Do you have the travel-booking blues?
While taking a holiday is fun, booking one is often a nightmare. Knowing when to book is key, but there are also a number of other factors to take into consideration.
Dollar Flight Club is an email/app subscription service that alerts over 800,000 members about the world about the cheapest flight deals leaving their home airports. The service has analyzed over 1 billion data points to provide insights to help you save money on flights in 2020, as well as predictions for trending destinations.
As for some of the best deals out of Vancouver, the data has revealed the following options:
- Vancouver to Hawaii: $295 roundtrip (March to May 2020)
- Vancouver to Shanghai: $388 roundtrip (February to May 2020)
- Vancouver to Amsterdam: $450 roundtrip (February to March 2020)
In it's 2020 Trending Destinations and Travel Insights guide, Dollar Flight Deal has also provided some major tips on how to save in the new year.
Set up deal alerts
The better a deal is, the less time it will be available to book. As such, being the first to know when deals become available is key to getting the best fare. And, according to report authors, prices can fluctuate up to a whopping 135 times a day. Setting up fare alerts on specific routes will let you know when the fare is low. Simiarly, signing up with airlines that fly out of YVR will also let you know when they plan to offer major discounts.
Book in advance
While some deals are offered at the last minute, most data suggests that prices become a great deal higher closer to the depature date. Report authors note that, "the best window to book cheap flights occurs three weeks to four months in advance." What's more, booking on the weekend can be up to 60 per cent cheaper than booking on a Thursday or Friday, which are typically the most expensive days to book flights.
Fly during the week
Booking on a Wednesday can save you up to 40 per cent. If you are flexible, and it is available, you should utilize the fare calendar to see if there are cheaper days to book around your travel itinerary. Not all airlines offer this, but many booking engines do. Weekday travel also offers the shortest security lines and the least amounts of delays/cancellations.
Avoid budget airlines *sometimes
While the low-cost carriers offer cheap flights, it is worthwhile to note that there are a number of additional costs. For one, luggage will cost extra, as will selecting your own seat. With Flair Airlines, not only do you have to pay for the luggage on the flight, but you'll also be dinged for printing your boarding pass. With this in mind, some deals hard to pass up, and therefore it is a good idea to determine how much you'll save once you calculated the add-ons. Find out additional hidden budget airline costs here.
Consider using alternative airports
If you can be flexible, check for alternative airports to fly in to or out of. Oddly, it may be cheaper to fly into one city airport and out of a different one in the same city. For example, it may be cheaper to fly into John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and out of Newark Liberty International Airport (EWK). SImilarly, you may be staying closer to JFK, but it may save you hundreds of dollars to fly in and and out of EWK.
Act fast
If you see a deal that you know you want, do not delay. If you book directly with a major airline, most will honour a 24 hour refund (always double check this before booking, however). This means that you can book the flight at the lowest price and then deliberate as to whether you have any conflicts.
Go incognito
Airlines may track your searches, and therefore you might notice that the price slowly increases as you browse. Try deleting your history often or searching incognito.
Find out more information about Dollar Flight Club here.
