5 dirty secrets of airfares

[mshheaddoc]

---

Members do not see this ad.

An article I found on Money.com that I thought I would share with you guys as interview season is up on us.

As well as a site I use alot. Its called sidestep and it compares airfares from all the big websites (such as orbitz, expedia, travelocity, etc) as well as many other smaller and different sites on the web.

Side step searches more than 100 sites to find the Web's best travel bargains. We check online agencies, consolidators, and the sites of the airlines, hotels, vacation package providers and rental car companies to make sure you find the deal that's right for you.

More than 4.7 million consumers turn to SideStep each month for serious savings on travel. The company has forged alliances with leading travel marketers looking to reach this large, qualified audience, including companies like JetBlue Airways, Continental Airlines, Hyatt Corporation, Orbitz, Best Western and Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group.

I then usually visit the website with the cheapest fare to purchase the ticket (in some cases I'll visit the actual site of the airline because you can save $5 in fees too 👍 )

 

[baylormed]

I've tried those search engines before, and NOT ONCE have I found cheaper tickets than by visiting the airline website itself. Southwestern and American Airlines have particularly low fares, and I've always managed to get a cheap ticket as long as I don't try to buy it too late.

Southwestern's Funfares are especially nice (you need to buy the ticket in advance though, because they'll sell out).

That's my experience. 😎

 

[mshheaddoc]

To clarify what I mean is using the search engine THEN actually purchasing at the airline website. Sorry. Should have clarified. This can save you some "fees" sometimes. Not always though because sometimes there are special deals with certain websites. But on average it usually $3-5 cheaper. I've found this with delta, AA, northwest and USAir. I'm saying there is big savings but when you are on a budget, a couple dollars can help 😀

Additionally, usually I find the orbitz.com (in my flight travels) have usually the cheapest flights, not always but usually.

in finding flights!

As for those who use airline direct sites, if you are using certain routes all the time and familiarize yourself with prices that is the way to go. But many times you might not know all the information on certain routes so its good to use these tools as a comparison.

 

[little_late_MD]

Check out www.farecompare.com Not only does it show you cheap seats (no idea if they are the cheapest out), but it also gives you historical fare information for that time of the year.

 

[Twitch]

I've tried those search engines before, and NOT ONCE have I found cheaper tickets than by visiting the airline website itself. Southwestern and American Airlines have particularly low fares, and I've always managed to get a cheap ticket as long as I don't try to buy it too late.

Southwestern's Funfares are especially nice (you need to buy the ticket in advance though, because they'll sell out).

That's my experience. 😎

Southwest baby not Southwestern. 👍

 

[baylormed]

Southwest baby not Southwestern. 👍

Hehe, I still have Southwestern MEDICAL SCHOOL in my mind.

Yeah yeah, I meant Southwest.

 

[DrAverageJoe]

Book all of your interview flights with JetBlue. Hopefully you can rack up enough points to earn a free flight by the end of your interviewing. Use that free flight to treat yourself with a vacation once you've been accepted!

 

[Guile]

I like Yahoo's Farechase. It's a flight search engine that actually searches the websites of all of the major carriers. It's not like Orbitz, Travelocity, etc. So when you want to book the flight, when you click on the flight, a window pops up that directs you to the airline's website so you buy it directly from the airline. They ALSO check the websites of Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia, etc. so that when they have deals with airlines, you can get those tickets, too. It's pretty good, but I ALWAYS check the airline's website if I know that an airline or two dominates that route to make sure Farechase didn't miss something.

 

[63768]

like the OP, i use orbitz all the time and check southwest.com for special deals. i think this year, i'll try out jetblue and see what i can get.

 

[SoCuteMD]

I've tried those search engines before, and NOT ONCE have I found cheaper tickets than by visiting the airline website itself. Southwestern and American Airlines have particularly low fares, and I've always managed to get a cheap ticket as long as I don't try to buy it too late.

Southwestern's Funfares are especially nice (you need to buy the ticket in advance though, because they'll sell out).

That's my experience. 😎

I do the same thing - I check all the multi-airline sites to find the cheapest fare and then go to the individual airline sites to check and purchase. The only time it didn't work for me was when I bought a ticket with about 3 hours notice.

 

[DF38]

I've used a whole variety of search engines - kayak.com and sidestep.com are two of my favorites. Also studentuniverse.com, for those of us who are students. And sometimes you can even look at the airport's homepage (for smaller airports) - I'm flying into MacArthur on Long Island for Stony Brook and was having problems finding flights there (that weren't insanely expensive) but their homepage had a flight finder thing.

 

[Guile]

I've tried those search engines before, and NOT ONCE have I found cheaper tickets than by visiting the airline website itself. Southwestern and American Airlines have particularly low fares, and I've always managed to get a cheap ticket as long as I don't try to buy it too late.

Southwestern's Funfares are especially nice (you need to buy the ticket in advance though, because they'll sell out).

That's my experience. 😎

That's because those search engines don't search for Southwest fares (nor JetBlue). I'm guessing that you fly inside Texas, and Southwest has those routes dominated. Fly on the west or east coasts, and you'll see those sites will have if not the lowest, then very close to the lowest fare.

 

[etf]

i use the american express travel website. it is especially good if you are booking flight and hotel, as they usually deeply discount the hotel portion with the flight - I stayed at the Ritz-Carlton for $100/night, when even the Howard Johnson was charging $60. Plus, if you've got one of their cards, you get double membership rewards points.

 

[Sol Rosenberg]

That's because those search engines don't search for Southwest fares (nor JetBlue). I'm guessing that you fly inside Texas, and Southwest has those routes dominated. Fly on the west or east coasts, and you'll see those sites will have if not the lowest, then very close to the lowest fare.

Even in TX, Southwest is dominant only to/from smaller cities. Between any two major cities, Southwest is generally not the cheapest, but is pretty cheap if you have to buy tickets on really short notice. I do what was mentioned before -- use a search engine to find the lowest price, check southwest.com, and then buy the ticket directly from the airline.

 

[Guile]

i use the american express travel website. it is especially good if you are booking flight and hotel, as they usually deeply discount the hotel portion with the flight - I stayed at the Ritz-Carlton for $100/night, when even the Howard Johnson was charging $60. Plus, if you've got one of their cards, you get double membership rewards points.

What's the website? I'm a cardholder.

The Ritz for $100/night? WOW. Which one?

 

[mcat_study]

What's the website? I'm a cardholder.

The Ritz for $100/night? WOW. Which one?

for this price i'd go there without interview🙂

 

[NovemberWhiskey]

Book all of your interview flights with JetBlue. Hopefully you can rack up enough points to earn a free flight by the end of your interviewing. Use that free flight to treat yourself with a vacation once you've been accepted!

Errr. If you use this method don't plan on interviewing anywhere in the midwest...

🙄

Just pick one of the alliances you want to get all your miles with (Skyteam, Star, or OneWorld) and book all your flights with carriers from that alliance. Extra segments/miles are well worth spending $10-20 more on a flight.