I have no clue about flying-Please give advice!

[BobsChick]

Last night my husband told me he would rather fly than drive. This means that I now have to get us some inexpensive tickets if possible. Where is the best sight to look for/buy tickets? Generally, when, in relation to when you are leaving, is it easier to find cheaper tickets?

 

[ducklite]

First, where are you flying from? Next, when is your trip scheduled.

Without this info your question is much to vague to give you any kind of truly helpful info.

Anne

 

[drusba]

Travel agents will often have the discounted flights and thus you could use one of those. Web site reservation services are numerous and will show discount flights--some:
www.orbitz.com
www.travelocity.com
www.expedia.com

There are many others and you can also go to particular airline sites and often get discounted air fares. An airline site is usually just the name of the airline.com, for example, unitedairlines.com but one way to find sites is to go to www.google.com (a search engine) and type in a search and it will pull up sites to go to.

Discount fares can arise at any time beginning about 11 months before a time. You can go through many months seeing no discounts for your particular time you want and then suddenly one will appear and then last only a matter of days to be able to purchase. In other words you just got to keep looking. Availability of discounts depends principally on how full the airline expects its flights to be without discounted fares (for example there have been a lot since Sep 11 to encourage people to fly again, and holiday times, like Easter or Christmas weeks, can often have some discount fares that go very quickly many months out and then there will be none).

 

[Tess]

There are many people on this board who are very experienced in airline operations. Unfortunately, I can only speak from my personal experience which isn't minimal BUT not expert by any stretch.

We have found over the years that it's better to start looking at prices when you book the trip (or as soon as your airline permits--some are farther out than others). For example, if I booked a trip in July for the following June, I would begin my search for tickets in August. Usually by around October I've found a deal that I suits. Now, I will say I am not a bargain hunter for airline tickets--flight times are pretty important to me and I don't let the airline ticket price rule my vacation. On the other hand, I don't pay top dollar either. We will typically set a top $$ amount we will pay and go from there. We haven't paid over $200 (excluding tax) for a ticket since the early 90s and we paid more at that point for a convenience flight.

This year was an exception to the rule and I only booked this trip around January. I found flights for around $179 (excluding tax) and we could live with the flight times/days. So, we booked it and did the right thing because very soon thereafter the flights skyrocketed for our travel days.

Sometimes people wait until the last minute and book a flight with great results in price. You do run the risk, however, that the flight will be extremely high or unavailable. I'm more conservative in that regard and prefer to have my plans set.

I guess the best advice is to start looking online at the various airlines that service your market, Travelocity, Orbitz, Expedia, etc. and if you find a price and/or flight that meets your needs--book it online or by calling the airline. Sometimes the cost will be less calling the airline directly and sometimes higher--it's a matter of legwork really. The best advice is to jump on a price that suits--he who hesitates will lose. . . Good Luck!

 

[Figment2]

I would check out the websites of the airlines that fly out of your local airport. I just found $135.00 RT leaving out of Chicago Midway in mid Sept. on the ATA site (leave late Thurs., come home afternoon on Monday).

I have found better prices closer to my actual trip.

C.

 

[BobsChick]

We're flying out of Chattanooga. DH has decided that since this is my anniversary/Christmas present to him that he shouldn't have to drive(or deal with my driving ). We *may* get someone to drive us to Atlanta and fly from there. Our trip is planned for the 15th-21st of Dec.

 

[BobsChick]

Oh yeah, just checked out Expedia, RT per person is $267!!

 

[Gillian]

Atlanta will be cheaper. For your dates, Atlanta is under $200 (delta) non-stop. My friend lives in Knoxville & she always pay more for flights than we do (in nJ). She also has to change planes, and we can usually avoid that. But I'm not recommending that you move to NJ just for that !

I like Orbitz because it is easy to compare airlines & prices. It's also easy to change the settings. I usually go back to the airline's website or call the airline, but I booked through them once & it was fine. They sent me updates by email & provided a phone # for problems. It was the only place that I could arrange for 3 different flights on 3 different days on 2 different airlines (all nonstop) without paying a small fortune.

Best of luck with your search!

 

[sgtdisney]

Originally posted by BobsChick
Oh yeah, just checked out Expedia, RT per person is $267!!

If possible, it will be cheaper for you to fly out of Atlanta. If you do get a flight from Chatanooga, chances are it will be on a smaller plane and you will end up switching plane in Atlanta anyway. I just checked AirTran and Delta via their websites for the days that you mentioned. Airtran is quoting 188.00 Round Trip per person including all taxes. Delta is showing 186.50. Now, I am not sure if there will be discounts before then or not. Perhaps someone who travels from Atlanta can say if those are good prices or not. I just paid 135.00 R/T from Chicago for a trip in June about a month ago, but Chicago is a very competitive market...

Good luck.

 

[Dallas_Lady]

I was in a long distance relationship with my now-husband. We were flying ALL the time!

My biggest tip: Shop around! Check out www.travelocity.com , www.orbitz.com and www.expedia.com daily. (Yes, daily) airfare changes all the time. Get a feel for what is a common price and what is a deal.

Flying mid-week is always cheaper. Fridays and Mondays are more expensive to fly then Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

If you find a good flight on a site like Travelocity or Orbitz, immediately go to that airline's website and look up the same flight. Very Otfen, airlines will give you 10% extra off for booking on thier website versus an middle man site.

And Atlanta will be a cheaper option. Larger Airports with more daily flights are almost always cheaper than small ones. And you will have more options on when to fly.

 

[queenofhearts]

Hi BobsChick! I fly every other week out of Atlanta to various destinations around the United States (for business). Atlanta is a hub for Delta and AirTran. Therefore, if you are able to fly out of Atlanta, you will surely find a better deal then flying out of TN. However, if you are unable to fly out of Atlanta, I would still recommend checking out Delta and AirTran.

When I make reservations, I use expedia.com. Expedia.com allows you to search for the cheapest flights on many, many airlines. You can book your flights with a credit card, and Expedia will issue you an e-ticket. There's no paper with an e-ticket. With the e-ticket, you just walk up to the check-in counter, tell them you have a flight to Orlando, show them your driver's license, and check any bags that you want to check. They'll ask you some routine security questions. Then, you'll be issued a boarding pass with your seat assignment. You go to your gate through security, board the plane, and your off to WDW!!!! It's super easy!

You should look for tickets to Orlando ASAP. Generally, the sooner you're able to reserve your tickets, the cheaper they will be. The longer you wait, the more expensive they will get.

Please let me know if you have any questions! Have a great trip and a safe flight!