travel on the cheap

I have some favorite travel websites but my favorite today is Kayak.com.  Its a good comparison website which compares all the other travel sites and the prices they offer.  If you pick a price then the site redirects you to the travel site from which it originated and then you take care of the rest of your business on that site.  It is a handy tool but if you are serious about saving money on flights I would also go to the individual airline websites for flights and prices.  Southwest, for example, doesn't go on the travel websites so you can only buy online from them.  Southwest doesn't charge for baggage which is a plus if you are going for any length of time, but you are loaded onto the plane like cattle with no advance seat selection.  Usually you can get good prices and quicker free trips.  You can upgrade to business and get your seat and the crew on southwest are usually entertaining so that's sort of helps.  All the airlines have web only prices but be aware of the times of the flights both leaving and returning and any connections you may have to make and the wait for the next plane.  One hour is an acceptable time to wait for the next plane (just in case the first plane is late) depending on the size of the airport. 3 hours is borderline to too much because there is only so much you can do at an airport especially if you have to drag your 21 inch carry on bag. 

 

Alot of times you can find fare deals sometimes with up grades on airline. Almost every airline out there has a points system for frequent flyer miles.  If you book a flight for your family, and you want frequent flyer points you will only get points for your seat even if you booked and paid for the whole family.  They would each need one of the airlines frequent flyer miles card.  One of the things to be careful of is airlines that offer "special deals"  usually cheap fares to larger cities.  Make sure you understand if its one way or return (simple right?) if you get to choose your seats, if you can refund the ticket or  change the reservation.  Basically its like buying a car, make sure that they include the steering wheel and the tires in the purchase.