How can you find a cheap flight or at least a cheaper plane ticket on the internet?
We present you on our travel blog our 11 best tips and tricks from independent travel bloggers We're going to give you our best tips and tricks from independent travel bloggers on how to buy a cheap flight ticket on the internet in the midst of the myriad of websites selling airline tickets that are flooding the web.
Real travellers' tips!
When preparing our our tripsWe always spend hours looking for the best price for our plane tickets. Days comparing different airlines, dates and itineraries. As we booked our flights, we realised the logic of airlines and flight comparators. So we decided to share our experiences as travellers to help you find the cheapest plane ticket on the internet and avoid scams.
Finding a cheap airline ticket is the first step for any traveller who wants to go on holiday. Deals are everywhere and they have never been so accessible. As you may have noticed, prices vary all the time. Why does this happen? When is the best time to book your flight?
How do airlines set their prices?
How do the comparators spy on us?
I (Franck) had already revealed all our tips in theprogramme La Quotidienne broadcast in 2014 following the publication of this article. Since then, we have of course updated it several times.(last update February 2020)
Here are the 11 rules to buy your plane ticket cheaper on the internet.
In this article, we have selected for you the best sites where we have already booked many flights for less and above all those where we have never had any problems, so that you can save time in your future flight searches.
1. How to find good ideas for your next trip?
1.1 Get inspired by our travel guides and blog posts
Finding your next destination can take time. Not everyone travels regularly and it's best not to make a mistake in your choice. If you do, it can be very expensive.
This is one of the reasons why we have opened this travel blog in 2011 to help you find ideas for future trips. In addition, we give on this travel blog all our tips and tricks on all the sites and countries we have visited in 20 years. What to escape, dream and fill up on destinations!
All our trips in France and around the world
All our advice to travellers
1.2 Using a comparison tool
In terms of practical tools, you can use the Omio flight comparator, which allows you to find the best routes from over 800 airlines worldwide. The advantage of this website is that you can also get alternative train and bus journeys whether you are travelling in France, Europe, the USA or Canada. It is easy to use because you can find the best route for your future trip with just one click.
2. What is the best time to travel by plane for less?
If possible, avoid the school holidays and pay attention to the public holidays in the country you are visiting. It is logical that travelling during school holidays has a cost. It is also worth noting that during the spring and Christmas holidays, flights are more expensive than during the rest of the year. This is due to the hard law of supply and demand.
Good travel tip: If you are travelling in Europe for example, you will be able to find incredible deals in February and March. But if you want to travel during the summer, you can even double the price of the ticket. We've already done a trip from Paris to Madrid, Barcelona and Gran Canaria for only €150 per person for all flights. Really cheap for 6 flights!
Traveller's tip: Rely on people's superstitions and favour Fridays 13 and 11 September, dates on which many people are afraid to fly. Airline tickets are cheaper then. Franck's brother took advantage of this on 11 September for an A.R. trip from Reunion to Paris at a smart price.
Be as flexible as possible with your travel dates. Flexibility is the main key to finding cheap airline tickets. We all have our obligations and some people can't choose the day they go on holiday. However, think twice.
Checking the "flexible dates" box can save you tens or even hundreds of euros.
Choose to fly in the middle of the week rather than at the weekend. We've found that flying on Thursdays is often cheaper.
Avoid the month of August, when many Europeans travel.
It is not for nothing that every year, our long-haul trips It's not for nothing that our long-haul summer trips often start on the Thursday closest to 21 June, as this is the cheapest departure day every year at this time.
3. When to buy your flight ticket cheaper on the internet?
Knowing how to buy and book your flight at the right time is also important for saving money on your next trip. Based on our experiences as travellers, we have found that :
For domestic flights, you should book your flight about 7-8 weeks in advance. This may vary slightly depending on the destination and the peak tourist season.
For long-haul flights, book your flight between 3 weeks and 5 months in advance. Don't book too early (more than 5 months in advance) or too late (less than 2 weeks) to get the best fares.
Finally, you should know that December is traditionally a good month for promotions as few bookings are usually made at this time of year.
Last January, for example, a family of 5 received a 500 euro discount on various expenses when they bought 5 return tickets from Paris to Kuala Lumpur thanks to one of the campaigns posted on our travel blog where zero fees were offered. A word of advice, stay tuned!
What day and time should I book my flight? Weird question? Not really...
Airlines and other flight comparators change their prices according to the day of the week. The cheapest days to book a flight are Wednesday and Thursday, in the middle of the week.
