How to Book Cheap Flights in 2022

February 4, 2022

How to Book Cheap Flights From Someone Who Has Never Paid More Than $650 For Flights Around The World.

I've said it in a recent post and I'll repeat it - besides my first trip to Australia before I knew about travel hacking, I've never paid more than $650 or a round-trip flight anywhere in the world. Those trips and flight deals have accumulated to over 35 countries…not bad! You can easily do it, too.

If you're reading this in summer 2022, you probably know that flights are CRAZY expensive at the moment. But that doesn't mean you can't book cheap flights.

If you're looking to travel in 2022 but would like to avoid dropping thousands of dollars on airfare alone, here’s everything to know about how to book cheap flights: 

1. Don't be picky 

This goes for every aspect of booking a flight - date, time, airport, etc. The less flexible you are on your travel details, the harder it will be to find good deals. This will be especially true in 2022 as we continue to ease out of a pandemic, with the entire world eager to start booking international trips again. It will make it harder to find good flight deals, but they will still be out there.

Search multiple airports around your departure area, don’t fly direct only, and try leaving on weekdays instead of weekends. When it comes to learning how to book cheap flights, you have to be flexible.

2. Book trips to wherever flights are cheap

So many people restrict themselves solely by the location they have hyped up in their minds. Truth be told, there are a lot of places I still want to go to but haven't because I have yet to find a good flight deal to that location. I book flights when flights are cheap. For example, a group of friends and I were looking at spending the new year in Morrocco, but flight prices continued to hover above 1,000 dollars. While waiting to see if flight prices shifted, tickets to Italy came up for $540. We chose Italy. 

Sometimes it's less about how to book cheap flights and more about finding locations where flights are currently cheap.

3. Flexibility, flexibility, flexibility

I do a range of freelance work, but I also work full-time with an incredible team at Send it Rising Internet Marketing. Our company culture allows employees to work from wherever they are in the world - and one of the few benefits of the pandemic is that more companies are learning that their employees are just as, if not more, productive working remotely than in an office. I will be the first to admit that I am lucky to have a flexible schedule with a company that allows me to chime in to Zoom calls from Scotland, Italy, and even a back of a van. So when it comes to how to find cheap flights, having a flexible schedule does help a lot. 

I do understand; however, not everyone can work remotely. I didn't for years while I still managed to travel worldwide. I would start researching cheap flights and trips six months ahead of schedule. Instead of requesting my time off first and committing to a certain week off, I would wait until I found a good deal, request that time frame off next, and then book the tickets. 

I can't tell you how many times I thought I would sly somewhere Monday - Sunday when it turns out shifting my dates Tuesday - Tuesday saved hundreds of dollars on airfare. Even if you are committed to a certain week shifting dates by a day can sometimes make all the difference.

4. Don't fly during peak times. 

Please repeat after me: Christmas and spring break are the two worst times to book airfare. Even I find myself overpaying during these times. If you want to master how to book cheap flights in 2022, know that traveling when other people aren't helps A LOT. Round-trip tickets from Wyoming to Michigan were $460 around Christmas. Round-trip flights from Wyoming to Milan, Italy, were $500 in November because it is the off-season. A $40 difference for two totally different continents. 

5. Get an airline credit card. 

I have a full guide on how to use airline credit cards and maximize their benefits to book cheap flights (that are basically free). Learning how to book cheap flights also means learning when it is better to use airline miles. I put everything on my airline credit card to gain miles and take advantage of any bonus offers to build points. The second time I flew to Australia I also wanted to visit New Zealand. When I budgeted the airline tickets, it would come to roughly $1,400. I ended up booking the first leg of the flight with air miles and then booking a one-way flight back from New Zealand for $560. 

Read my complete guide to airline credit cards here. 

6. Don't believe rumors about booking on specific days/times. 

Yes, Tuesday was once the best time to book cheap flights, but that was back in 2016.

Times have changed, and airlines have caught on. Everyone knows the rumor that Tuesdays are a good time to book, and airlines are now using that to their advantage. Sometimes I've seen the most expensive flights now pop up on Tuesdays. The lesson here is don't believe booking your flight mid-week will save you dollars like it used to. 

Instead, sign up for price alerts, check destinations daily, and be ready to jump if/when a cheap flight pops up. If it doesn't look like it's going to happen, it might be time to start researching alternate dates, destinations, or airports. 

7. Be willing to drive sometimes. 

Have I driven 6 hours to an airport because the ticket price was 50% less? Yes. Should you always do it? Probably not. 

If a ticket is $1,000 out of my home airport and $500 out of somewhere that is a few hours away, I will always book the $500 option. I will then look at options for park and fly hotels with shuttles where I will be able to leave my car for free for the duration of my trip. However, I only look into options like this in the summer. Winter brings a lot of additional elements, and the last thing you want to be doing is trucking it to Chicago in a blizzard to save a few hundred bucks on your flight.

8. Search with Google Flights or directly with the airline 

Gone are the years of booking through third parties as a way to book cheap flights.

And yes, you can stop clearing your cookies. In recent years, Google Flights has risen to the top of airline booking platforms. A few years ago, I was blogging about outrageous flight savings on websites like Skyscanner and Kiwi, but many of those platforms have declined in reputation due to their poor customer service and complete lack of assistance if your flight becomes interrupted due to cancellation and delays.

Many airlines have started offering the lowest price directly on their website to limit the use of third-party platforms such as Kayak, Orbitz, or Priceline. If you are unsure which airline will have the best prices on your trip, use Google Flights to compare prices between them all. 

9. 24-Hour cancellation trick. 

Did you know most airline tickets are fully refundable within the first 24 hours of booking? When knowing how to book cheap flights, sometimes you have to book on a whim. If you are afraid the price will increase but need to figure out logistics (work, time-off, discussing with the spouse/friend), I say, book now and cancel within 24 hours if needed. Before you do so, make sure you read the cancellation policy with the airline. Sometimes they will want to refund you with flight credits, which is totally fine, but if you would rather have the money refunded directly to your card you will want to ensure that is the case before booking. 

10. Don't forget to add up fees before booking. 

I've made all the mistakes when it comes to booking cheap flights. And one of the more common ones is booking cheap airfare with budget airlines such as Spirit or Frontier, only to be shocked with baggage fees the day of your flight. Most budget airlines (and some basic economy fares) only offer one free personal item with the ticket. Carry-on bags and check bags can cost up to $50 each way on budget airlines. 

When comparing prices online, if a Delta ticket with one carry-on included is $40 more than the Spirit ticket, it will be best to book the Delta flight. In the end, with baggage fees, it will turn out to be the cheaper option.