Find Cheap Flights Last-Minute

Looking for cheap flights last-minute? Want to avoid the seasonal throng of tourists? Love finding unique flight deals where others may spend a fortune? You can save money and visit the gorgeous destinations you love with these methods.

A last-minute trip can be a thrill and a long-lasting memory, but it doesn’t need to cost the world. 

Whether you need to catch an unplanned flight out of necessity or you want to add a spark of spontaneity to your travel plans, you can save money while you experience the world. And you don’t need to be a member of any special memberships or discount programs! 

How To Search For Cheap Flights Last-Minute

What’s better than a trip away to a beautiful country? That’s right, a CHEAP trip away to a beautiful country. 

Even for the times when you just need to find a budget-friendly flight as soon as possible, you don’t need to be at the mercy of airline prices. So, avoid the inflated prices, open up Skyscanner on your browser, and use these pro methods to find the best prices for last-minute flights.

Extend Your Airport Range

For those tasty low-price flights, consider your airports!

When you search online for flights to your chosen destination, check the box that says which airport you’d like to depart from. It can become a habit to choose flights departing from your hometown or just the most conveniently located airport at the time.

But if you select ‘add nearby airports’ instead, you open a whole other world of airlines, itineraries and pricing. Remember, do this for both your departure and arrival cities for the best possible deal.

Make It A One-Way Ticket

It might seem like the smartest choice to book a round-trip ticket, meaning you simultaneously book your departing and return flights. The sneaky part of this is that those two flights aren’t always the best priced, they’re just the flights the airlines want you to purchase together. 

Instead, use the clever trick of searching for and booking your departing and returning tickets separately. Don’t be afraid to mix and match airlines and departing times. By booking ‘one-way’ tickets you can save hundreds, especially if you combine this method with the very last tip in this list.

Call Up The Travel Agents

Did you know travel agents do actually have good deals sometimes? I know, it sounds far-fetched, but it’s true when it comes to last-minute flights.

Because travel agents deals are usually time sensitive - and it benefits them to fill seats rather than leave them empty. That means if you give them a call close to the date you want to leave, they might be able to give you special discounts or cheaper deals. 

If a package holiday company has lots of cancellations, they’ll likely be eager to give you some hefty discounts. It’s worth doing this for same-day deals too, if you don’t mind truly leaving it to the very last minute (eep).

Wait Until The Last Minute

Ok, it sounds scary but you can play chicken with the flight prices. Leaving it until the very last day or even the last hour to find a flights can get you cheap flights at the last minute.

Because airlines want to get bums in seats they’ll often have a big price reduction when it starts getting close to departure time, just in case there’s anyone like you who might be able to get on.

Pick A Red-Eye Flight

How many people book a flight and say to themselves “yes! I can’t wait to get up at 1AM to drive to the airport for my 4AM flight”. 

No, most of the time it’s nice to have your flight booked for a more reasonable hour, so you don’t have to groggily face down the security checks. Because of this common preference for flights later in the morning, you can often find a great, hidden deal by booking a red-eye flight. 

Search for flights in the specific time regions of 11PM-5AM, as these are often the least popular, and so airlines are most likely to reduce prices just to fill up seats. 

Don’t Forget The Most Important Travel Tip…

Finding a cheap flight at the last minute doesn’t leave you with much preparation time, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be prepared.

Once you’ve booked your money-saving flight at the last minute using these booking tips, spend some time learning the language of your destination country with a native speaker! Download Idyoma for free to start learning a new language the natural way.