Where do you buy your airplane tickets?

[Ksandra]

trying to get the best deal on some flights for the summer.

Tickets have obviously gone up recently which sucks, so the penny pincer in me has been mad searching for the cheapest deals.

So far Expedia has given me the best deal ($587 total for two people). But the times are crappy to get there.

I've checked the normal shit: expedia,orbitz, travelocity, aaa, and the actual airline sites.

Just kinda curious if people have found any hidden gems for flights.

If you're bored I'll be more specific. I'm flying from San Diego to Orlando.

Anytime between July 2nd to July 14th is fine so things are a little flexible but I want to stay a full week.

I also don't mind red eyes.

[Kerberoz]

kayak.com, they check everyone else for the lowest rates

[Fievel]

I just went through several sites a few days ago to buy plane tickets, Expedia as you mentioned was the best I could find too.

[Osede]

If your flight plan is fly through the same airline, the price on the airline website itself usually won't be more expensive than any of those website. But you can see that the price expensive like shit during the day time flight. Priceline, expedia, kayak and etc are still the only way for easy comparison.

[Talus]

Any of the aggregators work well but my frequent flier miles are through JetBlue's program, so if they service my destination from my home airport I tend to go through them. Expedia/Kayak/Priceline/Orbitz are all good to check, among others.

[ZarakiKujata]

www.hipmunk.com , it's new like Kayak but the interface is more intuitive imo, and it also ranks flights in terms of 'agony'.

ofc it was also founded by a friend so I'm biased.

[Miragemaiden]

I like using bing.com/travel. They're as good as kayak, sometimes a little better or worse depending. Just another tool to throw into your options list.

[Serif]

Southwest.com because shit is freeeee for me usually...

Plus if you plan far in advance and actually watch it you can sometimes get one ways for 60-70 bucks.

[Takedown3]

my boss pays for all my flights personal or business so im not entirely sure, i believe it's through one of the travel companies that he owns.

[Cream Soda]

All those sites last time I checked doesn't have southwest prices so be sure to check directly on their site. They may not be the 100% cheapest, but your first 2 bags are checked for free, so that should easily make up for it, depending on how much luggage you have.

[richardd]

i had to take a quick trip to TN to visit my financial aid advisory and put some down payments on some housing developments before the semester starts. so i asked around, and this was the best deal i found:
http://www.allegiantair.com/

they fly to certain locations only for about 100-200 bucks altogether lol. its gimmicky but its not a scam. for instance, you have to pay an extra 10-20 bucks to reserve your seating, unless you just want to arrive at the airport for free pick seats. baggage is also an extra 35 bucks. you also get what you pay for. there are no meals/no movies and normal seats, but the flight it completely safe, and i dont know about you, but i have my ipod to keep me company if i cant zone out for 2 hours lol.


for everything else, kayak is king.

[vagus]

http://www.allegiantair.com/ is insanely cheap, however they're limited to locations. To reduce the price share luggage with your partner, unclick the seat selection and this will save close to $50.

[richardd]

http://www.allegiantair.com/ is insanely cheap, however they're limited to locations. To reduce the price share luggage with your partner, unclick the seat selection and this will save close to $50.

exactly lol. thanks for explaining it better than i did! i know a girl who got to go to Fort Lauderdale from vegas for 80 bucks, lol. round-way of course

[vagus]

If you want to try Allegiant. Could fly from LA to Fargo, ND. Then Fly from there to Orlando. That might be cheaper, but it'll be a huge headache if you miss your transfer.

LA to Fargo is about $147.68 to $227.68 tax included. July 2 to 9th.
Fargo to Orlando is about $162.68 to $242.68 tax included. July 2 to 9th.

I'd just stick with what you have. Lol. However, flying from LA to Las Vegas, Phoenix or Bellingham is cheap. Once you hit Bellingham you can drive to Seattle, Portland & Vancouver, Canada.

[Byrthnoth]

Be aware that buying through an aggregation site is going to result in an unchangeable itinerary with unsympathetic support, generally where missing any leg of the journey flags you as a non-refundable "no-show" and cancels the rest of your trip.

[Kyo]

I fly at least once a week sometime three times, I always use southwest.com.

[netz]

Be aware that buying through an aggregation site is going to result in an unchangeable itinerary with unsympathetic support, generally where missing any leg of the journey flags you as a non-refundable "no-show" and cancels the rest of your trip.

I used travelocity to book a flight to Japan, and was booked for one of the canceled American Airlines flights when the earthquake hit. Dealing with AA directly sorted it out, but yeah, Travelocity's support couldn't really do shit.

[kyod]

Flying out on a Tuesday/Wednesday will reduce your travel costs as well. Business travel is heavy Monday, Thursday and Friday while leisure travel is high on Friday-Sunday. Many airlines also require a minimum Saturday night stay and/or three day stay for the cheapest fares (So if you leave on a Tuesday and return next Tuesday your fare will probably be cheaper than leaving on Tuesday and returning on Friday).

Having flexible dates will get you the lowest fares.

[Minions]

I use southwest.com as southwest only sells tickets through their own site. I normally book during their promo periods for my trips 3+ months in advance. Closer you are to your departure date, the more the tickets tend to increase.