How to find the best summer travel deals

As the summer travel season heats up, many of are dreaming of a vacation getaway.

Finding a good deal can seem like a daunting task. But with a few smart strategies, you can save big on your next flight.

“We’re seeing that airfare has renormalized,” said Katy Nastro, a travel expert at Going.com. “The average price of airfare year over year is down about 6%, and it’s down about 15% from where we saw that absolute, very hot, sky-high prices in this summer of 2022.”

Nastro tells us there are a couple things travelers should keep in mind while planning their next summer getaway.

“We always say let the deal decide the destination. You can fly again into places like Cancun for $261 round trip from Boston,” Nastro said.

On Going.com, travelers can explore possibilities. By hitting the “let us choose” button – users will be able to pull up airfare deals, show you when they’re available and give you a price history of the flight. Be flexible with travel dates. Airfares are cheaper mid-week and consider flying into or out of nearby airports.

The airline caters to owners who want to avoid putting their four-legged best friends in a crate or carrier when traveling. Gordon Tokumatsu reports for the NBC4 News on May 23, 2024.

“Being flexible on the airports or cities that you’re flying into can afford you some affordability when it comes to overall flight price,” Nastro said.

Consider using fare comparison websites like Google Flights or Skyscanner, which allows users to compare prices across multiple airlines and set up price alerts to monitor fare changes. On Skyscanner, users can choose “explore everywhere” as the destination and flexible dates to find the best deals.

“Often you can fly into a destination and then take a budget flight to get to your intended destination overall,” explained Nastro. “We call this the Greek islands trick, and it is especially beneficial for looking at those pricey flights over to Europe.”

Nastro also recommends mixing and matching airlines: “Don’t just hyper focus on searching for round trips. Also, do your search two one ways and often flying in on one carrier and then out on another can help you save.”

And don’t forget about airline loyalty programs.

“If you do have a stash of points and miles, this is a really great time period to consider [using] even for one leg of your flight or one part of your itinerary. When cash prices are really high, you often get the best return on value in terms of using your points and miles,” said Nastro.

Here’s a lesser-known travel hack: clear a browser’s cookies when searching for flights. Airlines can sometimes track searches and can increase prices based on browsing history.

This is the airline’s first nonstop flight from Logan Airport to Dublin, Ireland.