One of the best ways to save money on travel is to plan as far ahead as possible. However, sometimes a last minute deal will be even better, as airlines and hotels scramble to get a full booking. Just to make sure those seats don’t go empty, an airline will drastically reduce the cost of airfare at the last minute. A hotel will do the same in order to fill up all the rooms. If you’re on a budget, you might want to look into last minute vacation deals.
Sometimes you can get a last minute deal on a vacation package that includes airfare and a hotel room both, depending on the time of year and location. If your destination is already set in stone, use maps and tools to help you compare fees at all the airports near the city, and not just the main one.
You can make your search for travel deals as flexible or as specific as you want. If you’re not picky, just browse through all of the current deals to find out what all is available.
If you don’t mind flying at undesirable hours, you can especially get a discount on airfare. Red eye flights are almost always cheaper as they tend to have more unfilled seats than midday flights. The day on which you travel plays a role in the cost of airfare as well, with the cheapest days to fly being Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Some travel aggregation sites offer a list of last-minute hotel and airfare deals that you can easily sort through by browsing brands, prices, cities, airlines, dates, etc. Another easy way to keep up with all of the latest last minute flight deals is to follow the various airlines’ official Twitter accounts. They will Tweet the offers as soon as the prices go down.
Airfare and Cruise Considerations With Last Minute Vacation Deals
If airfare isn’t a concern for you and you are primarily interested in booking a cheap hotel room, there is always a hotel or two in every city that offers a last minute discount.
Cruise lines are also notorious for last minute vacation deals, as they don’t want the ships to set out on a voyage without being at full capacity. Depending on the season, cruise line, and number of nights, you can save more than 50% on a cruise.
Be sure to use apps that will notify you of all of the daily or weekly last minute vacation deals. You can even set the specifics and have the alerts sent straight to your phone.
The best place by far to find last minute vacation deals is Travelocity. This leading travel deals site helps you find everything from daily deals to discount luxury vacations. There are a variety of search tools, apps, and mobile coupons offered by Travelocity.