Last minute flights

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

ponybreeder4

Membership Revoked
Removed
10+ Year Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2007
Messages
313
Reaction score
0
Points
0
  1. Pre-Medical
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
are these generally the chepeast way to go?
 
I don't know how many airlines still offer super cheap last minute flights - except maybe standby and you can't count on that when you're interviewing.

I liked Southwest - flew pretty close to everywhere I needed to go and was cheap - plus I got double frequent flyer points as a student under 24.
 
if you're really lucky but generally no... the last time i had to buy a last minute ticket it was 800 bucks. tics for the same itinerary were usually 3-4 hundred. book as soon as you find out you have an interview.
 
have traveled a lot, both for business + personal

typically when I travel, time is important i.e. I'm working until 5pm, and therefore need a 6:30 or later flight. For specific times, I'd always do best booking over 2 weeks out; less than 2 weeks is when tickets get pricey. And just over 2 weeks out, selection is limited; Ideally 2 weeks and a few days for a decent price + decent selection. I've had the best luck on orbitz, yahoo, and travelocity.

But there are services like priceline, and on united's web site (and probably other airlines) there are last minute specials. I would never rely on these if I had to get somewhere, though.
 
I have traveled a lot, and the general rule that I have found is that flights get more expensive as you approach the travel date.

www.kayak.com is a great resource for comparing options.
 
are these generally the chepeast way to go?

not in the USA
in europe however the airlines business model is slightly different and "last minute" can definitely save you some money (30-40%).

In the US, you will lose A LOT of money 9 out of 10 times if you wait to book your flight (100% markup or more)
 
Yeah, standby flying is not that cheap and very risky if you need to get somewhere by a certain day.
 
yea i would never do standing by flight way to risky, just book early with someone like orbiotz or something
sbiggrin.gif
 
the greatest invention next to google, fire, and the wheel is...


kayak.com
 
Basic economics would tell me "No", but I don't have anything except anecdotal evidence to support that. Shouldn't be too hard to find some numbers on this though.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Top Bottom