So you have finally decided upon a location for your vacation. Now we need to book the airfare! I have used plenty of different services both domestically and internationally and each have their own benefits and downfalls.

Domestically:

Kayak.com – A travel aggregator… meaning Kayak.com searches through 140+ other travel sites in order to find the best deal. Their revenue model is pay per click so they receive compensation based on people finding deals through their site, clicking on them, and booking through the source website. Interestingly enough, Kayak.com was founded by the ex-founders of Orbitz, Expedia, and Travelocity.

Sidestep.com – Also a travel aggregator but searches through 200+ travel sites! Sidestep was acquired by Kayak but the sites still run independently and functions a little differently. You can expect slightly different results.

StudentUniverse.com – I used Student Universe a few times when I was a student. You must prove that you are a student to get the discount rates and they have limited availability so don’t expect too many locations. However, you can find some pretty good deals. The home page lists some recent good deals like New York to Paris for $265 RT.

Traditional Discount Search Engines like Orbitz, Expedia, Travelocity, and Priceline still continue to offer very competitive pricing with frequent specials (e.g. book 2 people and get $50 off and the like). You can also expect better customer service, usually.

Southwest does not share their fares with any of these search tools, so you should check their site as well. I would actually go and just check each airliner’s website to see if they have any special deals. I have seen prices directly from the airline at a $1-$8 discount to the discount search engines… so its worth it to check the airline’s site out before purchasing.

Internationally:

Ryanair.com – UK based value airline. Ryanair has amassed itself as one of the largest airlines in the world delivering a value offering consistently. They are very competitive and have service in Western Europe, Central Europe, Eastern Europe, and North Africa. They are hubbed mostly in Western Europe.

EasyJet.com – Very similar to Ryanair.com. Also UK based but flies to the main airports rather than secondary airports often times.

WizzAir.com – Hungarian based value airline. Most of their hubs are based in Central and Eastern Europe but they offer service to Western Europe as well.

SkyScanner.net – Originally Sky Scanner only sifted through the budget airlines prices. However, Sky Scanner has continuously added features and now also searches through major airlines. There is also a domestic option, but I have never used it. With all the options above for the domestic section, I will try using this out domestically in the near future, though. Since this is an aggregator, your travel does not have to be Euro based as is the case with the value airlines above.

Dohop.com – Another site which I have not used but it has gained a good bit of ground in the international market. It searches 660 airlines and has a pretty decent layout. I will also look into using this one in the future. Since this is an aggregator, your travel does not have to be Euro based as is the case with the value airlines above.

Tips for Booking:

• A lot of the sites mentioned above work both domestically and internationally. However, I have had better experience using them in the areas which I classified them. You may have a different experience!
• Check nearby airports. Searching between Dulles (IAD) right outside Washington DC and Baltimore-Washington (BWI) can yield incredible price differences. And they are within 45 minutes driving!
• If you have time to spare, search for prices often. Airlines have an impressive system of price discrimination based on the day, the time of day, the capacity, and many other factors. The prices fluctuate a lot.
• If you can be flexible, check the boxes that give you the option. Sometimes altering your itinerary by a day or two can save you hundred!
• Booking too far out can raise your prices as the airlines struggle to estimate their costs so far out. Booking too close can raise your price as airlines are nearing capacity.
• Sometimes 2 one-way flights is cheaper than 1 round-trip flight… check it out!
• If you travel often, use a credit card that gets you miles.

Any sites you use that I missed?