Saving on airfare

ClosetDisMom

Mouseketeer
Joined
Aug 9, 2017
Our next trip will be next July. When we went in 2016, we were lucky enough to stumble on Southwest's $49 one way airfare sale and got all four tickets at under $500 round trip. I cannot remember when Southwest runs those sales and tried doing a ransoms google search. Does anyone here know? Is it in February or January?
 
With our experience, there isn't too much of a prediction with SW's 72 hour sales. I've seen them around this time of year though- Octoberish.
The positive thing about booking with Southwest is that if you find a lower fare after you've booked, they will give you a refund for the difference- or so we have experienced.
You might also check with flying into Tampa and then renting a one-way car rental to Orlando. You may save money doing that if you can't find an economical fare for Orlando.
 
Thanks, Momee, at least I don't feel crazy. I kept thinking that there must be a pattern for when they run the sales. Sanity regained!
 


Also, if you have any credit cards that earn points too. Especially if you are a huge shopper, either shop a lot or do alot of home-improvements. Certain cards will earn you flying mileage....So best of both worlds. :)
 
I signed up for Airfare Watchdog's newsletter and alerts myself. Have it set to notify me of flights to Orlando and Orange County when they go on sale or drop below a certain price. Is a great tool!
 
I signed up for Airfare Watchdog's newsletter and alerts myself. Have it set to notify me of flights to Orlando and Orange County when they go on sale or drop below a certain price. Is a great tool!

thejaxx - thanks for the tip! I signed up and already got some notifications - it's not for my travel date range... yet. But, it's a great start!
 


The positive thing about booking with Southwest is that if you find a lower fare after you've booked, they will give you a refund for the difference- or so we have experienced.

Just caution that if you book the wanna get away fare, the refund only goes as a credit your southwest account and must be used for completed travel within a year from the date of initial booking. It's pretty limited so unless you travel frequently, the refund may go to waste.
 
Do you have a Target Red Card? If so, you can buy Southwest gift cards at the store for 5% off. Every little bit helps.
 
Are you anywhere near a Frontier Airlines airport? I know they nickel/dime everything and luggage is $30/each way so it is only really worthwhile if you can travel super light and pay 1 luggage for every 2 people.
For SWA, I believe sales often start on Tues/Wed for a couple days every week. I don't recall how early they release July flights though (they're upto early June now) so I assume they'll be released in another month or so. Do you get their emails?
Also, if you have a Google account, I like to track flights for potential trips on Google Flights (google.com/flights).
 
We mainly fly Frontier to Orlando now. In December all 5 of us flew for $500RT. That included paying to pick our seats, 5 free personal items and one large checked bag. If you don't need a lot of luggage (and sometimes even if you do) it can save a ton. I'm flying them again next month for $60RT no checked bags this time just using my Vera Bradley Weekender bags free under the seat.
 
We mainly fly Frontier to Orlando now. In December all 5 of us flew for $500RT. That included paying to pick our seats, 5 free personal items and one large checked bag. If you don't need a lot of luggage (and sometimes even if you do) it can save a ton. I'm flying them again next month for $60RT no checked bags this time just using my Vera Bradley Weekender bags free under the seat.
I'm such a newbie. Months ago, I thought ~$85 one way Frontier was "cheap", so I bought the outbound only. (Our return dates weren't bookable/available yet). Then it went to $35 for the return. I waffled for an hour, cancelled my SWA flight home (1 stop) to buy the Frontier nonstop home. I was thrilled!
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!






Top