Mission accomplished: 11 ways to buy cheap flights

I have been traveling on my own for more than 12 years. During this time, I have accumulated a lot of experience and life hacks for organizing trips. In this article, I tell you how to buy air tickets without overpayments in 2024, what is IMPORTANT to know before booking tickets, when is the best time to search for air tickets, and when it’s too late. I share a list of reliable sites where you can buy plane tickets cheaply, and a list of sites where you can check sales and promotions. The article contains many examples from personal experience.

How do I choose a reliable website for buying air tickets?

I have made a list of reliable websites where I look at prices, schedules and buy air tickets:

• Aviasales is a powerful flight search engine with convenient features. One of my favorites is the monthly price calendar right in the search. Aviasales is able to search even by charters. As I said, Airsales is a search engine. It works on the principle of “I’m looking for the best prices from airlines or reliable agencies, and you decide which one to buy from.” If you want to pay with a ruble penalty (MIR or any Russian card), then use Aviasales.ru . Tip: if you have a Visa/Mastercard issued outside of Russia, then use Aviasales.com . On it, the prices for flights around the world are lower than on the ru domain.
• Trip.com — convenient and quick search for plane tickets. You can buy a ticket for the desired flight directly on the website. The site has two versions: international (payment with Visa, Mastercard, UnionPay, Paypal, ApplePay cards) and Russian (payment with MIR, Visa and Mastercard cards issued in the Russian Federation). There are a lot of sales and burning prices for flights across Russia on the Russian version of the site. Open a website → (if you suddenly have an international version of the site, then just change the language to Russian)
• 12go.asia — if I’m looking for flights between countries in Southeast Asia. For example, flights to Thailand or Malaysia. Or a flight from Vietnam to Thailand. This site knows about Asian low-cost airlines and allows you to buy tickets from them quickly and without a headache. Open a website →
• Kiwi.com — I buy tickets here only if I need to pay via paypal. Kivik has a serious disadvantage, because of which I didn’t even want to include it in the selection. At the stage of booking tickets, the site is trying to cram in a bunch of paid additional services. It’s like when you buy tickets on a low-cost airline’s website. Important: Website kiwi.com it does not work with maps of the Russian Federation at all. Open a website →

In addition to these sites, I sometimes buy tickets directly on the airline’s website. For example, I have a Qatar Airways loyalty card, and it is more convenient for me to book tickets through their website. The price is the same as on the Qatar Airways website, which is in the search for Airsales or Tripcom.

How can I check the reliability of the website before buying tickets?

• Pay attention to the terms of payment and refund of tickets. Somehow I accidentally booked tickets to the wrong city. I realized this as soon as I received the ticket by email. I wrote to support, knowing that according to European laws, I should be refunded the entire cost of the ticket. Alas, the site turned out to be American, and I kept half the ticket price for myself. It was sad and painful. Since then, I no longer use that site.
• Use a secure connection when buying tickets. All trusted sites have a secure connection icon. It looks like a lock in front of the site name. Sometimes there is no lock, but there is an icon with settings. Click on it to check the connection type. I took a screenshot of how it looks on the site Trip.com . If the site does not use a reliable connection, this is quite a wake-up call.

How to check the reliability of a website on a computer

How to check the reliability of a website on your phone

I tell you about the features of finding and booking accommodation in this article.

Tips on how to buy cheap flights online on your own

It doesn’t matter why you are looking for flights: for a vacation or for a business trip, the basic principles are the same. Here’s how not to overpay for tickets:

1. Compare ticket prices on different websites. I compare on the sites from my list, which I shared above. Basically, these are Air Sales and Trip.com.
2. Pay attention to the currency in which the price is shown. I had an experience when the price was in euros on one site and in dollars on another. I didn’t notice it and was very glad that I found a plane ticket at such a low price. But when I changed the currency on the second site to euros, it turned out that the price on the first site was higher.
3. Check if the luggage is included. Plane tickets without luggage are much cheaper. If you need luggage, it is better to add it to the ticket immediately, so as not to pay double the price at the airport. Look at the screenshot of the tickets that I bought in 2024 on sale from the low-cost airline WizzAir: 2 tickets cost 17.58€, great price! Yes, I paid an additional €63.81 for only 1 suitcase that can be checked in. That is, at a low-cost airline, one suitcase costs almost as much as 4 plane tickets!