The airlines generally update their reservation databases on Tuesday night. They then immediately put cheaper tickets from cancelled bookings back on the market. Unsold tickets from the weekend can also be put back on the market at very attractive prices.
But be careful, because this time is not fixed, as the sites can be located in the United States or Thailand, and there are inevitably time differences.
To sum up, when should you book and buy your flight on the internet?
Book domestic flights 7 to 8 weeks before departure,
Book international flights 3 weeks to 5 months before departure,
Take advantage of special offers in December and those posted on our blog throughout the year,
Book your flights in the middle of the week, ideally on Wednesday or Thursday.
4. Clear browser cookies
Before going into search mode for the cheapest flight on the internet, you need to know a few things about cookies, you know, those little pieces of software that remember our IP addresses when we visit a website. We can already imagine some of them reading us and thinking about the famous little cakes ^^
More and more people are questioning the results of flight comparison websites. On the same computer, the prices displayed also depend on the browser and the browsing history. Some companies use cookies and thus offer you more and more expensive prices as time goes by. When you are ready to book, after having compared prices via one of the comparators on this page for example, you should always clear the cache and cookies stored on your computer.
Our tips for dealing with cookies.
Remember to clear your cookies from time to time.
You can also use your browser's private browsing feature in addition to clearing the cache and cookies.
When you have decided to buy your tickets on a computer, connect via your mobile phone to the same site (without being connected to WIFI and after clearing the history and cookies) and compare the fares offered for the same search criteria. You may well have some good or bad surprises about the new price displayed... That's a hell of a cookie!
Oh how good those cookies are, how good they are!
Airline ticket prices depend on supply and demand. So stay moderate in the number of requests for the same flights. Otherwise you will artificially increase prices. And that's the tragedy, because you'll be entering a vicious circle.
In conclusion: Don't look for too much or you'll drive up prices!
5. How to know your flight budget?
We've all passed by a flight with a good price, hoping that the price would drop again. But in the end, the offer has passed us by. Here's a tip to avoid this kind of problem: Know the average price of the flight you're interested in beforehand. You should always have a price range in mind before starting your search.
Here are some good prices for round-trip air tickets from Paris.
Paris - Barcelona: €70 with a peak in August.
Paris - New York: €334 with a peak in July and another in December.
Paris - Bangkok: €434 with a peak in December.
Paris - Rio: 582 € with 3 peaks: July, August and December.
We obviously didn't pull these fares out of our hat ^^ We advise you to go and read the statistics of airfares available very simply on the website algofly. You can also see at a glance the best time to buy a ticket for a given destination and therefore know if it is a good time to buy your flight or not.
6. How to compare prices and find the best flight fare?
6.1. Compare prices with low-cost airlines
Think about comparing prices with low-cost airlines. These airlines reduce their costs as much as possible (secondary airports, minimum service, etc.), which helps to keep prices low.
In addition, at certain times of the year, these low-cost companies offer non-tariff tickets. In other words, you only pay the taxes. Make sure that the connection between these secondary airports is easy from or to your final destination.
Some low-cost airports may be further away from your home or place of stay than traditional airports. This is the case for Istanbul, for example. Note thatin high season, the gap between traditional and low-cost airlines tends to narrow.
Fly from secondary airports in major cities!
To Europe with Ryanair from Beauvais for example. Beauvais airport is 89 km north of Paris. A bus from the capital takes you directly to the airport. It's easy, but their policy regarding luggage is very restrictive. is very restrictive. Some people don't like low-cost airlines and they have their reasons, but you should know that Ryanair is for example the only airline to fly directly to Bari airport in Puglia in Italy in the low tourist season. So... sometimes you have no choice! For information, you can check the 5 European destinations where we have travelled with Ryanair.
TOP 5 cheap destinations in Europe
In Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia for example, you should know that there are 2 airports. One of them is dedicated to low-cost flights, mainly those of the airline AirAsiaThe low-cost airline that we recommend if you travel in Asia. Unbeatable quality/price ratio. Many travellers are tricked on the spot by going to the wrong airport. That's why you should always check where your departure airport is located when travelling with a low-cost airline.
Same story in Istanbul, with 50 kilometres between the two airports.
In Barcelona, it doesn't change much except that the EasyJet counter is in the old terminal, which is completely empty and not very user-friendly. When you go on a trip to Barcelona or a weekend in Madridwe prefer the airline Vueling for its recent fleet and helpful staff.
