10 Ways to Get Free (or Almost Free) Airline Tickets
10 Ways to Get Free (or
Almost Free) Airline Tickets
I love to travel. It sounds cliche, but it's true. At one
point, I had been out of the country every summer for six years, including a
six-month stay in Europe that included the ubiquitous backpack. (See also: The
Cheapest Way to Fly to Europe)
Now that I have a family, traveling is a lot more expensive,
and airfare is a huge chunk of that. I haven't given up on future trips,
though, because there are so many ways to get free tickets these days. Below
are some of the ideas that have worked for me or for people I know.
1. Volunteer to Get
Bumped
If you've flown at all,
you probably know this drill. A flight gets overbooked, and so the gate agent
asks for people to give up their seats in exchange for some sort of incentive.
Often, that incentive is a voucher for a free or discounted ticket in the
future. When you volunteer, they will usually book you through on another
flight, so you still have a guaranteed way to get wherever you're going.
2. Rack Up the Miles
Join an airline frequent flyer program, and begin
collecting miles towards a free ticket. It really is as easy as that. And most
airlines are fairly good about helping you redeem your miles, as long as you
follow their rules and plan your travel well in advance. You can maximize miles
earned by choosing the longest route when you do fly, and you can often earn
additional miles by making purchases through the rewards program website, etc.
(See also: 5 Best Sign-up Bonuses for Airline Miles Credit Cards)
3. Complain (Politely!)
Did something go wrong on your last flight? If you write a
polite letter to the airline, you will often receive some sort of compensation
in return. This is sometimes even a voucher for a free flight! Even if you don't
get that big payoff, you will often receive a discount on future tickets or
some sort of free upgrade for your trouble. Most airlines respond positively to
polite complaints. If something went wrong and you can document time, place,
flight number, and personnel involved, you are likely to get something in
exchange for your trouble.
4. Look for Incentives
These days, free airline tickets are offered as incentives
for everything from opening a brokerage account with a certain minimum amount
of money to taking out a mortgage. While you don't want to do these things just
for the tickets, if you're going to do them anyway, you may as well get the
free travel. If you're looking to make some sort of large investment, see if
there's a way to do it that involves free tickets.
5. Redeem Those Credit
Card Rewards
Credit cards have gotten a bad rap when it comes to actually
letting you use your points to get free airline tickets. However, some of them
actually do have quality programs. If you're looking for free tickets and will
be using a credit card anyway, you might as well earn points towards your next
trip. If you tend to fly one airline most of the time, you can also get a
credit card that is strictly for that airline. Airlines that have their own
credit cards include American Airlines, Delta, and United. (See also: The Best
Travel Reward Credit Cards)
6. Get a Job at the
Airline
Airline employees often get discounted flights or get to fly
standby for free. If you do a lot of flying, or would like to, and are open to
a new or a second job, there's no reason not to try and get hired by an
airline. As a bonus, many airlines also offer free standby tickets for
immediate family members, so you can all fly for free together.
7. Ask for Tickets as a
Gift
Ok, so this one may sound like cheating because someone is
still paying for the tickets, but the key is that YOU are not paying for them.
If there's a trip you'd particularly like to take and you're the plan-ahead
type, go ahead and see if you can't get the tickets for Christmas. Maybe all of
your friends or relatives could go in together. Even if they can't come up with
the full price of the tickets you want, asking for contributions can lower your
personal investment significantly.
8. Ask for Miles Rather
Than Money
If you know someone who racks up the frequent flyer miles,
see if they'd be willing to transfer some to you so that you can get a free
ticket. This is particularly useful if the person giving the miles has more
than they will ever use, knows that their miles will expire before they use
them, or wants to give you a significant gift but really doesn't have the
money. Try focusing your efforts on friends or relatives who travel quite
frequently for work.
9. Win a Sweepstakes
There are many contests and sweepstakes out there that offer
free airline tickets to winners. Sure, your chances of winning any single
contest are low, but if you enter them systematically and frequently, your
chances of winning eventually go up. While you can't plan your life around
winning a sweepstakes, the tickets would be a nice surprise whenever your name
comes up.
10.Watch for Airline
Mistakes
A couple months ago, United Airlines made a mistake and
offered a bunch of tickets for very cheap or free. While the mistake was only
live for a couple of minutes, many people took advantage of it. If you frequent
travel forums, though, you can catch these deals because people will post about
them almost as soon as they happen. Sometimes, airlines will try to rescind the
tickets sold during these mistakes, but most often they are honored. If you
want free tickets, this is a great way to find them.
Bonus Standby Tip
Standby is no longer free, unless you or an immediate family
member works for the airline. Flying standby used to be a great way to get free
and/or deeply discounted airline tickets. However, most airlines now require
you to have already purchased a ticket to even be eligible for standby flights,
and many will charge you an additional fee, too. Each airline has a different
policy, so check this out before you try to fly on a standby basis.
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