14 tips to buy flights for your trip

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Vueling plane in Barcelona airport

You're thinking about organise a travel and you need buy flights?

In this article we will give you all tips what do you have to know to book your flight perfect.

There are trips that are solved with a single flight, and others of long distance in which it is necessary to make several stops and use several airplanes to arrive at destination.

Interior of a Vueling plane

In any case, nobody wants to have the feeling of having paid more than the bill or hired something that in the end does not correspond to what you expected.

Therefore, based on our long travel experience, we have created this list of tips what you have to keep in mind if you're about to buy flights For an upcoming trip.

Book flights early

If you are looking for the price to be as cheap as possible, you must book as soon as possible.

You may have to pay double the price if you book shortly in advance.

From our experience, for intercontinental travel, you would have to book the flights at least 6 months before the date of the trip to get a very competitive price.

The closer the departure date approaches, the less places there are and therefore the higher the price.

Vueling plane cockpit

Is it better to travel out of season?

As we have said, it seems obvious that the more demand for tickets, the more expensive the flight is, so obviously in high season prices rise.

I give you a real example that we live often as it is to go from Madrid to Boston, which is a city to which we fly frequently, so that you value the difference.

Booking 3 months in advance in both cases, in August round trip leaves for about 1100 euros, while in February the flight cost us 450 euros.

This is real, but in high season there are also advantages that must be taken into account because they disappear out of season.

Although the price goes up, airlines usually open routes that are only available in high season.

In practice this means that in high season you can do direct flight to some cities, while outside it you will need stop between two flights.

That is the case of the aforementioned flight Madrid-Boston, because in summer there is direct flight and in winter not, so even if you have to pay more, at least you will save time to enjoy the stay.

Interior of a Qatar Airways plane

But there are times when the price of the flight is very high and you don't know why, which is probably due to the fact that there is a local party or event that you may not know.

That happens in the case of travel to Japan in March, at which time the cherry blossom, a national event and high season in that country during the time the flowers endure.

So keep that in mind if you see that the price does not fit you for the dates you are looking for, unless you just want to travel on that specific date.

How to use search engines and flight comparators

The good thing about flight comparators is that they offer you many options to choose from, although on certain occasions they are so many that you get disoriented.

But the best thing about the comparators is the possibility of filtering the searches, so if you know how to use them well, you can find real offers.

Many flight search engines give you the option (selecting only the month in which you want to travel) to look for the days when flights are cheaper.

Air France A-380 plane

In this way they offer you the calendar of the month with the prices of the flights every day, and so you can accommodate the dates of the trip at the prices that most interest you.

If you have some freedom when choosing the days, use this option because it can save you a lot of money.

Which airline to choose to travel

Keep in mind the airline you are traveling with; traveling in is not the same low cost that in a company that is not, and in each group, with many nuances.

When choosing flights, search engines with prices show the information of the airlines that operate them.

Each one has its own rules, especially with regard to checked luggage or hand luggage that we can carry in the cabin

Other aspect that differentiates the different airlines is if they give you free food service or snack, which is becoming less common, except in the case of long-distance or intercontinental flights.

Ryanair plane in Madrid airport

And you also have to take into account the flight schedules They offer you, because flying with certain companies to certain destinations can mean traveling to the airport at untimely hours.

But not always low cost It means worse service.

As an example I want to highlight that when flying with the low cost Norwegian, in great expansion in recent years, on certain routes you will have ¡¡Wifi free on the plane !! I assure.

In our experience there are some airlines that are spectacular and take maximum care of the passenger, and others that pose almost an obstacle course putting a price on every minimum service.

In this regard, beware ofRyanair, the most popular low cost in Europe, which always requires you to do the Online billing Before going to the airport.

This implies that always go with the printed ticket (or on certain routes, billed on the mobile), because if it is not almost, you will have to pay 75 euros to check in said airport.

Flights with stops

Another important point is the stops if your trip requires them.

Look closely at the duration of the scales, because there are times that the price of the flight is very cheap because you have a very long stopover at the airport.

Airplane of the Norwegian company Wideroe

Of course, the scale should not be too short, for example of only half an hour, which sometimes happens, because you run the risk of losing the connection flight, and with almost total security, your suitcase will not have time to be transferred from One plane to another.

And watch out for long stops, especially on flights where you arrive at the airport at 2 a.m. and, for example, the next flight leaves at 8 a.m. or similar times.

These stops kill you because you hardly have time to go to a hotel and it is a nightmare to sleep at the airport.

Our advice is that you look at the flight having short stops, or if they are long, that by flight schedules you have the possibility to leave the airport to visit the city of the stopover.

For example, on an intercontinental flight with Quatar Airways, if the scale in Doha It is more than five hours, at the same airport you can sign up for a free city tour.

And even better, if you have time on trips where you connect two flights more than 10 hours apart, you should consider a good option to spend a night or a day visiting the city where you stop.

Best flight schedules

As we have commented, another measure that airlines used to lower prices is to put flights at unattractive hours, and that way they free spaces at peak times, which they find more expensive.

Interior of a Qatar Airways plane

But beyond the inconveniences that we have commented about making long stops at airports, there is another problem that can occur.

