Best Airfare Search Sites
| Service | Price | Functionality | Founded | Employees | Headquarter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google flights | 85.0% | 6.4 | 2011 | 450 | Cambridge, USA |
| Momondo | 93.6% | 4.5 | 2006 | 250 | Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Aviasales | 96.2% | 2.6 | 2007 | 150 | Phuket,Thailand |
| Jetradar | 96.3% | 3.3 | 2012 | 55 | Phuket, Thailand |
| Expedia | 104.4% | 3.1 | 1996 | 20000 | Bellevue, USA |
| Kayak | 107.8% | 8.0 | 2004 | 175 | Stamford, United States |
| Skyscanner | 108.7% | 6.8 | 2002 | 600 | Edinburgh, Scotland, UK |
| Anywayanyday | 107.9% | 2.9 | 2008 | 175 | Moscow, Russia |
Functionality — criterion which indicates flexibility of ticket inquiry where maximum coefficient is 9 points.
Below there are main functions that are considered in ranking:
- Ticket inquiry where the date of flight is flexible within a month
- Flexibility of choice in flight service class and type of passengers
- Flights compatibility function
- Nearby airports, local and national airports
- Daily price review
- How many filter and sort-out items
When a university entrant is going to study in another country, he or she has to think not only about accomodation reservation and the successful passing of entrance examinations, but also about searching for cheap air tickets, since the flight can cost a newly-made student a pretty penny. Not all students have the opportunity to fly from one point of the globe to another without almost any financial losses for their budget, not paying attention to the prices of air tickets. Therefore, in this article we have prepared dozens of practical tips that will help students of foreign universities save on flights and travel around the world.
What are search aggregators?
Days when tickets at the airport ticket offices cost less than on the airline websites on the Internet are gone. Today, real savings can be made with the help of special Internet services designed for cheap air tickets searching and booking. Search engines (aggregators) compare offers of different airlines in the chosen direction and find the most profitable ones. We have collected the top 5 best resources for searching for cheap air tickets that will be useful for students both for profitable home flights and for traveling around the world.
Several useful and tricky strategies about the use of aggregators
Ticket search with the help of aggregators already guarantees 90% of success. But in order to get effective and efficient work done by such search engines, it is necessary to use their opportunities and additional functions skillfully which very few people know about.
A tip: Before you buy air tickets it is worth checking the price for a given direction in several search engines. It is the only way you can find the most profitable option, saving a good amount of money at the same time. Sometimes the difference in price can reach 3-7%, which is quite noticeable for a student.
Aggregator usage rules:
Low Price Calendar
A similar function is suggested by the Aviasales.ru search engine. The aggregator allows you to mark specific dates or search for several months at the same time, to compare prices for specific departure dates with each other, to set a country or a desired city in the departure column, as well as to find out the information about discounts on holidays.
Taking out a subscription (getting information about upcoming discounts and special offers)
This function is especially useful for students, it allows you to catch air tickets at the lowest prices and also to book them. A user no longer has to monitor the change in the tickets cost in the needed direction every day, it is just enough to take out a free subscription to news about price changes. This function is available at Aviasales.ru.
Having a search engine in the mobile device
It is possible to get news about the availability of special offers and discounts directly at your mobile device. The information needed will always be at hand. To do this, all you need is to install applications on your phone that are adapted for Android and IoS, for example, Aviasales, Skyscanner, Tripadvisor, Wego or OzoneTravel.
Creating a complicated (composite) route
Some search engines allow you to plan air routes with three or more segments of the flight, when the city of arrival and of subsequent departure does not coincide. What is the advantage of such routes? The fact is that the cost of a flight with several changes can be less than the cost of a direct flight. If the deadline is not tight and there is a possibility to stay for a couple of hours at the airport, you can use this option.
How to get a discount on the air ticket?
Being a student brings a lot of benefits, especially when you buy air tickets. In order to travel around the world without any obstacles, you should receive one of special student cards — EURO <26 , ISIC , IYTC and ITIC. The simplest way is to draw up ISIC or EURO <26. Discounts are relevant only to university students who are under 30-35 years old.
International student cards can be used both for buying air and railway tickets and for hotels, hostels booking, etc. These cardholders receive good discounts in almost every country all over the world. You can buy this card on the Internet, its price is usually no more than 16 USD and these expenses will be covered later.
There are many advantages of using student cards. Firstly, there are special price rates for tickets for young people suggested by different airlines. Moreover, such a cardholder can return, change or restore a lost ticket without a fine being imposed. Over the last few years, airlines have been offering special tickets with a one-year validity period, that is, the departure date can be changed there if it is necessary. A student cardholder can easily purchase such a ticket at a discount.
7 recommendations for searching and buying cheap air tickets
- It is necessary to buy airplane tickets at certain periods of time: It is desirable to do it several months before the planned departure, if an applicant / a student has such an opportunity, a year or a couple of days before the trip (this method is rather risky). Often a few days before the flight airlines give discounts, but only if there are still many vacant seats, and it does not make any sense for the carrier to rise a price for the plane to fly with a small number of passengers.
- Often buying return tickets is cheaper than buying one-way tickets. This option is suitable for applicants who need to visit another country in order to take entrance examinations and come back to their homeland.
- Departure planning on a weekday. Experience shows that buying a ticket with a flight on a weekend is more expensive than a ticket with a flight on a weekday. The fact is that on weekends and holidays flights are more expensive. The cost of a ticket is also affected by the travel time, for example, morning and night flights are cheaper. The same can be said about tickets booking at night or in the morning (before the start of the working day) — prices are much lower, and the choice of tickets is wider.
- Tickets search for different dates. If a student does not have strictly set deadlines for arrival in the country, in this case it is possible to consider the option of searching for offers at different dates. Often a ticket for nearby dates costs far less (even by 50%).
- Flights provided by lowcosters. Flights provided by budget airlines is the best option for those who are absolutely limited in money. To fly by a low-cost airline is really cheap, sometimes staring prices for flights across Europe are from 1 USD. However, even in this case there is a fly in the ointment. Unlike regular air carriers, lowcosters have many restrictions, for example, the passenger's baggage should be limited only to hand luggage (otherwise you will have to pay a lot more for luggage than for the flight itself), tickets cannot be exchanged or returned, and service on the airline board is not included in the ticket price. The most popular company in Europe is the Wizzair company, it is known for its staggering air tickets prices (flights between some European cities cost about 11 USD).
- Using the browser in incognito mode when searching for air tickets. It may seem ridiculous or absurd that search engines analyze user’s activity, which ultimately leads to higher prices for air tickets. This trend is widespread in the West.
- Do not look for cheap air tickets using Apple items of technology. Many Macbook and Iphone owners fully experienced the insidiousness of search services. The fact is that the search engines determine the manufacturer of the technique used for air tickets search. If a student searches for a suitable flight from his/her iPhone, it is likely that the aggregator will find tickets at a higher cost. This is a very common practice in America and Europe.
When you buy cheap tickets, it is worth remembering that flights on low-cost airlines are accompanied by uncomfortable seats, lack of food on board and other restrictions. It is also important to understand that changes and long waiting hours at the airport make you feel tired and spoil the overall impression of the trip. That is why you should always keep a balance between comfort and saving.
