Everyone knows that flying is a major part of business travel expenses, so snatching some savings on those tickets can add up. If your company wants to cut business expenses, here are 9 hacks that business travel experts say you should know for booking airline tickets:
1. Go Undercover: Growing evidence suggests that airlines track your online behavior and notice what flights you type in. What does that mean? You may find that prices go up for flights you are searching for often. To get the best deals, try going undercover by:
- Switching computers.
- Clearing cookies.
- Going “incognito” while browsing.
2. Go Elsewhere: It isn’t fair, but some International airline tickets within a country are more expensive if you buy them from the U.S. rather than from within that country. Try these hacks:
- If you have a VPN login, you might be able to search for flights while connected to it to hide your country of origin.
- Have a travel agency like GTI purchase airline flights for you from their network of international locations.
3. Go Local (Money that is!): Be sure to buy those International flights with local currency rather than dollars. Converted rates are inevitably more expensive. How? Select the native country as your location.
4. Go Budget: If money is more important than time and convenience, you might want to consider having your travelers fly on budget airlines. However, before you take this step, make sure:
- Your business travelers will not waste more time on travel than it is worth.
- Business travelers can bring carry-on luggage since budget travel often adds extra luggage fees.
5. Go Late: Need to make a change? Believe it or not, this is one time you ought to procrastinate. Most airlines only charge $50 for changing the flight on the same day. So, as long as there are seats available, you might want to wait until the day of the flight to change.
6. Go Trade: Have points for travel on different airlines but not enough for free flights? Consider buying the points you need to get rewards or using a service that lets you trade in points from a variety of programs.
7. Go Package: Getting flights, car, and hotels together can save you money. Great travel agencies can provide such packages to help customers not only get cheaper travel but also better accommodations.
8. Go Slow: If time is not of the essence, building in a layover or switching to a different airport can often save money. The trick is to not necessarily select a flight with a layover but to stitch two different flights with a common airport together.
9. Go Professional. The truth? Professionals like GTI Corporate Travel can probably do a better job of getting you the best deal. Why? GTI helps manage cost by using all of these hacks along with their 50 years of experience and a worldwide network of travel assistance in 4000 locations in 149 countries. For the best prices, best flights and best itineraries for your corporate travels, visit GTI‘s website here.
