Flights and Stays are the most important aspect of any travel plan and these are ones that can make or break your trip. In this post we tell you how to find cheap accommodation and flights.
HOW TO FIND CHEAP FLIGHTS
Don’t let your dreams get shattered by the price hike of airlines. Avoid being the person on the flight who paid the most for an airline ticket by making use of a few cool few websites listed below.
- Skyscanner
- Via.com
- Kayak
- Google Flight
- JetRadar
- AirFare Watchdog
- Expedia
- Momondo.com
- LastMinute Flight
- matrix.itasoftware.com
- Cheapoair (U.S., Canada, U.K.)
- Kiwi ( Read more: How to Always Get The Best Holidays Deals with Kiwi )
All thanks to the zillion of new startups, apps, websites, finding cheap flights and hotels are super easy.
Handy Tips & Tricks
Make sure to search in Incognito window and delete cookies before booking.
Plan with no fixed plans: It’s always good to be flexible with the dates and time of travel to avail price benefits.
If you are on a budget, the best time to go to any International vacation is during off-season and booking should be at least three weeks prior to the travel date.
Take an alternative Route: Sometimes direct flights can be a costly option, for an example a direct flight to Santorini is costlier than a flight to Athens. Once in Athens, one can take a ferry to Santorini. This proves to be a much cheaper option. So try exploring alternate routes, this can save a significant amount of money.
Be Flexible with Destination: Make use of the Everywhere/ Anywhere feature and satisfy your wanderlust. We love the Skyscanner – Everywhere and Kayak – Anywhere feature to keep an eye on the cheapest deals.
Keep an eye on SALES. Air Asia, Spice Jet & Indigo keep coming up with so many exciting sales offering dirt cheap flights from India to International destinations.
Check out the list of Low Cost Airlines – HERE
HOW TO FIND CHEAP ACCOMMODATION
Stay definitely varies from person to person. Some might be happy staying at a backpacker hostel, some might prefer homestay or some might want to splurge lavishly. We’ve listed below a few cool sites that can land you a perfect deal or your preferred stay option.
- Tripadvisor
- Agoda
- Booking
- Expedia
- Skyscanner
- Trivago
- AirBnB
- Homestay.com
- HomeAway
- FlipKey
- Hostelzoo
- Hostelworld
- HostelsClub
- Hostelbookers.com
Other interesting types of accommodations to interact with locals or for a longer duration are –
- Home Exchange
- Couchsurfing
Handy Tips & Tricks
Read reviews on Tripadvisor or Google before booking.
Make sure to check the location well ahead to plan your travel accordingly.
Booking for more nights or for a longer stay is always beneficial than short stays.
If you are booking on Airbnb or similar bed and breakfast sites, make sure you read all the rules, reviews and contact the host with all your queries in advance. Sometimes they do charge cleaning fee as well so make sure you read the guidelines well.
Book during shoulder season, if you are looking for cheaper rates at one of your favorite hotels.
Make use of Hotel’s all-inclusive offers. Writing to the Hotel’s reservation team and asking for a great deal is another option you could give a try.
Hope you make the most of all the tips and tricks we have shared in this post and do let us know if we have missed something in the below comment box.
We will keep updating the list so don’t forget to bookmark this page for your next vacation.
If you do find our article useful in planning your trip, don’t forget to send a note/picture of your trip to us ( Email: thetalesofatraveler@gmail.com) NOTE
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9 Comments
Clare
February 22, 2017 at 6:22 pmI normally use kayak and skyscanner for flights but as I tend to book very last minute its hard to get a good deal. I normally stay in hostels but I know quite a lot of people who do couchsurfing. Still not sure I want to try it though!! I have managed to book hotels cheaper through airbnb too.
Mel Butler
February 22, 2017 at 10:24 pmI use Skyscanner a lot but I am also a member of a few airlines, so I check the prices and then go directly to the airlines for my points and upgrades. As for hotels like you have said in your tips, I read reviews on TripAdvisor when I can’t decide on a hotel. I love hearing real people’s opinions.
Ticker Eats The World
February 23, 2017 at 8:01 amThanks for a comprehensive and detailed list of all the sites that can be used to find cheap places to stay. Skyscanner usually tops most lists and I still haven’t started using it, so I need to do that for sure. And of course AirBNB is a great way to stay with locals and make most of the culture.
Vicky @ A Backpack Full of Adventures
February 23, 2017 at 9:01 amI usually use Skyscanner, Momondo, and Google Flights to compare flights – and set up a price alert if the price is higher than I’d like. Travelling during off-season and being flexible with both your destination and your dates are great tips, too – I love Skyscanner’s feature where you can search for flights on a given date (or in one particular month) and see which destination is the cheapest! As for accommodation, I usually use Hotels.com, Booking.com, Hostelworld, and Airbnb – depending on which one is the most affordable at the time.
Natalie
February 23, 2017 at 3:56 pmCheap flights are a great prize and worth the effort to find them. I feel like any savings …on travel or anything else can be saved for more travel!! 🙂
We don’t have the flexibility we used to due to my husband’s job but the flexible dates can still help us find the right combination of flights to get the very best deal! Will use this list for sure and know others would enjoy so I’m tweeting, too!
Anna
February 23, 2017 at 8:27 pmI’ve used Skyscanner for years now, and it never fails me. It also looks like Google Flights is stepping up its game now, especially when it comes to multi-leg trips. Good point about going over accommodation reviews before booking anything – they are usually pretty accurate (although it also depends on personal preferences).
Ticking the Bucketlist
February 24, 2017 at 3:43 amI was a momondo loyalist but have recently moved to Skyscanner. I love the flexibility of planning anywhere and at anytime that they offer.
I have never used Hostelzoo… I stay in hostels quite a lot and it would surely be worth exploring as you are recommending it!
Allison
February 27, 2017 at 6:39 amI never pay full price for flights or accomodation. Ever! I love Skyscanner and Expedia and swear by Trid Advisor reviews. Agree Air Asia always has some great specials.
Ray Watson
November 23, 2017 at 4:49 amHi Swati and Sam, I recently use Cheap Best Fares and found very good services. I Highly Recommendation…