How to Find the Best Air Fare Prices

Suffering from wanderlust, but don't want to pay the hefty airline travel costs? Flights are often the most expensive part of any vacation, and with the price of airfare expected to increase over the next year due to rising fuel and labor costs, that makes finding affordable flights within your budget all the more important! Want to know how to travel without breaking the bank? Follow these money-saving strategies to find the cheapest plane tickets leaving from Albany International Airport for your next trip!

Book Flights In Advance

As the old saying goes, the early bird gets the worm, and in this case "the worm" is cheap airfare. A while back, airline executives figured out that travelers tend to book flights last minute and have the least flexibility. So to take advantage of this, the closer you are to your flight date, the more airlines charge you. Want to beat the system? Try booking your plane tickets at least one month in advance to find better rates. Have more time? Booking three months or more in advance yields the best deal.

Search Multiple Airlines

Just like with any major purchase, it pays to shop around. The same flight from Albany to Chicago's O'Hare International Airport can vary in price drastically depending on the airline you choose. Utilize an airfare search engine like Kayak or Priceline to help you find the cheapest flight among a number of airlines. You can also do this yourself by going to Albany Airport's homepage that gives you access to the 10 airlines that fly out of it and links to their individual websites for direct booking.

Be Flexible with Travel Days

It comes as no surprise that traveling mid-week is typically cheaper than weekend travel; with less people flying out mid-week, air fare is less in demand and therefore less expensive. If you have the flexibility, forgo a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday flight for weekday flight, resulting in dramatically lower fares. Flights on Tuesday and Wednesday tend to be the cheapest (and as an added bonus, airports are less empty too. That means an open seat at the airport bar!)

Be Willing to Wake Up Early (or Sleep on the Plane)

Just like with the days of the week, traveling during unpopular times of the day (or night) can help you save on airfare. Early morning and late night flights, while not the most fun, can have a big impact on your travel bill. Overnight flights known as red-eyes are especially convenient for travelers who don't want to waste a day traveling simply sleep during the night flight, so when you wake up, you arrive at your destination in the morning fully refreshed to tackle the day!

Shop in Privacy

Have you ever noticed you'll find a cheap flight one night, but when you go to book it the next day it's magically jumped in price? Your eyes aren't playing tricks on you this website hack is a common practice done by airline companies in an attempt to pressure passengers into booking flights. Airlines do this by tracking your browser's cookies. For this reason, always search for flights in a private browsing page, also known as an incognito window. Your cookies are reset every new private browsing session, so you the next time you go to a travel booking site, it's like you're seeing it for the first time.

Factor in Ancillary Fees

Buyers beware! A budget-conscious traveler must be mindful of hidden travel fees.

Thinking your saving a pretty penny by choosing a budget airline? Think again. Many budget airlines charge extra for common services that are free on larger airlines' things like checking baggage, using a credit card, and even printing a boarding pass! Likewise, many of the budget airlines often fly into non-popular airports miles away from your intended destination to cut costs. The fees associated with renting a car or hailing a taxi to reach your destination may end up actually charging you more in the long run.

What's the most overlooked travel fee?

Airport parking! Using airport parking cannot only be a hassle, but an unforeseen expense to your travel bill. Departing from Albany International Airport? Albany Park Ride & Fly offers travelers premium valet parking at value prices. Our Albany Airport parking rates are competitive and include complimentary services such as 24/7 airport shuttle service and curb-to-curb assistance with your luggage. Come try us for your next flight!