Go Where the Fare is Low

Have you ever noticed that world travelers seem to have an easier time affording their trips than people who are going on vacation? Think about it. You\'ve been saving for months, maybe years, for that trip to Hawaii. The guy next door just got back from Singapore, and he\'s headed to Australia in a few weeks. Why is that?

To save money, you need to be flexible. If you have your heart set on a particular destination at a particular time, you\'ve given away your flexibility, and you\'ll pay more for the privilege to get exactly what you want, when you want it. On the other hand, if you just want to travel somewhere new, you have the advantage. You can go wherever the low fares take you.

Just about everyone is familiar with discount fare sites like Expedia, Travelocity, and Priceline. What most people don\'t realize is that the six legacy carriers--United, U.S. Airways, American, Delta, Northwest, and Continental--offer a variety of special fares on a regular basis exclusively through their own Web sites. (To be accurate, Alaska Air is also a legacy carrier, but its specialized market works differently; we\'re only talking about the six listed above.)

One type of discount is the last-minute discount. The biggest cost of flying a plane is the fuel that it takes to get it off the ground and keep it there. Flights don\'t get cancelled because they\'re underbooked, but every empty seat is lost revenue for the airline. It\'s better to have a seat filled than to have one empty, so airlines cut fares on seats that would otherwise be empty to get people in them.

But there\'s a twist. If a flight is popular, then getting a ticket at the last minute costs more than usual. And the airlines don\'t know whether a flight will be popular or not until a few days before it\'s scheduled to leave. So, every week--usually on Tuesdays--airlines publish last-minute discount fares for the week.

Last-minute discounts are always based on origin and destination. To see where you might be able to go, just look up the airport or airports out which you may be able to fly. Be sure to read the terms. Last-minute fare specials are nonrefundable and generally require you to leave and return on specific days (though not at specific times). A typical domestic last-minute fare will require a Saturday departure with return on Sunday or Monday. International last-minute fares may run Thursday to Monday or Friday to Tuesday.

Airlines also offer promotional discounts on rates that they want to draw attention. If an airline just added an exciting new route or hub, a special fare offer is a good way to get the word out. Promotional fares also help airlines fill seats to destinations that are out of season. For instance, United almost always offers winter fare specials to Germany, but warm-weather destinations are discounted in the summer.

The restrictions on promotional fares vary but tend to be more flexible than last-minute fares. There\'s always a requirement to purchase by a certain date and travel within a certain period. Most promotional fares outside of the U.S. have a minimum stay required at the destination (ranging from a Saturday night for Europe to as much as a week for Asian destinations). And, of course, these are nonrefundable fares.

Finding special fares can be a bit time consuming. The specials are published on the airlines\' own Web sites, which means you need to visit each one in turn to see all of the options. You can cut that back a bit by focusing on airlines that have major presence at your local airport, but then you might miss a really good deal.

For travelers looking to see the world, though--especially busy people traveling one weekend at a time--discount fares put your flexibility to its best use, introducing you to new places that you may never have thought worth seeing until you took the opportunity to see them. Whether we\'re talking about fares or destinations, remember that some of the best things in life are relatively obscure.

James C. Samans is the author of Spontaneous Tourism: The Busy Person\'s Guide to Travel. He travels more than 200,000 miles each year by air, rail, road, and sea and holds elite status with United, Continental, and Amtrak.
\r Visit his web site at http://www.spontaneoustourism.com or email him at author@spontaneoustourism.com.

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