historical data. Use this to help you book at the best moment.
Travel Light to Avoid Extra Fees
Hand Luggage Only: Many budget airlines charge for checked baggage, so travelling with only a carry-on can save significantly. It also makes it easier to navigate if you’re on multiple stopovers.
Caution tip: Be aware of dimensions as each airline has its own hand luggage policies, so always check size and weight restrictions. I have the Osprey Fairview 40L backpack, which fits in most cabins (including Ryanair and Easyjet), for business trips, I use an Antler cabin hard suitcase, which also fits in all airlines.
Use Rewards and Travel Credit Cards
Earn Points for Free Flights: Travel cards like Amex Gold let you accumulate points, which can eventually be redeemed for flights or upgrades. I had an Amex Gold which I used for all personal purchases, and after having it for about 3 years, I was able to book my flight to the Philippines in 2023 with my points!
Booking Perks: Some cards offer bonuses on airline purchases or even provide free travel insurance.
Consider Multi-Stop Journeys
Break Up Long-Haul Flights: Sometimes flying indirectly can save hundreds of pounds. For example, our flight to India essentially started in the Maldives, yes we spent 3-weeks in the Maldives, but we could have spent just 2 nights and done our 2-day itinerary for Huhulmale before continuing on to India. The onward flight to Kochi was less than £60! So the total price of our “flight to India” was £370, which is very good for a flight to India.
Stay and Explore: If you have the time, you can plan a stopover in a connecting city (or country!) and get a mini-vacation within your trip.
Think Outside the Plane: Alternatives to Flying
Unique Options: In some regions, you can avoid costly internal flights by choosing overland or sea routes that are an adventure in themselves. For example, instead of flying from Coron to El Nido in the Philippines, I joined a 3-day snorkelling expedition that took me through smaller islands, snorkelling and camping along the way – much better than any flight!
Train and Bus Routes: In regions like Europe and Southeast Asia, trains and buses can be efficient and economical alternatives to short-haul flights.
Additional Tips
Consider Alternate Airports: Even if you know exactly where you want to go, sometimes, flying into a nearby city or secondary airport can save money, especially in large cities. And the train, a bus or car hire can be cheaper. For example in Indonesia the flights from Medan to Yogyakarta were £200+, so we flew to Jakarta and got a train to Yogya which cost us £80 each instead. Also, some airports are generally ALWAYS cheaper to fly in and out of. For example, Kuala Lumpur (KL) airport is not that far from Singapore, but is almost always cheaper to fly in and out of (there will be exceptions, so always check), so if you’re doing a backpacking trip around South East Asia and want to book your return flight, but don’t know where you are going to be… Book a return trip back from KL, as it will be relatively easy and cheap to fly back to from pretty much anywhere in asia.
Sign Up for Airlines’ Newsletters: Airlines often send out exclusive discounts or last-minute deals to their subscribers. This can be particularly useful for catching flash sales.
Join Frequent Flyer Programs: Even if you don’t fly often, joining these programs is free and can sometimes provide perks like extra baggage or early check-in.
Join Flight Clubs: I was a subscriber to Jack’s Flight Club for a couple of years previously too. Which is how I found and booked the epic Emirates flight from Manchester, to Bangkok, then Bangkok to Auckland, Auckland to Bali and Bali back to Manchester for just £750 each! An INSANE deal which inspired an amazing 3-week trip, and well worth the subscription fee!
Summary
Booking cheap flights requires a mix of flexibility, research, and creativity. From using flight comparison tools and rewards points to rethinking routes and exploring alternate airports, these tips can help you find the best deals.
And no, you don’t need to search ‘incognito’, and no, flights don’t go up the more you search, and no, searching on social media won’t make your flight prices go up. These are all urban myths and not actually true. It is true that sometimes where you book from can give different prices, but this will be due to exchange rate fluctuations, what currency you pay in and if your card charges you for foreign transactions. If you have a travel positive debit card like Starling or Monzo, this should mitigate those increases.
For me, I LOVE spending my free time browsing Google Flights and looking for deals. I try and not restrict the destination and open up the options and possibilities, using this as the inspiration for a lot of trips!
What do you think? What are your best tips for finding cheap flights?!
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Ocean to Jungle 
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