Enthusiastically typing in “New York CIty to Spain flights” to Google, you happily land on a flight that’s $700 round trip. You’re probably thinking to yourself, “that’s not bad!”, right?
It is bad.
You can do better.
Many people utilize Google Flights or airline websites to find their flights- this is obviously fine, that is, if you want to spend twice the amount that you have to spend.
I was introduced to SkyScanner when I was in 9th grade by a friend who loves travelling as much as I do. I’ve been obsessed ever since, using it for every trip- $300 round trip to Iceland, $200 round trip to Paris.
SkyScanner is completely customizable to your preferences; you can pick if you want layovers, certain airlines, exact or vague dates, and locations to fly to/from. My best tip to finding the cheapest flight is to put in your area (for me this would be New York) and click general (so, I would also get flights from New Jersey). JFK airport rarely has the cheapest flights, so I like to wager my bets by looking at all the airports near me.
I also recommend selecting “cheapest month” instead of picking a certain month or even exact dates- this is easier, of course, when you have low commitments, but there’s always a way to make time for things you’re passionate about. Flights under cheapest month to, for example, a country in Europe, are normally 80-130 dollars one way if you fly with a layover and a more “budget” airline. If you go during prime travel season, like June, tickets could be up to 250 dollars round trip with extensive layover times. If you don’t use SkyScanner, flights during June could be (at the cheapest) 400 dollars.
Furthermore, try buying tickets in September or March, and on Tuesdays or Saturdays. Skyscanner themselves have released statistics showing that these months and days have the cheapest tickets!
I’ve flown with budget airlines and more well known airlines, and there’s not really much of a difference. Just bring your own snacks in place of the lack of meals for longer flights, and you should have no issues! Some airlines, like WOW, try to trick you by not including the price of one bag in their ticket price- this is also why I recommend packing everything into the biggest carry-on possible, which I will focus on at another time.
Overall, if you’re going to buy airline tickets, take full advantage of SkyScanner. You’ll find cheap flights from convenient airports during less traveled months. Saving money on your flight can save you hundreds of dollars which you can then splurge on more excursions or cultural foods.
I have never heard of this site, thank you! It really is insane how much flight prices fluctuate based on location and time. I have wanted to visit Italy for as long as I can remember, and looking up ticket prices makes me nauseous usually. Granted, we are in a global pandemic, but even looking at round trip flights to Venice now on Sky Scanner, I was pleasantly surprised with the price difference. I’ll definitely be bookmarking that site!
Wow, this article is going to be so useful for me soon! I was just looking into flights to Dallas because I am an avid Dallas Cowboy fan and wanted to see a game next year, if they have fans. SkyScanner seems like a great resource and all I have ever used is Expedia.