Features of low-cost airlines: very cheap flights, but high fees and expensive extras. services

5. When booking flights, carefully check what the site offers you from additional options. Now, unfortunately, all sites are trying to sell something extra. Some, however, overdo it, and cram in a bunch of garbage. Usually, additional services include non-flight insurance, flight delay insurance, alerts, and support. I never take any of the extras. options.

I told you about the main things, now let’s share tips on finding air tickets, how to fly without overpayments.

Method 1. Check out the hot deals on air tickets

The first thing I always do is look at the current airline promotions. What if you come across last-minute flights to the right destination? 🙂 All discounts and delicious airline offers are collected here:

1. Special offers and sales of air tickets are usually held in advance. In advance, this is from 3-6 months before the flight date. For those who know how to plan ahead.
2. The section with hot offers on Tripcom

Method 2. Inaccurate search (dates, airports)

What is an inaccurate search? This is when you set an inaccurate date for the system or write a city instead of a specific airport. Yes, such a simple trick can significantly save your budget.

Inaccurate dates on flights

Depending on the day of the week, air ticket prices can fluctuate significantly. To buy cheap flights, you need to know which days to buy.

For example, Sunday is almost the most expensive day of the week for flights. In addition, airlines may not fly to their chosen destination every day. For example, Qatar flies from Krasnodar to Dubai on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On other days, flights via Moscow, which is more expensive.

I usually check the box “+-3 days”:

Low Price Calendar

The inaccurate date is not limited to the range of “+-3 days”. There is such a cool thing as a low price calendar. This thing will help dispel doubts about which month it is cheaper to fly to Thailand, and in which month it is more profitable to fly to Milan.

Here I have a couple of tips for finding flights to Aviasales.

1. Aviasales has integrated a price calendar into the main page of their search, which now allows you to immediately navigate by dates. The most favorable prices for air tickets are highlighted in green:

It is often from the calendar that my flight search begins. The calendar clearly shows which days of the week it is more profitable to fly, and how air ticket prices will rise closer to the holidays.

2. There is also such a cool thing on Airsales as the low price scale in the search results:

This screenshot shows that air tickets on the selected date are among the most expensive. You can buy cheap flights for neighboring dates.

The name of the city instead of the airport

I use this feature all the time when I’m looking for flights to a large city with several airports. For example, to Bangkok or Moscow. The fact is that there is always a cheaper airport for low-cost airlines, and tickets to it are cheaper. For example, flights from Sheremetyevo are usually more expensive, and flights from Domodedovo are cheaper. But they don’t always fit together comfortably. Therefore, in the “Destination City” field, I specify “Moscow”, and airsales shows flight options at all airports in the city.

Kiwicom can do even better — instead of the city, you can enter the name of the country, and then the search engine will search for flights to all airports in the country. Or you can leave it “In any direction” — then the search engine will show all the options where you can fly from the desired city.

The site is convenient to use when you want to fly somewhere for the weekend and so that it is inexpensive, but you do not know where.

Method 3. Buy round-trip flights

Perhaps this is too obvious a way to buy cheaper flights, but I have to say about it too.

The price of round-trip tickets is lower than if you take them separately first there and then back.

Here is an example of how the price of one-way and both-way air tickets changes:

I circled bright examples of prices when the benefit for a round-trip ticket is more than $ 100.

Method 4. Subscribe to the referral

This method is useful if you have not found acceptable prices for air tickets. You can subscribe in the airsales search results — in the side column to the left of the found tickets or in this form:

How it works: You subscribe to a referral, and when the price changes, Airsales will send you a notification letter. With a subscription, you can save up to 1,000 rubles on tickets.

Another way to subscribe to notifications about the changed price of air tickets is to subscribe to one of the bots and receive notifications directly in the messenger:

In addition to the subscription, you can install a mobile application and track prices there. Here is the link to the android version, and this is the link for the iPhone.

Method 5. The right time

I try to buy tickets at least a month before departure. According to my observations, if you buy tickets less than two weeks before departure, you will almost certainly have to overpay. And in the last week before departure, the price of an air ticket increases rapidly up to 40% on the day of departure.

Airlines sell tickets for the summer in late winter or spring. Discounted flights for winter holidays are best booked in late summer or early autumn.

There is another magic number for buying air tickets — 45 days before departure (for domestic flights) and 60 days before departure (for international flights). This is explained by the fact that outside the 45-day window, airline computer programs cannot calculate the actual ticket price and form it based on passenger traffic last year.

Booking flights more than 45 days before the trip, there is a risk of overpaying for last year’s forecasts.

