Top Airfare Sites: All Resources Needed For a Smooth & Cheap Flight
Let’s face it, looking for flights is sometimes the hardest part of traveling. Most of us want to be able to get away for the weekend, but the thought of having to find the best prices on flights stops us. The amount of things that you “need” to know can fill an entire guidebook- things like where the hub for each airline is, or what’s the best way to find great seats.
Our aim here is to be your one stop shop, and help you to save money on flights so you can spend your resources on the things that matter.
So, in order to save you time and effort, we’ve pulled together a list of flight booking sites and more. It’s everything you need to know about booking flights to get you planning and out the door for your next escape!
You already know all the tricks on how to find those insanely cheap flights. Now bookmark this complete list of all the resources you need and you’re on your way.
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General Airline Search Engines
Yes, there are a ton of flight search engines, and no you don’t need to check each one. There’s been a ton of research on how, when and where to track down the best flights. At this point, it’s somewhat of a science – one that can keep you occupied for days. Skip all the research and go directly to some of the most popular flight booking sites that have proven their worth.
Skyscanner – general search flights, hotels, cars. Often tipped as cheapest search engine for flights. Can search for cheapest month and shows price grid. Leave the destination blank and it ranks cheapest destinations.
Kayak – general search flights, hotels, cars. Perfect for flexible date searches and/or multiple destinations. Shows price trend to advice whether to book now or wait.
Rome2Rio – specializing in complicated itineraries by comparing flights, trains (Europe, India, China), driving, and ferries
Round the World Flights – specializing in around-the-world flights
Vayama – general search for flights, hotels, cars, transfer
Budget Airline Search Engines
Specially targeted on budget trips, these websites can help out your wallet.
Adioso – specializes in spontaneous and budget travel; searches low-cost airline
Expedia – complete site on flights, hotels, cars, cruises and activities; best in class
Momondo – meta-searches of cheap flights, hotels and cars
WhichBudget – simple site, specializes in low-cost airlines; enables search by country and airport
Best Flight Trackers
Is your next flight on schedule? Do you have a few unforeseen hours of peace before collecting your mother-in-law at the airport? Find out with these flight trackers, set up alerts and you’ll have all the information you need.
FlightAware – live flight tracking
FlightStats – track by flight number, airport, route; best in class with optional push notifications
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Seat Finders
These websites can’t tell you if your red-eye has a screaming baby in the same aisle, but they’re a great resource to check if your seat isn’t right next to the toilet, how the leg space is or if you can charge your phone. Make sure you get the best seat in the house.
SeatGuru – the complete source for seat maps includes tips and info on the differences per class.
SeatExpert – a simple way to quickly browse seat maps per airline
Airline Hubs
We could write an entire book on the complicated system behind cheap air travel, but a few great tips might be all you need. So why should airline hubs matter to you?
Knowing where there’s a hub in reasonable distance and which airline flies here, is an important key to finding the cheapest flight. Track down one near you (or on-route) and aim your flight search around that to get great deals. Especially large airports that are used by several airlines as their main hub can be a steal – companies might try to out-do each other and you can score the best deal.
For instance, are you looking to fly from Australia to Europe? See if a detour via Dubai might make it worth your while. A little puzzling using your favorite search engine can save you hundreds of dollars.
Airline | Hub(s) |
---|---|
Aer Lingus | Dublin, Shannon, Cork, Belfast |
AirAsia | Kuala Lumpur, multiple other Malaysian cities |
AirBaltic | Riga (Latvia), Talinn (Estonia), Vilnius (Lithuania) |
American Airlines | Dallas/Fort Worth, multiple other American cities |
Blue Air | Bucharest, multiple Romanian cities |
Brussels Airlines | Brussels |
CityJet | London City Airport, Paris, Helsinki, Brussels |
Condor | Multiple German cities |
Delta | Atlanta, New York, Cincinnati, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Salt Lake City, Paris, Amsterdam, Tokyo |
easyJet | London, Milan, Berlin, Paris, Liverpool, Geneva, Basel, Nice, Toulouse, Edinburgh, Madrid, and more |
Emirates | Dubai |
Flybe | Manchester, Newquay, Exeter, Southampton, London (southern England); Jersey, Guernsey (Channel Islands) |
Germanwings | Cologne, multiple other German cities |
Helvetic Airways | Zürich, Bern |
Icelandair | Reykjavik |
Jet2 | Multiple British cities |
Jetstar Airways | Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland, Cairns, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Singapore |
KLM | Amsterdam |
Lufthansa | Frankfurt, Munich |
Norwegian | Oslo, Bergen, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Stockholm, Alicante, Barcelona, and London |
Pegasus Airlines | Istanbul, Antalya (Turkey) |
Qantas | Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane |
Ryanair | London, Dublin, multiple other cities |
Singapore Airlines | Singapore |
SmartWings | Prague, Brno, Ostrava (Czech Republic), Budapest |
Transavia | Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Rotterdam |
TUIfly | Multiple cities in The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Scandinavia, UK and France |
Vueling | Barcelona, Rome |
Widerøe | Oslo, multiple other Norwegian cities |
Wizz Air | Budapest and many other Eastern European cities |
XL Airways | Paris |
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