Sometimes you need to go somewhere in a hurry, and you don't want to break the bank to do it. Or maybe you just procrastinated, and now you don't want to pay a premium just because you waited. The good news is that you have tools and options to help you score a great deal at the last second. Here are some of the best.
Basic Tips
- Use Incognito Mode
Most travel search engines use cookies to track your habits. This isn't insidious. Nearly every website uses cookies. But in this case, these cookies can tell if you're looking at the same trip more than once, and jack the price up over time. It might not be by very much, admittedly, but every little bit helps when you're traveling, and opening an incognito/private mode tab is easy enough that you may as well play it safe. - Stay Up to Date on Airlines
Twitter is a surprisingly helpful resource for finding cheap flights. JetBlue tweets cheap last-minute fares every Tuesday, and Airfare Watchdog keeps a steady stream of good deals going.
Online Tools
- Priceline
Priceline has several options for bargain-hunters, but one of the most appealing is the "Name Your Own Price" page. You put in what you're willing to pay to book a flight, hotel, or rental car, and they try to get you there for that price. They recommend that you bid at about 50-60% of the going rate, but sometimes you can be surprised. The closer you get to your travel deadline, the more desperate planes and hotels are to fill any unused space. Nobody wants to give away an airplane seat for less than what it's worth, but they'd rather do that than use jet fuel to fly empty seats around.
You may also want to check out the "express deals" available from Priceline's homepage. We have actually encountered lower prices on express deals than what an airline was willing to accept under "Name your own price." The nice thing about living in the modern age is that you can pull up two tabs and figure out what the best deal is before you drop the money. - Hopper
Hopper has a Flight Explorer that lets you track down the cheapest flights out of your city to anywhere, over the next month. - Kayak
Kayak has a similar deal to the Hopper Flight Explorer, but with a helpful map layout. And of course, Kayak, in general, is one of the most helpful search engines around for making travel bookings - Hotwire
If you don't mind flying blind, you can get good discounts through Hotwire, but you don't know which car company, hotel, or airline you've booked until after you've paid.
Apps
- Flightboard
FlightBoard gives you info on flights from over 3,000 airports in one app—useful if your procrastination extends to "leaving for the airport." Of course, Google will give you flight results right on the page, but if you're pressed for time, having it right there in an app can save precious seconds. - Get the Flight Out
If you're looking for day-of flights, Hopper's Get the Flight Out app has good deals on same-day flights, though it's worth nothing that many of those deals are still more expensive than booking in advance, per this Map Happy review. - Last Minute Travel
Other good apps include Last Minute Travel, which lets you quickly find and book a last-minute trip. It sort of throws everything at you at once, but you can filter out what you don't need pretty easily. - Nextflight
You can't book directly from the NextFlight app, but you can see available flights for over 1,200 airlines for the next two days, which lets you play travel agent and get where you're going fast and on a budget. - Hotel Tonight
Hotel Tonight is for...well, for when you need a hotel tonight. You can book hotels anywhere from day-of to a week in advance, taking advantage of hotels that need vacancies filled last-minute and discovering unique and exciting hotels. The list has been curated personally by the app's creators, and you can book as late as 2 a.m., which can come in handy if your plans suddenly go astray.
(featured image via Bigstock)