Method 6. The right city

One friend who lives in the capital regularly uses such a life hack: he arrives at the airport with a passport and some amount for tickets, which is obviously lower than the ticket price. He asks if there are flights to Bangkok — yes, he flew to Thai like that — and if there are, how much. Then he announces his budget and waits. If the plane is not full, then at the last moment they sell him a ticket at a much lower price. It’s a pity that such a life hack is suitable for very few people.

But the concept of “the right city” has another meaning.

It happens that an air ticket departing from a neighboring city can significantly save your budget. The arrival to the neighboring city also works. For example, tickets to the airport in Eindhoven are often cheaper than tickets to the main airport in Amsterdam, because low-cost airlines fly to Eindhoven. And you can get from the nearby airport to Amsterdam quickly by bus or train for just 22 euros.

An example from my personal experience: a flight to Bali from Germany that I found for my sister. A direct flight from Hamburg to Bali cost almost 1,000 euros. And the Hamburg — Singapore flight costs 500 euros. And from Singapore to Bali, you can fly for $ 50 by any low-cost airline. In this example, the correct city is the international airport for the transfer.

Method 7. Flying low—cost airlines – for and against

Another way to save money on air travel is to fly low—cost airlines. Low—cost airlines are airlines that set the minimum price for air tickets, removing the service and options as much as possible. That is, you buy a naked ticket without luggage, food, or check-in at the airport. If one of these options is needed, it is purchased separately.

List of the most famous lowcost airlines:

• for flights across Europe — WizzAir, RyanAir, easyJet, airBaltic, Eurowings, Aegan Airlines, Volotea;
• for flights to Thailand, Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries — AirAsia, Malindo, VietJet, Cebu Pacific. See flights to Asian low-cost airlines on the website 12go.asia .
• for flights to and from Turkey — Pegasus.
• low—cost airlines that currently fly to Russia are Pegasus, FlyDubai.

However, do not forget about the disadvantages of low-cost airlines:

• The amount of luggage is strictly limited by hand luggage and is not included in the ticket price. So if you have a suitcase, it’s better to give it up, otherwise you can pay more for the luggage than for the ticket 🙂
• Self-checkout a few days before departure. My experience: I did not check in for the Belgrade — Larnaca flight from WizzAir, and it cost me 30€ fine at the airport.
• Drinks and food are paid on board.

Method 8. Deceptive maneuver

The essence of the method is simple. Airlines earn money on direct flights, but we want to fly direct and save money. Therefore, we need to pretend that we are flying a little further than we need to. We will take a flight ticket with a transfer in the city we need.

Let me explain with an example. I am looking for flights to Doha. Direct flight — 30 thousand rubles.

But I know that Qatar He also flies via Doha to Bangkok. Um… What do I see? I can fly to Doha for 22 thousand rubles, just pretending that I’m flying to Bangkok!

However, you need to be careful with this method:

1. Such flights must be made without luggage, only with hand luggage.
2. Be sure to check that the planes are different, as in the screenshot in the example. An Airbus A320 QR-234 is flying to Doha, and an Airbus A380 QR—830 is flying from Doha. This means that passengers will need to get off the plane at the airport and transfer to another plane. This is the very moment when you need to get off the flight. If the planes and flight numbers are the same, then you will not be released from the plane.
3. You can’t take round-trip tickets right away. If I get off at the transfer point, and not at the final one, then the return ticket burns out. I.e. if I have tickets “Moscow — Doha — Bangkok — Doha — Moscow”, and I get off in Doha, the rest of the flight chain is canceled automatically. Therefore, you need to buy a ticket there first, and then buy a ticket back separately.

Method 9. Special tariffs

Some airlines have special fares for young people and for people with babies.

For example, Air Astana and Aeroflot have a special tariff for those under 24 years of age.

Transaero and Ural Airlines have a special fare for travelers with babies. See for yourself:

The price is up to:

Adding a baby:

The price after:

If the special tariff for young people can only be used by young people, then the special tariff for babies is any bold one. After all, you do not need to fill out passport data for a baby. At the reception, you will only need to smile broadly and convincingly say that you have decided to leave the baby at home.

Method 10. Birthday

Some airlines give discounts to birthday people. For example, S7 sends a promo code for 3%, but for this you need to be registered in their loyalty program. Ural Airlines gives as many as 100 points in its bonus program.

The most generous airline is Utair. Sign up for the loyalty program and receive an email promo code with a 30% discount on any flight with any number of friends. The promo code works 30 days before the date of birth and for 30 days after, i.e. 2 months.