6.2. Compare the price of your cheapest flight with all airlines
However, low-cost flights are not always the cheapest. Why not compare them with the fares of a regular airline?
The skyscanner compares multiple airlines, including low-cost airlines. Personally, this is our favourite comparison tool when looking for flights.
The comparator has many possible options. The display is clear and not polluted by advertising. There is also a general search option. Simply enter your departure city and travel dates and the comparator will display the most relevant destinations. This is a great way to save big if you don't have a travel destination in mind yet.
You can also search for cheap flights on Liligo, Bravofly (link to our review of the comparator) or Kayak. Sometimes you can find good deals.
Some airlines and flight booking websites allow you to use discount codes. Look here if you don't find one or two flight discount codes. It can be a smart way tosave a few bucks on your flight ticket!
For our Canadian readers or anyone looking for a cheap flight to Europe from Canada or the USA, compare the price of your flights to Europe on cheapair.com.
7. Try alternative routes to pay even less for your flight
In addition to being flexible on dates, you should also be flexible on your travel itinerary. We know, we're asking a lot of you but you'll thank us when you see the difference ^^
Sometimes it's cheaper to fly from London or Madrid to distant destinations. For those of you who are travelling far away and have the time, we invite you to compare airfares for several departure cities.
Here are some of our flight experiences to pay less for our flight tickets (from Paris).
Rio de Janeiro via Lisbon
Fortaleza in Brazil via Porto in Portugal
Mexico via Brussels ( Eurolines bus or train to Brussels)
Asia via Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur
South America via London and Madrid. Read our anecdote about this below.
Speaking of flexibility, we did a great job a few years ago flying to Buenos Aires from Paris. We took theEurostar to London, flew from London to Madrid and from Madrid to Buenos Aires.
Final result: We saved 400 € each on our flights compared to a combined Paris-Madrid + Madrid-Buenos Aires. And if we compare with a direct flight from Paris to Buenos Aires, we save even more money.
After 2 months of travel in Latin America, the return trip was also long and tedious. After a few stopovers and a Eurostar that we caught at the last minute, we'll be honest to the end, we came back exhausted.This example is not necessarily to follow if you travel with your family.
8. Buy tickets for several people individually
Tips for families or groups going on a trip!
Consider comparing offers by buying tickets individually. This seems counter-intuitive. However, this is how we have always found cheaper airline tickets. The assumption is that the more people book, the cheaper the price. This is rarely the case with airlines. They will usually limit the number of seats per flight they sell at their lowest rate. As a result, you can sometimes miss out on a good deal by simply having too many passengers.
How do you do it?
Look up the price of the ticket for one person.
Then look for the overall ticket price for the whole group at once to make sure the flight has enough seats to accommodate everyone.
Finally, do the same research for a smaller group and compare.
It takes a little time but the savings can be worth it.
9. Keeping luggage and insurance costs down
9.1. Cheaper airfare: Extra baggage costs
Before confirming your flight, check for additional baggage fees, booking fees, and payment method fees. These can add significantly to the price of tickets.
Airlines all have different baggage policies. This all changed a few months ago with thepermission to issue tickets without hold luggage even on long-haul flights operated by national airlines. We encountered this in 2018 on a Paris-Montreal flight with Air Canada.
Airline rules (baggage dimensions, lockers, etc.)
9.2. Travel insurance
We strongly advise you to read our article on travel insurance because even for a trip of less than 3 months abroad, you may realise that you are not necessarily that well insured when you travel...
Check out this article: Our travel insurance tips
10. Another tip for paying less for your flight: Use your loyalty cards
If you fly regularly and are a loyal customer, you can benefit from discounts on the price of your plane tickets. Although accessing the precious miles is more difficult than it used to be, it is still a discount.
This is a good option, especially if you book your tickets early. This is because airlines only reserve a small number of seats that are eligible for these privileged prices. Once you are a member of a frequent flyer programme, you can then check your traveller account online and be ready when the desired number of miles is reached.
Using your miles is as easy as using your credit card.
As far as the Air France frequent flyer programme is concerned, the scale is rather unclear and even confusing. It is essentially suitable for gold and platinum members, statuses that are obtained when you fly often and at high cost. In the end, this formula is used more by businessmen. 
11. How can you travel for even less? Auctions
In conclusion,
It is not so complicated to find cheaper plane tickets on the internet. By emptying your browsing history, booking and flying in the middle of the week outside school holidays and respecting a few basic deadlines between the date of booking and the flight, you can always make good savings on your plane tickets.