Why I love Google Flights?

As I start in 2021, I began to search for a flight for a deal. I knew that the flight to Singapore had been canceled due to a global pandemic. That costs me over $750 for October of 2020. I know that mistakes I learned from booking from kayak.com include a free 24-hour cancellation but poor customer service without a refund. Now, I have to resave my travel savings from scratch.

The lecture from the CEO from Thrifty Traveler has a comprehensive finding of cheap flights, unlike OTAs. Let’s look at why Google Trips is a better website to search for flights, especially if you are picky with the airline you want to take.

To the CEO of Thrifty Traveler,

I appreciate your overall virtual lecture from the Travel & Adventure Show about finding a flight deal. I know that booking a flight isn’t a piece of cake, by the way. The Thrifty Traveler Founder had suggested Google Flights, and it has saved me some time to help with the money and time. Google Flights have saved tons of work, including 24-hour cancellations and good customer service. I want to thank you for taking the time to introduce Google Flights to us.

Truly,

United Acela Tse

Thrifty Traveler’s Biblical Rules to book a flight: 

• Always book your flight first
  • Flights can be an inflexible part of the booking and are expensive
  • Order of booking Process (I-Powers Travel Cycle [MADE Component]): Flights -> Hotel/hostels -> Tours/attractions/activities -> Insurance
• Be Flexible with the dates
• Let the cheap flight be your guides
• Never book non-refundable flights
  • Free 24-hour cancellation on all flights if you live in the US – Protected by the US Department of Transportation for full refunds (if you book directly with the airline)
  • Take advantage of the flight deals or promotions
    • Flight deals only last a short period: 3-24 hours
• Positioning flights – e.g., United offer a good deal from San Francisco to Singapore for just $599 – If you live in Philly, opt for a flight to San Francisco to position the flight
  • Investigate mistake fares 
  • There are more flight deals in larger cities but smaller cities can have plentiful flight deals too
  • Fly to a nearby city for a deal 
    • This allows saving more money
  • Book a domestic flight to position
    • Leave 4+ hours buffer between flights
    • Just in case if your flight delayed or misconnection
• Find a good seat on Seatguru.com – seatguru.com owned by TripAdvisor
  • Pick only on a green or white-colored seat 
    • These are the best or recommended seat
  • Don’t select red or yellow colored seats
    • These are the worst seats – near lavatory, limited legroom, window seat without windows
• Don’t clear the cache (browser) cookies
  • Clearing the browser cookies will not make a flight cheaper – it is a hacking myth
  • Remembered that the browser cookies is a comprehensive tracking device
  • Don’t use private or incognito
    • You don’t know if your web browser can track all the websites, including searching your flights
    • Travel and Leisure writer Plautz stated that “All search engines get their prices from the airlines’ systems, and there’s a single pool of seats: For a website to determine it should show you a higher price because you are looking for the same flight before, it would have to incorporate the prices from that single pool of seats plus the last price you saw—and then guess at what price it could set a flight that you’d still be willing to pay” (Plautz, 2017).
• Find the best time to book flights
• Don’t book at the last minute (a month before your flight) – Not price sensitive 
  • 30-45 days before departure (domestic)
    • I-Powers Travel recommended 6 to 12 weeks before departure
  • 60-120 days before departure (international)
    • I-Powers Travel recommended 9 to 15 weeks before departure
• The earliest booking is 11 months from the travel date (not recommended) because the airfare is expensive;
  • Only a few passengers booked for the same flight -> Less supply -> more expensive
• Be proactive when will you book your flight
  • Don’t travel during peak seasons if possible 
  • Avoid summer seasons (north hemisphere) and winter seasons (south hemisphere), and late December (New Year’s)
    • Higher Demands -> higher fare
  • Book the shoulder season (May, September, or October)
    • Off-season (recommend to fly if you travel on a budget)
    • Lower Demands -> lower fare
• Cheapest days to fly are Tuesdays, Wednesday, and Saturday (subject to change)
  • Rules can apply to both domestic and international flights (flexibility) 

Tip: Fares deals can happen at any time

Best website to find flights: Google Flights

Why Google Flights (from Thrifty Traveler Founder’s lecture):

Example: Suppose you are searching for a flight to Singapore. You want to travel on a budget and select the home airport. If you live in Philadelphia, don’t narrow it down to Philadelphia. Opt Newark too to get the best deal, mainly if you are a frequent flyer member who wants to accumulate miles. 

Reason 1: Powerful Calendar

They have a calendar matrix-based on colors and the dates when is the cheapest:

• Green = Cheapest
• Grey = Average/typical price/expensive
• The expensive airfare is not included in the red print

Reason 2: Search Several Destinations

You can search for multiple cities at one time, rather than one particular airport -> Save some hassle

Note: For other OTAs, you are searching only one airport at the same time. e.g., Newark to Singapore. Unlike Google Flights, you are searching for multiple cities at the same time. e.g., Philadelphia and Newark to Singapore. 

Reason 3: Explore Destinations

No idea where you want to go on your next trip? You can pop up on Google Flights Explore. You can also pop out the map to determine where you can fly cheapest.

Subject: The flight prices are subject to change.

Reason 4: Price Tracking

Google Flights have a Traffic light graph to determine if the deal is excellent. 

• Green: Low
• Yellow: Typical
• Red: High

Note that the flight from Newark to Singapore is $737.

Reason 5: Price Alert

The price alert in which Thrifty Traveler CEO has a lecture is an all-in-one pricing tool, including a history of the airfare based on the last track’s date (a trend in average cost changes).

On the other hand, Google Flights have all-in-one benefits when you are looking for a flight without some hassle. If you are looking for your flight for your dream trip, be sure you need to figure out how much you will pay for the price. Remember that the airline ticket can be expensive if you aren’t careful with the planning and budgeting. 

Note: You must have a Gmail account to set up your price alert.

Bonus: Trip Customization

Many flights choose from that best fits the flight itinerary, unlike other OTAs, which generally have limited choices. Thanks to Google Flights, who helps travelers create the ideal flight itinerary that best fits the lifestyles.

The airfare to Singapore was around $737, compared to kayak.com with a total cost of $755. Google Flights is the best flight search.

Reference:

Preutz, J. (2017, February 18) Your Browser’s Incognito Mode Isn’t Saving You Any Money on Airfare. Travel + Leisure. Retrieved from https://www.travelandleisure.com/flight-deals/cheap-flights-incognito-mode