Top tips on booking flights for cheap
There is nothing more exciting — and frustrating — than booking flights. But how can you avoid taking out a second mortgage to cover the cost of a trip? Chris Myden, who runs YYZdeals.com, a Toronto-based website that showcases airfare deals, can help you get the most out of your money. Here are some of his tips on how to book flights for cheap. Be flexible: Yoga teachers and life coaches are right — being flexible can really pay off. If you have the leeway, Myden recommends running a flexible date search (three or more days in each direction) on sites such as Kayak to find the cheapest options. Beware the last-minute myth: If you think that booking flights shortly before departure will save you money, think again.
“Ninety-nine per cent of the time, to 99 per cent of destinations, cheap, last-minute flights are largely a myth,” explains Myden. Use Google Flights: When it comes to travel search engines, it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the number of choices. Myden recommends checking out Google Flights. Why?
“Google paid hundreds of millions of dollars for access to the airline’s airfare data,” he says. “And nobody makes it easier to look for the cheapest times to travel.” Let travel hackers work for you: Canada isn’t known for its budget airlines — but that doesn’t mean cheap flights don’t exist. Check out Myden’s YYZ Deals news alerts for notifications of cheap flights.
“My background is in computer science, but I love to travel,” explains Myden. “I was always interested in where prices came from, and answering questions like ‘What’s the furthest I could go, per dollar spent?’ ” Avoid high-demand dates:
One secret to booking cheap flights is avoiding high-demand dates like statutory holidays, winter break and school summer vacations.
“Airfares are ultimately a product just like any other: when demand is high, so are the prices,” Myden explains.He suggests running a flexible date search around high-demand dates, noting that leaving or returning a day earlier can often make a significant price difference.