Screen print from www.Kayak.com website

Most of us have to fly at certain times to certain places, so the question is not typically when or where, but how can I book a flight and save money. I have put together a list of tips that I use every time I book a flight.

1.    Shop Around. Never buy the first flight you find. Check several sites to see if you are getting the best price possible. One site that I absolutely love is www.kayak.com. Kayak searches multiple sites at once so it saves you a lot of time and effort. The price that Kayak offers is almost always the best. One thing that is key to remember is that Kayak includes taxes and some other sites don’t. So at first you may think you have found a better deal and it’s not until you checkout that you discover the price is higher. I also like Kayak because, as you are typing in your destination and dates, just to the right you see a calendar showing the best prices offered so you can easily find the best dates for travel. (See screen print above.) Another similar website is www.farecompare.com. If you check Kayak and Fare Compare you will have checked most of the major flight booking sites and will have done it in probably less than 10 minutes!

2.    Book Ahead. You will pay for booking at the last minute. I try to book my flight at least two weeks before traveling. Overall you won’t regret checking flights ahead of time. If you don’t see the prices you want and you have a month or more, you can always check again later.

3.    Fly on Wednesdays. Generally, Wednesdays are the cheapest day to fly. This can sometimes save you the as much as a couple hundred dollars.

4.    Check nearby airports. Kayak and most other sites allow you to check nearby airports in one search. Often, Clevelanders can find cheaper flights out of Akron. It is important to keep in mind the cost of traveling to a farther airport; you want to make sure the cost savings is worth the inconvenience.

5.    Sign up for deal alerts. Most airlines and online flight booking sites offer weekly or monthly e-mails highlighting their best deals. Travelzoo sends me weekly alerts and I also get e-mails from Southwest and Continental. I recommend getting e-mails from the airlines you typically use or ones that offer routes to your favorite destinations.