The real deals

I ’VE

been analyzing airfares and hotel rates for most of my working life (sad, right?). I’ve learned a thing or three! Here’s my most up-to-date advice.

If the price of the cheapest one-way ticket is half the price of the cheapest round-trip ticket, then buy one-ways — and do so on different airlines if it’s cheaper. Here’s why: If you buy a $200 round-trip from LA to Vegas and need to change just the outbound flight, you’re out the full $200 (thanks, hated airline fees). Buy the trip as two $100 one-ways, and you’ll lose just $100. I always buy one-ways except on those international airlines that only sell roundtrips at the lowest fares.

Searching flights for two or more people? Try pricing one passenger at a time. If there’s only one seat at the lowest price, the airline will price both seats at the next highest fare.

If you’re booking a flight on an airline to Europe that is cashstrapped — usually the ones with the lowest fares (R.I.P. Primera, Air Berlin and WOW), only buy with a credit card 60 or fewer days before travel. If the airline goes belly up, your credit card company must eat the charges because federal consumer protection rules apply.

Check to see if more than one airline is selling seats on the same flight — a codeshare in airline-ese. I reserved a premium economy seat to London on British Airways, but I bought it from BA’s codeshare partner, American, on the AA.com website for hundreds less than it was listed on BA. American let me reserve a seat at the time of booking for free; BA charges $60 or $70 for seat selection until 24 hours before departure.

Beware travel search engines that don’t list all airlines. Southwest only lists its fares at Southwest.com, so always check if they’re flying where you want to go. Delta has pulled its fares from some fairly popular apps like Hopper. Do a sample search from NYC to Atlanta, one of Delta’s hubs. If the site or app doesn’t show Delta, you’re not getting the full picture.