8 Travel Hacks to Save Money on Flights with Skyscanner.net

Skyscanner hacks to get cheap flights

The best way to save money with Skyscanner.net is obviously to use a combination of these Travel Hacks!  If you really want to save money on flights, it only takes a bit of work.  First search for where you are to where you want to go (and when) to get a baseline.  That way you can see how much money you saved, WEEE!

 1.  Search Incognito

These sneaky airlines track “supply and demand.”  Make sure you are searching incognito, otherwise next time you look and decide to commit, you might see a price jump!

2.  Search your city to “Everywhere!”

This way is great to see “Where can I fly the cheapest?” when you get a wild hair!  This option is especially great to save money if you don’t have a particular destination in mind.  I found out that I had a 5 day break, and I did a search and found a $270 Round Trip ticket from Atlanta to Colombia!   My flight was cancelled because of Hurricane Matthew though 🙁

If you do have a particular destination in mind, still search Everywhere.  Then you’ll be able to see places that are closer to your destination and see if you can fly there, and then catch a cheaper flight to your real destination.  Bonus… stopover!

For Example:  I needed to get home after a whirlwind 9-week European tour!  I was in Spain and wanted to get home!

 

So I saved money, and I also added on Portugal, met a lovely couch surfer, saw the supposed last place of the Holy Grail, and a buddy in Boston!   Winner winner chicken dinner.

3.  Use Layovers to your advantage!

When I do a search and see a layover, sometimes it’s easier/cheaper to book them as two separate legs.

For example:  I wanted to get to Moscow for the Trans-Siberian Express.  The price very expensive, but there was a long layover in Toronto.  You don’t have to do as many stops as I did, but I had people to see on my way out there!  And free lodging, what what!

 

Savings of 66%  Definitely worth the time to search to save money!

4.  Reverse Engineer It!

This works great in conjunction with the second tip.  Wherever you want to go, put that in your Departure City/Country and put Everywhere as your destination.  If you have Tip 2 in one window and this tip in another window, you can find the common denominator.

For example:  I needed to get to Istanbul for an exciting trip!

5.  Sometimes Round Trip is cheaper than One Way

I think it’s well known that it’s better to get a RT ticket rather than two OWs.  But seriously, sometimes you can buy the Round Trip ticket and just use the first portion.  Make sure the first leg is the one you actually need. If you don’t use the first leg, the second leg is automatically cancelled.   I’ve personally never done this, however.  I was mapping out a trip last year, and was planning on doing it. I ended up going to Cambodia on an awesome tour instead.  But it is also possible to get RT  and just get those short/cheap flights to and from that place as well.

6.  Search by Month or even Year!

This one is really great if you don’t really have any restrictions.  Since I’m a teacher, I can’t take any ol’ time off (Don’t Cry for me….. Argentina…), so I don’t use the year option often, but I bet you could!  I do use the month option a lot though!  It lets me see when the cheapest day is.  Then all I have to do is factor in whether the price difference is worth possible lodging costs or not.

7.  Switch it up with different airlines!

This is where rewards come in handy, but you could also just try checking other airlines.

For example:

I found that flight by doing United States to Cambodia to find cheapest flight out there, and then used my Southwest card to get me to New York!  They ended up being different airports, but a $12 shuttle fixed that.

8.  Compare *just* to be sure

I would say 19/20 times, Skyscanner.net is the cheapest option, but it doesn’t hurt to double check.  I’ve used the other sites as well, but since my Skyscanner hacks pretty much always win, I kinda let them all go by the wayside.  They don’t have flexible search options, and some can open a 1,000 pop up windows.  The other two sites I’d say are worth a double check are Google Flights and Kayak. Both are pretty similar to Skyscanner, but I prefer my Skyscanner 😀

~~**Possible Warning**~~

 If you’re taking multiple flights, don’t forget to factor in possible baggage costs. These super cheap fares are often  on budget airlines.  Before you commit to the flights you’re thinking about, go to the airline’s website and check on baggage.  But if you’re a carry-on sort of person, do your thang!  Just make sure it fits size requirements!

Pin this if you want to save for later!

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/669699407059248906/

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/669699407058571577/

Get out there and Scan Those Skies and practice your skyscanner hacks!! Do you have other tips and tricks?  Comment below!