Inspiration

How To Book The Cheapest Flight Tickets & Other Travel Secrets

The Outlook Traveller team shares all its dirty travel secrets

Bhavika Govil

From the best-ever websites to get affordable tickets on to the seat that guarantees a view of Mount Everest, the OT Team unearths and shares all its flight secrets. Well almost. Take note, fellow travellers and tell us yours in return, won't you

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL 

Book a flight on a Tuesday or Wednesday (incognito mode) for the cheapest tickets. Trust me on this one. &ndash Sharmistha Chaudhuri

When booking Vistara, try doing it on their own site. Maybe it&rsquos a promotion, but sometimes their Premium Economy is priced lower than regular economy. And it&rsquos so worth it. &ndash Amit Dixit

Budgetair.com is that gem I don&rsquot want to reveal to anyone, but I guess I am.  &ndash Manek S. Kohli

WEBSITES TO BOOKMARK

Checking flightstats.com for average delay is helpful. &nbspAlways use routehappy.com. It&rsquoll tell you the leg space for each ticket, the comfort level, the delay-ability, etc. Use it to choose your tickets. - Manek

Airport lounges are not just for First/Business Class passengers. Frequent flying requirements or long layovers Don&rsquot fret. Book an Airport Lounge Access on&nbsploungebuddy.com for a nominal fee, believe me, it usually works out cheaper than spending on airport cafes and restaurants. Added bonus &ndash peace and quiet. &ndash Shruti Singh

Check for flights on Sky Scanner or any other comparison sight and then go to the airline website to book. It is usually always cheaper and you'll find airline promotions or offers. Miles also come handy here. - Sharmistha

TIME-SAVERS

If you&rsquore over the baggage limit, consider an upgrade at the airport. At least some of the excess baggage fee will be waived off, plus you&rsquoll get priority boarding and first-bag-on-the-belt. And it doesn&rsquot cost that much. &ndash Amit

At an airport, always go to the last ever counter or lane to check-in. It is usually overlooked by passengers and has the least crowd. Also, make sure to web check-in. The baggage drop counter always has a much shorter queue than the others, and if you just have cabin baggage, you&rsquore a free bird &ndash Bhavika Govil

Reach 50 minutes before your flight to be chaperoned to the front, push through security and reach the aircraft on time anyway. - Manek

GO-TO AIRLINES

Like so many fellow flyers, I now have a budding romance with Air India. The baggage limit is to die for, meal portions are generous, and if you plan it well, on certain domestic sectors you could be flying a dreamliner, complete with video entertainment system. &ndash Amit

I prefer flying Vistara because of comfortable seats and space. Best for travelers like me who don&rsquot like somebody else&rsquos elbow in my space. Air Asia is a complete NO. &ndash Precious Kamei

For domestic flights, nothing can beat Air India for the luggage limit they offer. I know many have sworn off flying this airline for good but personally, I have never faced issues. - Sharmistha

WINDOW OR AISLE

Book a seat at the back of the plane. The loo will be closer and at airports with aerobridges you&rsquoll be the first to board. &ndash Amit

787s, 777s, A380s, A350s and virtually every mid to high capacity airplane will have many of those infinite legroom seats&mdashbasically the first row in every section. Request for these. - Manek

I try to do a web check-in and look for seats&mdashfree&mdashmostly towards the rear-end of the flight. If not a window, then an aisle. Or once at the airport, ask the ground staff politely for a window seat minutes before the boarding starts &ndash Gandharv Kamla

I always pick aisle seats for long flights. I can stretch my legs when I want and don&rsquot have to ask people to get up to use the loo. &ndash Anshika Nagar

CARE FOR A VIEW

When you&rsquore travelling from Kathmandu to Lukla, take the left row window seat for a view of Mount Everest. If you&rsquore flying from Himachal and Ladakh from Delhi, take the right row of the plane for the best view of North Face Snow Wall. &ndash Puneet Paliwal

Flying from Tokyo to Nanki Shirahama Get a window seat on the right sie of the plane to enjoy a commanding view of the mighty Mt. Fuji free of cost - Shruti

21st&nbsprow on a regular 32-row Airbus plane (especially GoAir) has the best view possible. 11 is ahead of the wing (shit view), 31 has the wing block you, 21 is ideal. Calculate accordingly for other carriers (you essentially have to be 2/3rds towards the rear of the aircraft). &ndash Manek

IN-FLIGHT TIPS

I keep a smaller bag under my seat with things I need just for the flight (travel pillow, book, a snack and a travel kit) so that I don&rsquot have to constantly get up to access the overhead storage space. For international flights, I always carry a notepad and a pen to fill out the forms and keep all the information handy.&ndash Anshika

Have an ear-ache problem while flying Plugging in earphones while taking off and landing helps reduce the pain, at least psychologically, as does sucking on some sour candy. - Bhavika

THE BIG MILE CLUB

For miles, I've always preferred Star Alliance or Sky Team and hence, take corresponding flights. In the long run, this comes handy instead of just booking the cheapest flight you can find. &ndash Sharmistha

Become a member with all the airlines you fly&mdashJetPrivilege, Club Vistara, Etihad Guest. The importance of collecting air miles can&rsquot be stressed enough&mdashespecially when you are broke.  &ndash Bhavika

WHAT TIME IS IT

Early morning flights are good for two reasons. A. You get more time to explore a new place&mdashbe it tourists spots, hotel-hunting or places to eat. B. Cheaper cab fares &ndash Precious

Early morning or red-eye fights. Red-eyes because by the time you reach, it&rsquos time for breakfast. Ask the cab guy to take you to a local street joint, eat, get to the hotel sleep for a couple of hours and then move out to explore the city. And early morning because by the time you reach your hotel, voila, breakfast buffet is served - Gandharv

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