Got the travel bug? So do we. That’s why we sought out Southern travel writers, travel bloggers and travel agents to give us the skinny on how to score all kinds of perks on our upcoming summer excursions. From websites and apps to find cheap flights to travel agent services, we divulge the airline hacks everyone should be privy to. Take a look!
To kick things off, Atlanta native Caroline Eubanks shares with us how she lands cheap flights. Caroline is well-versed in finding inexpensive airfare, as she works as a freelance travel writer, blogger, and the author of This is My South: The Essential Travel Guide to the Southern States.
“If you are flexible on your destination or your dates, I highly recommend signing up for Scott’s Cheap Flights,” said Caroline. “There are both free and premium subscriptions that send mistake fares and other cheap flights to your inbox daily. You can set your preferred airport or ones in the region you live in. The premium membership is well worth it. I scored a $500 flight round trip from Atlanta to South Africa! They are rare, but there are even business class deals on some top-notch airlines.”
Helene Sula of Helene in Between is a Dallas native who currently resides in Heidelberg, Germany, where she works full-time as a travel blogger. “Join rewards programs,” said Helene. “This works for both airlines and credit cards. I religiously use my Visa Capital One credit card so I can get points to use for travel and flights.”
Additionally, Helene uses Skyscanner to find flight deals. “Many people only search by location and dates but you can actually expand that to a map,” said Helene. “So you can see where in the world there are the cheapest flights.” And her final pointer is simple: “Flexibility is key. If you can be flexible, you can find cheap flights almost anywhere.”
If you’re relatively new to the travel scene, and flight-scouring apps and websites aren’t your cup of tea, you can always go old-school by relying on an experienced travel advisor to help you score those airline tickets at the best value possible. Janet Krebs, a partner and virtuoso advisor for Belle Meade Vacations puts it simply, “We do strictly leisure travel and have the resources and experience to research the best value for our clients. My suggestion is to contact a travel advisor experienced in your type of travel and destinations – an expert is always your best bet!”
Sheri Clarke, a Nashville, Tennessee-based travel agent also thinks travel agents can be your best bet when booking flights. “It is no shocker that I would say work with a travel agent, especially for an international flight, round-trip or open-jaw flight (multi-city or multi-destination flight). I work with several different airline consolidators anytime I am pricing an international or business class airfare. Â They buy in bulk and the air savings can be significant to what consumers can purchase directly,” says Clarke. “For instance, I have a group (including myself) heading to Southern Africa on safari. That’s a route that is much better experienced in business class, but that is oftentimes cost prohibitive. I was able to get a business class fare for around $3,500 per person round-trip. Â Booking that direct with the airline or through an online provider would have cost approximately $8,000 per ticket.”
Additionally, Clarke says that spending a copious amount of money on airfare is the No. 1 thing that can go wrong on a trip. “If you are booking yourself, you need to compare. Use a site like Yapta.com or call a travel agent and put their experience to work for you,” said Clarke. “I do like the Hopper app for a simple round-trip domestic or international flight. I will use this to alert me of flight trends if I am looking for something way out in advance. But then I compare that to my airline consolidators and book the best pricing along with the best itinerary.”
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