Student Airfares Everywhere SAVE
Cheap Memorial Day Weekend Flight Deals!  $112
Northwest Airlines Everyday CHEAP fares!  $123
Spring Flight Deals Under  $200! $77
Early Bird sale to Europe, on Air France  $364
Cruise Sale! Savings, Upgrades, & More! Save
Kids 2-15 ride Amtrak half-price  SAVE


Here's our distilled wisdom about buying tickets online:

  • Check the online systems to see what flights are available and for an idea of the price ranges. Check more than one CRS. For tickets within the U.S. and Canada, the prices in the CRS are for the most part the real prices that people are paying.
  • After you have found a likely airline, check that airline's site to see whether it has any special Web-only deals. If a low-fare airline has the route, be sure to check that one too, since most low-fare airlines don't appear in CRS listings.
  • If your schedule is flexible, check ticket bidding sites including Hotwire and Priceline and ticket auctions such as SkyAuction
  • Particularly if you don't qualify for the lowest fare visible on the CRS, check with a travel agent to see whether he can beat the online price, and buy your tickets from the agent unless the online deal is better. Most agents get no commission on fares visible on the CRS, so you can expect an agent to charge you for ticking them.
  • For international tickets, do all the steps above in this list, and then check both online and with your agent for consolidator tickets. This is particularly important if you don't qualify for the lowest published fare. See Edward Hasbrouck's Consolidators and Bucket Shops FAQ for much more detailed information on consolidator tickets.
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