My travel plans this year took a hit, but before my unexpected (and uninsured) surgery I was on a roll. My dream list of places to see, experience, and explore was getting crossed off quicker than I had anticipated. It was as if, I was meant to see the world. Actually, that's baloney.
If I was being completely honest, it was because I stuck to my budgets, gave up luxuries like weekly Sephora trips, and resolved to spend less to see more. At the same time, I knew from prior experiences that traveling on a budget was possible. If anything, the most costly piece of any trip would be the airline ticket.
Following that thought, I asked myself, can I fly even cheaper? Considering the offseasons, sales, and abundance of knowledge on the net - that answer was a resounding yes. Thank you technology.
Although my travels took a backseat last year, next year is looking a little more jetlagged thanks to my favorite flight price trackers:
Hopper
I found out about this app at the beginning of the year and am obsessed. This free app shares a calendar overview on flight prices with predictions for set dates. From there you have the option to set up an alert, essentially guiding you to the best bargain. So far, I've used it once (for my Oregon rendezvous) and saved close to $200 on my ticket. The app takes the guesswork out of sales, analyzing billions of flights each day and letting you know when to purchase before prices spike up.
Skyscanner
I first utilized this app to check on my ex-bae's arriving flights. It helped in determining just how much time I had to clean a messy apartment. Then I started to explore the app more. Each day they curate the best deals abroad and nationwide. Similar to Hopper, they also allow for price alerts and for airlines, airports, and dates to be compared. I consider it to be the grown up version of Hopper and one I'll be using for an upcoming spontaneous trip.
Google Flights
Before boarding the plane, even purchasing a ticket, comes the planning stage. This is where I excel the most. Instead of digging through travel sites, like tripadvisor.com, on when to fly you can instead plug in dates or look at their calendar which will list out fares. This is an awesome tool if your travel dates are flexible. You can click around on your desktop but I recommend downloading the app and turning the alerts on. There's also an explore tab for the spontaneous traveler.
Let me know if there are travel apps or hacks you use to cure wanderlust in the comments below.
