Whether moving to your dream country for academics or taking adventurous trips across the globe, you might ask frequently- How to find cheap flights for my trips? The reason being that the high prices of flight tickets may be one of the biggest obstacles you may face as a student while travelling. So, what’s the fix? These twelve hacks to book cheap flight tickets. Let's get started!
How to Find Cheap Flights For Students?
Booking cheap flights for students can be tedious with much research. But, if you can save up to 20-30% of your flight ticket prices, the efforts are worth it. To help you out and make your process easier, here are some essential tips on how to find cheap flights for students.
1. Book Your Flight Ticket Early
If you are wondering how to get a cheap flight ticket, one of the best ways is to opt for early booking. You must figure out your travel dates and plan to make this happen. Planning your trip early will give you more flexibility and time to research which airline to choose. Booking flight tickets early can also help you get better options at reasonable prices.
However, ensure you aren’t booking too early since airlines tend to set their pricing more conservatively at the initial phase. Generally, the best time to book your flight is 2-3 months before the travel date. You can, however, take advantage of tracking apps like Google Flights or Hopper to know the exact time to buy the cheapest flights.
2. Find Cheap Flights
Some airlines are cheaper than others and thus have cheap flights for students to the same destination. Flying with one such carrier is how to find cheap flights for your journey. These airlines may charge extra fees for choosing your preferred seating, printing your boarding pass, checking bags, etc. Thus, these budget carriers are a better choice if you are looking for affordable flights but have minimal and flexible requirements. Budget airlines might not even be as comfortable as the traditionally expensive airlines. However, if hacks to book cheap flight tickets are your top priority, they can still be a great option.
3. Use Booking Websites
If you are looking for a great and more reliable way how to get a cheap flight, comparison and booking sites are a great way to do so. These sites may also offer discounts and special student facilities, giving you cheap flights for students; sites like Omio, eSky and akbartravels.com are great choices if you are looking for sites that can help you compare your options and choose the cheapest one. Similarly, Yatra and Ixigo let you compare the prices and offer many discounts and good deals on international and domestic flights.
4. Use Student Discounts
Still asking yourself, ‘How to find cheap international flights?’ Student discounts may be the answer. Many airlines offer heavy student discounts for students booking their tickets, thus making the tickets cheaper than the regular ones. A lot of booking sites also offer additional student discounts. Combining such deals can help you find the most affordable options and get you tickets even in carriers that are usually not as cheap. Student discounts are helpful for any student, so don’t hesitate to make the most of them! Finding student discounts can be tricky since airlines don’t advertise such deals much. So, visit your airline’s website or call them to ask if student discounts are available before booking your tickets.
5. Book Connecting Flights
Being flexible about your date and timing of flying can be challenging given that, as a student, you have to make sure you reach your destination within a specific time frame. However, you can be flexible about the route you are taking. Travelling to a bigger city, e.g. New York or London, can get expensive if you take a direct flight. So how to find cheap flights? You can book connecting flights to cheaper locations to save money on this. This may take a little research to find the perfect route, but the amount of money you can save through this method makes it worth it.
6. Be More Flexible
How to find cheap flights? By being flexible!
If you are a student, being flexible with timing and dates may not be possible. But again, if you have planned things early, you can make any changes you want to in your travel dates. Be more flexible about the date you will be travelling or your flight time. For example, avoiding the usual weekend or early morning flights with more chances of scheduling can help you get cheaper flights. Be flexible about your tickets even after you have booked. If you see a better deal, go for it.
7. Avoid Peak Travel Times
Peak travel times like holidays or weekends are usually the busiest and, thus, costliest times for almost all airlines. So, how to find cheap international flights at this time? You have to plan beforehand and book your tickets early if the travel dates are unavoidable. If you plan to travel during peak time and book your tickets during this time frame, you will naturally have to pay more for the same ticket since many people are trying to travel simultaneously. If you want to save money on your flight tickets and travel without calling your luggage a hassle, avoid peak travel times to make your big move. Please book your tickets before or after the international holidays and them for a lower price.
8. Utilise the Red-Eye Flights Strategy
For a financially-conscious lifestyle, the Red-Eye Flights Strategy proves to be an uncomfortable yet highly effective method in securing affordable rates on airline tickets. This approach entails you departing late at night and landing at your destination early in the morning. It is due to this unusual travel schedule that airlines usually reduce the prices for tickets during these less popular time slots. This strategy might cost you your sleep schedule for a day but is highly recommended if you are looking for an answer to how to find cheap flights, are serious about saving some cash to travel on a budget-friendly plan and use the funds to spend elsewhere, maybe some unforgettable gifts for your loved ones!
9. Subscribe To Airline Newsletters
Airline newsletters are your cheat code to avail more exclusive deals, discounts, and any information that may be helpful to you for cheap last-minute flights. Airline newsletters often offer great last-minute deals that are only available for a short time, usually 24 hours. Being a part of their mailing list can help you avail yourself of these exclusive offers. Many newsletters also offer frequent flier bonuses to subscribers, which can help you lessen the cost of your flight tickets. And that is how to find cheap flights!
10. Utilise Your Reward Points
Have some reward points lying around in your account? This is the best time for you to make use of them. Combining reward points with last-minute deals, student discounts, or any other method mentioned above can be profoundly beneficial as the issues can compensate for some of the ticket’s amount.
11. Go For Incognito Mode
Okay, you might have noticed how the price of a pair of sneakers has increased after you’ve looked at it a number of times online. This happens because websites recognise when you repeat a particular route on the internet a number of times, all thanks to cookies. And when you browse your air tickets, the same thing is triggered by cookies. So, to avoid this, you should browse the internet in incognito mode when you’re looking to find cheap flights for students. Saves you money.
12. Check The Frequent Flyer Program
Now the last one. We all know how being loyal to a brand can have its perks. The same is true with airlines as well. You see, when you are satisfied with an airline’s services and are sure that they are gonna continue that, you can join their loyalty program; which entails you enjoying special privileges compared to others. And that’s not just it, you can also be assured that every once in a while you can enjoy huge discounts on their tickets. This happens by you collecting points and reclaiming them.
Booking cheaper flights may take effort, but it is possible to do so with the correct information, tips and hacks. If you are a student looking for an answer to how to find cheap international flights, it is essential to be flexible and watch great deals. We hope the tips in this blog help you find out how to get a cheap flight and to learn more about how to find cheap international flights, check out our blog on The Top Tips And Tricks To Get The Cheapest Flights. Happy Hunting!