How does one go about finding the cheapest flights?
Aug 19, 2009, 4:00 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 119
How does one go about finding the cheapest flights?
I booked my first flight ever a few days ago! I had used various price comparison websites like expedia and orbitz, but going to southwest.com directly allowed me to find the cheapest flights from SFO to Las Vegas. Then today, I found that united.com offered cheaper rates!
my questions:
1) what is the general strategy to find the cheapest rates? do I just go to the airlines websites one by one and compare? the comparison websites don't seem to be showing the cheapest flight.
2) is there a website that shows the historical prices of traveling from point a to point b with certain airlines so I can determine if the price I'm paying now may actually be the lowest during that particular time of the year?
my questions:
1) what is the general strategy to find the cheapest rates? do I just go to the airlines websites one by one and compare? the comparison websites don't seem to be showing the cheapest flight.
2) is there a website that shows the historical prices of traveling from point a to point b with certain airlines so I can determine if the price I'm paying now may actually be the lowest during that particular time of the year?
Aug 19, 2009, 6:49 pm
#2
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Baltimore, MD
Programs: AAdvantage, Mileage Plus, SkyMiles
Posts: 53
Re:
http://www.farecompare.com/ is a good place to start, it gives you a good historical perspective on fares. Still doesn't aggregate fares from southwest though.
Aug 19, 2009, 6:51 pm
#3
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: OH
Programs: AA Lifetime Plat, Marriot Lifetime Gold
Posts: 9,537
- I have alerts set up on key city pairs on each of the airline sites and some of the comparison sites (i.e. Travelocity) that send me an email when a certain flight falls below a price I detemine
- If planning a specific flight, I first search the comparison sites to find schedules and options, then go to each of the airline sites and find the same flights or other options
- Determine if it is better for me to pay in cash or miles
Aug 19, 2009, 10:11 pm
#4
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Central California
Programs: Former UA Premex, now dirt
Posts: 6,531
Most of the regulars use ita - http://matrix.itasoftware.com/cvg/dispatch -
or kayak.com. Southwest won't appear in those but it is pretty easy to check everyone else and then compare at Southwest.
or kayak.com. Southwest won't appear in those but it is pretty easy to check everyone else and then compare at Southwest.