At the beginning of each new year, our family starts the conversation about where we are going to go on our next trip. We will sometimes throw out a few ideas for destinations, but usually we start with airfare searches.
When our kids were young, our travel dates were determined by work schedules, but now that our kids are older and extremely busy, we have to work around their calendars, which means very limited windows in which we can vacation.
So, to make the most of our time, we rely on airfare finds that line up with our dates. Before you start looking for airfare on any site, be sure to open a private window or use incognito mode on your browser. I find the easiest way to do this is to use Kayak. You can enter your home airport and in the second field, type “Anywhere”. Next, enter your dates if they are specific, or select a date range if they are flexible.
When you click the search icon, you will next see a map with flight prices for various destinations. Move the map around to see cities all over the world, and the best fares for your dates or date ranges.
The prices shown might not be ideal as they may have long layovers or connections, but at the very least give you an idea of where it is more affordable to travel during your time frame. This has been the jump off point for many of our trips.
Then, once we settle on a destination, it’s time to find the best flights. Starting from the Kayak home page again, enter your departure and arrival airports, and your dates, and a list of flights will appear.
You can sort by price, duration, etc and also select or deselect particular airlines, cabin class, etc.
The nice thing about Kayak’s search result list is that you can quickly see all of your options, and then complete the purchase directly with the airline, which we always recommend. We have had many issues with flights over the years (because things are bound to happen sometimes) and have found it is usually easier to resolve problems when you deal directly with the airline and not a third party.
Another perk of booking directly with the airline is that some international carriers have lower fares for children and students.
Have a wonderful adventure!
Looking for more travel ideas? Check out our Travel Tips or Destinations collections.
The Passporter