Cheap Internal Flights.

[EnglishStalker]

Good morning All.

I was wondering if anyone could offer advice on cheap internal flights in the US. I'm planning on visiting friends in Michigan next year, where's the best place to seach\book?

Any help would be fantastic.

Thank you

Matt

 

[kansasdad]

Multiple websites all claim to be the best, cheapest, easiest etc. At various times I have found rooms, rental cars and/or flights using hotels.com, priceline.com and travelocity.com. Kayak.com has been advertising heavily during the Olympics.

Some days are less costly to fly than others. Flights on Mondays and Fridays tend to cost more. Weather dependent cancellations and delays occur more frequently in northern hub cities, but it always seems like a roll of the dice trying to avoid bad weather.

I have read from the Sunday morning paper travel writers that suggest avoiding making multiple searches on the same site in a relatively short period of time, somehow that triggers the sites to bump up their lowest rates.

 

[MThuntr]

What I've learned is to either you Private (In Cognito) settings when searching or clear cookies as it will help prevent tracking which can affect the prices you get. Sometimes you can get the best price direct from the airline.

 

[homers]

not sure which airport in Michigan you are looking at, but Southwest with it's 2 free checked bags, can be a good alternative that normal airline search engines don't search.

 

[Big Sky Dreamin]

Keep in mind those websites do not carry all US carriers. Southwest only books through its own site and has a strong presence in Detroit. Spirit airlines is a discount carrier here much like Ryan in Europe, i.e. You get what you pay for, that I believe also only books on its own site with a strong Detroit presence.

 

[Trial153]

I search southwest independently. From there I will use a site like priceline or Expedia. Any results from third party sites I cross check with the individual airline to confirm that the price is cheaper.

 

[Don K]

My buddy swears on the app called Skiplagged. I have just heard about it so have not had a chance to see if its any good.

 

[Corax]

I generally use travelocity to narrow down the options and then use the airline web sites to actually buy the ticket. As was noted before, Southwest does not show up on travel web sites and is often a great deal if you need to check bags. Unless there is a large difference in price, beware of discount carriers or third party sites like travelocity. Saving a few bucks on the ticket can come back to bite you if there is any kind of a problem and you need to re-book.

Be prepared for a bumpy ride at the airport, and bring your own snacks. The airlines have figured out that the average leisure traveler will select an airline based on a $10 difference in price. This has led to a race to the bottom in terms of service.

 

[cedahm]

I generally use travelocity to narrow down the options and then use the airline web sites to actually buy the ticket. As was noted before, Southwest does not show up on travel web sites and is often a great deal if you need to check bags. Unless there is a large difference in price, beware of discount carriers or third party sites like travelocity. Saving a few bucks on the ticket can come back to bite you if there is any kind of a problem and you need to re-book.

I fly nearly every week for work, and book all of my own travel (I have for many years). The advice above is sound. You will nearly always (or 99.9% of the time) get the best rate from the carrier's own website these days. The US 'Big 3' carriers (American, Delta and United) all have actually instituted guarantees that their site will provide the lowest fare. Southwest ONLY sells their seats through their own channel.

As noted - there is a race to the bottom these days in offering 'no frills' fares - Ryanair's success in the EU has not gone un-noticed here. Spirit, Allegiant, Frontier, et al are aiming to be Ryanair/Easyjet. Charges for everything from carryons to soft drinks to seat assignments on top of the fare paid.

Delta recently instituted these ultra-low Fares as 'Economy Comfort' and they come with no advance seat assignment, no possibility of change (not even for a fee), no luggage (quite common with almost all economy fares these days), etc.

If you are originating in the UK (just assuming from your profile), and stopping in more than one US city, I would price it out on the international carriers website under 'multi-city' option and see what the fare is versus the cost of an international flight to city 'A' + an additional domestic flight from 'A-B' and back.

PM me your cities and dates if you want - travel geekiness is one place I'm pretty useful and I'm on airline websites every day anyway

 

[EnglishStalker]

Thank you all for the fantastic response, yes I'm coming from England to Flint, Michigan. Looking to do it for as cheap as possible so I don't mind arriving elsewhere and then getting a connecting flight to an airport in Michigan. At the moment it's in a planning stage and saving the money but hopefully it will turn into reality next year.