Part 1, Cheap airfares for your family holidays

Finding effective ways to find cheap flights for your overseas family holidays, can seem frustrating and time consuming but with a few pointers you can often find yourself saving a few hundred dollars on each ticket.

Taking the family on holiday by air can be a very expensive exercise and when the numbers stack up the travel budget can feel stretched before even packing your luggage. I have outlined five handy hints to keep you on course to help locate the right priced ticket to ensure you find the best cheap family holidays and manage the family travel budget.

Five tips to securing a better deal for your family holidays

1. Planning ahead will save you time in the and money in the long run.
2. Be flexible with your travel dates, to save hundreds of dollars on flights
3. Avoid travelling during peak travel seasons, look for shoulder season fares and specials
4. Compare airlines – mix and match airlines if need be.
5. Get to know the airline schedules

1. Planning ahead will save you

If you are planning on taking an international flight be sure to plan and book ahead, cheap tickets sell fast use an online booking search engine such as www.yapta.com or www.wego.com we have recently been tracking some long haul flights and have noticed that the best time to book is between 6 to 4 months out from your flight. So give your self plenty of time to start thinking an planning.

Use search terms such as: “tips for planning family holidays”

2. Be flexible with your travel dates

Once you have selected the dates of your intended departure date run a check of fares 3 to 5 days either side. Sometimes a fare either side or even earlier or later on the departure date could save you hundreds of dollars.

Use search terms such as: “best days for booking flights”

3. Avoid travelling during peak travel seasons

Better said then done especially if your travelling with children during school holiday periods, however if you can try booking flights on the shoulder of the seasons, also keep your eye out for deals approx 4 months out targeting shoulder season. Inside knowledge: Flights and Hotels that are having troubles filling during the period are known to drop bargains in the market place to fill gaps and hopefully spur on demand.

Use search terms such as: “public holidays, school holidays 2008, public holidays 2009, travel shoulder periods”

4. Compare fares with different airlines – Mix ‘n’ Match

If travelling domestically for your families holidays you have the potential to save money by flying one airline on your departing flight and selecting a different airline on your return journey. This is known as ‘Mix ‘n’ Match’ flight fares. The same principle can be applied to searching out international flights for your family holidays, there are plenty of great travel sites that can assist, if you don’t have the time to be afraid to use travel agent to assist in this research like flightcentre travel agency or trailfinders.

Also, compare airlines on one easy to view screen when travelling internationally. Webjet’s unique technology makes these tasks simple and when you couple this with the Deal Finder, we’ve got you covered.

Use search terms such as: “compare airline fares”

The following 3 sites I can recommended, they handle fare searching and the comparing side for the best price airfare very well.

• www.wego.com
• www.yapta.com
• www.webjet.com.au

5. Check the airline schedules

Once you have established your departure dates, best to check your preferred airlines schedule as you will often find that they do not fly every day of the week, and it is often these carriers that have the cheaper fares. Don’t be afraid to look for routings through other airports, as sometimes you can find an airfare which will cover a domestic fare to get you out of another port. It’s useful to check airline schedules to ensure you are selecting the correct departure and return days.

Use search terms such as: “airline schedules and timetables”
In my next post I’ll uncover 5 more handy tips to assist with securing fares and accommodation when looking for cheap family holidays. If you have have any tips why not share them with the readers, or know of any great sites you like to use for searching the best air fares drop them in the comments field below.