The secret way for the advanced — hidden city loop

What is hidden city loop? I’ll explain the essence with an example. It happens that tickets on the Paris — Moscow — Singapore route are cheaper than the direct Moscow-Singapore route. It would be logical to buy such a ticket and board a plane in Moscow, skipping Paris. But according to the current rules, no segment of the flight should be missed. I.e. if you do not board the plane in Paris, then the entire ticket is canceled, and this is annoying.

In Italy, and now in Spain, there is a law according to which an air passenger has the right to skip any segment, and the ticket will not burn. In order for the law to work, you need to buy a ticket from an Italian or Spanish online agency or through the airline’s local website. And then you can skip unnecessary segments of the ticket.

Here is an excerpt from the rules of the German airline Lufthansa confirming this rule:

Passengers holding a Lufthansa ticket issued in Italy (via LH.com/IT, LH ticket counter, LH call center or at a travel agency) may use the original booked return flight, out of sequence without recalculation and extra payment, even if the outbound section has not been used. In this case, please call the Lufthansa Customer Relations team latest 24 hours after the planned first ticketed flight segment.

In Russian: if the ticket was purchased in Italy (online on the website or in a travel agency), then the segments in the ticket may not be used in order. There is no additional charge for this, you just need to call Lufthansa Customer Relations.

This is also the case in the rules of other major airlines (Emirates, Qatar, Alitalia, etc.).

Use a VPN so that the agency’s website identifies you by IP address as a client from Italy.

Bonus 1 — incorrect rates

It happens that airlines make mistakes with fares. Some of the employees in the parking lot will miss zero in the price of air tickets, and tickets for 50 thousand are magically sold for 5 thousand. If you have found such tickets, then do not hesitate to buy them! This does not happen often, and it is a real gift of fate 🙂

Bonus 2 — Charters

Do not forget that charter flights are constantly flying to countries popular with tourists, such as Thailand or Greece. On the charter exchanges, you can buy cheap plane tickets to the desired country.

Where do cheap charter flights come from? If all tickets for the charter are not sold out 7-10 days before departure, then the price is discounted by at least 30%.

Of course, you can’t plan much with charters, but as another way to find cheap flights, it’s worth keeping in mind.

Charter Flight Exchanges:

• tourdom.ru — charters from Moscow and the regions of the Russian Federation. On the Travel House exchange, you can buy not only flights for charters, but also last-minute tours
• www.oneaero.ru — a good charter exchange in all directions. For me, it is in second place after the Tourist House.
• www.aviacharter.ru — charters from Moscow and St. Petersburg

Bonus 3 — last minute tours

Seriously, sometimes you can save a lot by buying a package tour. The price of last-minute tours with a round-trip ticket, with a hotel, meals and insurance can be equal and sometimes lower than the price of a direct flight. You can find last-minute tours on:

• level.travel — they have a huge tour database and convenient tour search tools
• travelata — gives discounts to readers of our blog

LIFETHAI500 — 500 rubles discount on tours from 10000 rubles
LIFETHAI1000 — 1000 rubles discount on tours from 20,000 rubles
LIFETHAI1500 — discount of 1500 rubles for tours from 30,000 rubles

That’s all the ways to find and buy cheap flights. In pursuit of the cheapest plane tickets, do not forget about your own safety and health. Long transfers, uncomfortable seats and no water or food at low—cost airlines – all this is tedious and reduces the pleasure of traveling. It is important to keep a balance between saving and pleasure 🙂

If you have your own life hacks in stock, share them in the comments. And have a wonderful trip!

Important points related to air tickets

Different countries and airlines have their own rules. For example, in Thailand there is a rule according to which a person who arrived by charter can also fly only by charter. If you arrive regularly, fly away regularly.

Emirates has a different rule. If you buy tickets directly on the Emirates Airlines website, then you need to make sure that the passenger’s name and the name of the bank card holder match. Otherwise, they may not be allowed on the flight. There are two ways out:

1. The cardholder’s letter of guarantee: a photocopy of the card, the owner’s passport and the signature on them.
2. Buy on the agency’s website, not directly. For example, by searching for airline tickets.

Related articles:

• How to buy a cheap flight ticket from Kiev to Bangkok
• How much are air tickets to Thailand from Russia
• To the Maldives for $100? Easy! Our experience
• How to fly to Sri Lanka cheap
• All ways to get to Montenegro: train, plane, car

Источник: life-thai.com