A TRAVEL expert has revealed the big mistake everyone makes when booking their flights – and it can cost you some serious money.
Natasha Gabrielle likes to travel a lot in her holiday time, particularly overseas, but also needs to keep an eye on what she spends and so is keen to get the best possible deal.
GettyA travel expert advises to use a flight price comparison tool before booking your tickets, Natasha not pictured (file photo)[/caption]
She uses flight deals in order to stay within her budget and before actually making flight reservations she uses a free tool to compare airfares.
Natasha, writing for Yahoo!, said: “When planning a trip, you shouldn’t visit your favourite airline’s website until you’re ready to buy your tickets.
“Most airline websites lack powerful price comparison tools.
“You could spend much more than necessary if you purchase a ticket without doing thorough research.”
So she uses an airfare price comparison tool to hunt down the best deal, with Google Flights being one of her favourites to use.
Natasha says she likes this one as it has a “user-friendly interface and has many search filters”.
She added: “Searching for airfare and comparing prices across multiple airlines is a breeze when using this tool.”
One of her favourite features Google Flights offer is the ability to compare airfare prices by date.
Having searched for her preferred travel dates, Natasha can pick the price graph or dates grid to determine whether flying on different dates could save her money.
This means that she can plan her next trip around when airfare costs are cheaper.
However, to be able to do this, you need to have the flexibility to fly whenever, while many people may not have this luxury.
Once you have found a flight that suits your budget, you can then book directly with the airline.
Natasha says that by adjusting your travel dates, or by using a different airline you can make “major savings”.
You can then put those savings towards your holiday budget, giving you more money to spend once you’re at your destination.
Natasha also advises that instead of starting your airfare search with a particular place in mind, you may want to compare prices for various destinations around the world.
All you have to do is put in your departure city and then select “anywhere” for your arrival.
This allows you to compare prices for multiple destinations so you can pick the cheapest flights for your preferred travel dates.
So that way, you might start to consider jetting off to somewhere you hadn’t thought of, especially if flights are at rock bottom prices.
Elsewhere, a woman has revealed her sneaky trick to finding cheap flights – but it comes with a huge risk.
Meanwhile, a money expert revealed how the day you book and the day you fly can impact how expensive your flights are.
And airline workers explained the best way to get cheap flights – and even revealed that the day you book makes a difference.
GettyNatasha, not pictured, also advises to search a number of destinations to get the best possible price on flights (stock image)[/caption]