Top 25 hacks used by holidaymakers to bag the best deals
Buying flights in incognito mode and travelling overnight are among the top tips
Research by a flight comparison site has claimed that paying for flights with a credit card and paying for hotels directly are among the top 25 holiday hacks used by keen holidaymakers.
A study by FlightsFinder of 1,500 people who travel abroad revealed 65% attempt a number of ‘hacks’ each time they search online for a holiday, with 16% waking up early to take advantage of sales going live first thing in the morning. Other top travel tactics include setting flight price tracking alerts, clearing their web cookies and signing up for air fare newsletters.
Some also check whether two single flights are cheaper than one return (24%). Meanwhile, 23% use their browser's incognito mode to hide previous searches
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A spokesman for FlightsFinder.com, which commissioned the research to launch its specialist ‘ask the expert’ function, said: “Everyone wants the best deals and cheapest flights. The problem consumers face is deciding which hacks are actually worth the effort and which are not.
They added: “Some might even be more hassle than they’re worth. The fact remains that the more rigid you are with your travel plans the less likely it is that you’ll grab a bargain.
“That is why we launched our new ‘ask the expert’ service which guides consumers to the best deals online, essentially separating the wheat from the chaff.”
Top 25 hacks savvy holiday bookers swear by according to FlightsFinder:
1. Compare different travel dates to see if it’s cheaper
2. Search for flights departing on a particular day to see if it’s cheaper
3. Pay for flights with a credit card
4. Book a hotel directly rather than through a third-party site
5. Pack as lightly as possible to avoid baggage charges
6. Search for flights six-eight weeks in advance of the trip
7. Buy a package deal to make the entire trip less costly
8. Compare multiple flight comparison websites
9. Compare multiple airline websites directly
10. Book flights in the ‘off season’ of where you’re travelling to
11. Look up when school holidays are as to travel outside of these times
12. Clear cookies from your browser when resuming a search for flights or hotels
13. Compare two, one-way flights instead of a return flight, to see if that’s cheaper
14. Compare multiple travel agents directly
15. Use ‘private’ or ‘incognito’ mode on your browser so they can’t tell you’ve already looked at flights
16. Book a flight into a less busy airport
17. Fly overnight to reduce costs
18. Set up price alerts to be notified of price drops
19. Sign up to air mile or frequent flyer programmes
20. Sign up to airline flight deal newsletters
21. Consider different layover options to lower the price of your overall trip
22. Wake up early to take advantage of the cheaper tickets on sale at the start of the day
23. Compare flights in other currencies to see if you can save money
24. Search for hidden city tickets (when you buy a ticket with the intention of leaving the plane at a stopover, rather than the final destination)
25. Use throw away ticketing (where a round trip flight is cheaper than your desired one way flight so you purchase the round trip flight and throw away the return ticket)
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