Beat the Airlines to the Secret Airfare Deal You Want!

Most travelers would agree that airline ticket prices are outrageous. But what many consumers do not know is that there are ways around paying those terribly expensive fees just by learning about airfare secrets. Learning how to save money on airfare isn’t rocket science, but it does make a certain amount of financial sense to not give your hard-earned money to the airlines that are already making millions and millions of dollars within a matter of months.

BURLINGAME, Calif. — You could almost feel sorry for the airlines. Few people see the service on one carrier as being much different than another, so competition is all around fares–how cheaply can I get there?–and most of them lose money. Which means the carriers constantly skirt bankruptcy and have to find all kinds of sneaky ways to make you pay on top of the airfare in the form of fees and surcharges.

Well, if airlines are going to act like they do not really want us there, we should probably not hang around with them any longer than we have to, or fund their customer-hostile fee games. That means traveling with just a carry-on, no matter what the duration of our flights, and the smaller the better, so we can get in and out of the airport like a ninja.

It takes some learning, but there are a few basic lessons–make lists of essentials and do not take more than that–that will get you started. There are also a number of high-tech tools that have sprung up to support ultralight travelers, making things a lot easier than they were just a few years back.

There are certain protocols that airlines use to set price points for flights. Being aware of those and knowing how to circumvent them can save you some serious cash, which can obviously enhance your travel plans. So if you are ready to take advantage of certain airfare secrets and knock hundreds of dollars off your airline ticket then now is the time to do so.