Keep in mind that there are times when if the departure or arrival times of the plane are late at night or very early in the morning, you still don't have public transportation to get to the airport.

In the end what you save on the flight you lose in the taxi.

If for whatever reason you had to choose this option, keep in mind that better and cheaper than a taxi is book a transfer What makes the journey hotel-airport.

What luggage can I carry on the plane

The issue of luggage is a factor that can be very important, as you may be forced to pay more if it does not exactly comply with the measures that have been implemented.

It is also important to see if the price of the ticket includes luggage billing or does not include it.

Iberia Express plane

If it's about long distance flights, the price always usually includes a suitcase of 23 kg maximum weight.

But if the flight is short and you need luggage bill, in most low cost companies you must include it yourself as an extra to pay, sometimes at a really high price.

Most of the prices that put you in short journeys They do not include luggage, only hand luggage, and companies low cost They are quite strict in this luggage that we carry with us.

When the ticket includes a suitcase, it is usually 23kg.

For each extra bag (another 23 kg of weight) they usually charge you a supplement of between 50 and 80 euros depending on the company.

Keep in mind that it is cheaper to pay the luggage check-in along with the ticket when booking the flight, that if you do it at the last minute at the airport, it will always have a higher cost.

Be careful if you go to hire several flights, because if one of them is a transoceanic but the rest is not, the price of the ticket may only include luggage on the long journey.

Check it out and make sure you hire and add what you need.

Airport of Barcelona

The aforementioned Ryanair It is a company that has always had very demanding standards, which you have to take into account.

Currently, only if you have paid a supplement will they let you enter your regulatory bag in the cabin; if not, or the invoices prior payment, or if you carry it as carry-on luggage, when you arrive at the door of the plane they will lower it to the hold.

The latter of lowering the carry-on luggage to the warehouse are also done by other companies low cost.

What to do after the delay or cancellation of a flight

Know what to do in case of a long flight delay or cancellation It is a very important aspect.

It is not usual, so if you are not a frequent traveler, it is almost certain that you will not know your rights in these circumstances and do not know how to claim.

If you want to know how to proceed if you have to claim whether they are delays, cancellations or lost luggage, we have published an article in which we clarify all the doubts that may arise.

Here you can check how to claim for delay or cancellation of your flight.

KLM airplane interior

Is it necessary to take out insurance for plane flights?

When you hire the flight they usually offer you cancellation insurance referring to possible problems of overbooking and other issues so you get scared and hire him, but ...

Is it really necessary to take out cancellation insurance when buying the flight?

Everyone is the one who has to see if it suits him or not.

Unless it is an internal trip in your own country, and then you may want to hire it, our opinion is that the best thing is carry good travel insurance that covers all the incidents during it, and in which these types of situations are included.

These insurances cover a wide range of incidents that may arise, based on possible medical problems, but they also compensate you for all inconveniences related to air travel.

If you have already contracted your own travel insurance, it would be to double the coverage, so you should not be interested in the insurance offered by the airline.

In our case we do not contract this cancellation insurance because we always travel with a good travel insurance.

First on a KLM plane

Different airport of arrival and return

If you are going to make a route in which you visit several cities and you are going to move a lot, keep in mind that you can earn hours or even days if you contemplate planning different airports of start and end of trip.

Unless your route is circular, rate this option.

To give you another example, which is the best way to visualize, in our various travel on the West Coast of the United States Always used an arrival airport and another one back home.

Change of hourly use

If your flight includes a change of time zone, look at it very well when booking it, with everything that this implies in terms of possible date changes, especially on very long trips.

You would not be the first to realize that you are missing or have days left on your trip.

Tickets with special needs

There are many people who, when traveling, have different characteristics from those of a standard traveler, whether due to mobility problems, carrying special luggage or going with children with carts.

When hiring the ticket you must notify of these circumstances so that the airline has it.

In the case of children up to two years, they do not usually have to pay, or if they do, it is a minimum percentage of the standard ticket.

Vueling plane in Barcelona airport

Of course, they have no right to a seat but they must travel on the legs of one of the parents.

When the children are between 2 and 10 years old, depending on the airline and the price of the flight, usually has a discount.

In the case of a mobility problem, airports always offer a service with help staff and wheelchairs, which you can request upon arrival at the airport free of charge.

They accompany you and give you the help you need, even by moving or picking you up on the plane.

Nor should you pay any charges, for example, for billing a wheelchair or a child car of your property ...

And as for the special luggage, such as some ski boards, when booking the ticket you have to indicate this circumstance.

As long as they comply with the rules of what can be carried on an airplane, you will only have to check in upon arrival at the airport.

Entertainment during the trip inairplane

On long trips the entertainment systems they vary, and traveling in one airline is not the same as in another.

It is precisely in this type of services where you can find clear differences, and so for example, depending on the company and the origin and destination of the flights, the catalog of movies in your language can vary quite a lot.

Visas to fly

Finally, before buying the tickets you should check if you are going to need to apply for a visa to fly to a specific country.

In any case, at the time of billing you must have all the necessary documentation for the trip because without it they will not let you get on the plane.

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Video: 10 Little-Known Tricks for Perfect Sleep on a Flight (March 2024).