When I travel, my number one concern is always money. I believe in the philosophy of making my dollars stretch. What do I mean by that? I mean that I am a cheapskate. I don't like to spend money on things that I can buy for a cheaper price somewhere else. Clothes? 7 times out of 10, I'm thrifting. Food? I'm skipping Chipotle for now. Ok, I'm lying. I love food, so I try to refrain from Chipotle as much as I can (every girl has got a weakness, right?). Gas? You better believe I'm checking for the cheapest price at all times. You get the point. So when it comes to traveling, I am no different. I love a good deal of any kind! One of the things I try to save the most money on when I travel? The flight ticket.
Your ticket might be one of the most expensive parts of your trip. You're paying hundreds, and maybe even thousands, just to reach your destination. This doesn't even include your stay, food, experiences, and local travel. "Finding cheap flights is hard", I hear you all wailing right now. Well, here I am, WanderlustWad, to your rescue. Let me introduce you to the app I utilize the most when I want to find a cheap flight. You may have heard of it, it's called Twitter. *GASP*
So you already have Twitter? Great! Let me show you how to use it to your advantage. Wait, do you not have Twitter? Please make your way over to their website (just click here) and create an account.
Twitter has been my favorite travel app by far, and the best part is that it isn't intended for travel necessarily. It's moreso for stalking your significant other, giving unsolicited relationship advice, and posting pictures that never made it to Instagram for a couple of "fav's" and "retweets". Well ladies and gentlemen, the game is about to change, because you're about to use Twitter in a whole new way.
See on my Twitter, I follow two specific handles that allow me to travel for a price unlike any other. Get out your handy dandy notebooks and write down @theflightdeal and @suzzstravels. Head to their page and turn on their notifications. This way, any time they send out a tweet, you get an instant notification sent to your phone about amazing deals!
Listen to me, your phone is dry AF anyways, add some variety to your life with these notifications. Not only are they great motivation to travel non-stop, they hip you to the hottest deals! Most flights are leaving from major airports (i.e. JFK, LAX, ATL, PHL, IAD, MIA) but there is always a sprinkle of flights from Arizona, New Mexico, and other places nobody lives. Just find the closest airport to you and GO!
utilize these notifications
The best part of twitter is that everything is happening in real time. Once the tweet is sent, it is being directly sent to your phone, which works out in your favor since you're working against time here. Working against time? Yes, working against time. Deals don't usually last for long, these airlines are profit-driven, just like any other business. So while you contemplate whether or not you're going to fly to South Africa for $500, the tickets have probably already skyrocketed back to their regular price. A good rule of thumb is that if the deal is past two days old, it's pretty safe to say that you'll have a harder time finding it than finding your uncharged phone after a drunken night. I know, difficult.
Deals are sometimes gone within the hour, so you have to always act fast. This means pull out that credit card and buy, buy, buy! If you're a money-conscious individual, then you're all, "oh hell no, she not about to mess up my credit". Give me a second to explain. In case you were unaware, if you book airfare in the United States, there are regulations in place for you to be able to cancel your flight within 24 hours of booking. See a flight you're interested in? Pull out your credit card and book it! You can now have a smooth 24 hour gap to think about when and if you can accommodate for the oncoming experience. If you can, great! If you cant, just call and cancel. Penalty free, for almost all tickets. Mind...BLOWN! (unless you already knew this fun fact in which case please skip right over and move along).
The notifications make these the easiest ways to stay up to date with the newest deals or glitches so that you can buy them, and possibly cancel later, before the deal disappears. Twitter has made it possible for me to fly from JFK, in New York, all the way to DPS, in Bali, Indonesia for $500 USD which is unheard of. Remember when I went to South Africa? Thank you @suzzstravels and @theflightdeal for getting me there under $550. And they're not just for international travel! Domestic flights are always included, which give the term "getaways" a whole new meaning.
Twitter notifications were the best thing for my 2015 journeys. That being said, I believe strongly in saving and financial responsibility. So although I joked about pulling out the credit cards and swiping away, I want to make it clear that you should be responsible. You think you'll forget to cancel the ticket? Don't buy it in the first place, and inherit a financial burden. Financial literacy is extremely important, and your credit doesn't need to be ruined so that you can see the world. Everything takes time, and things come to you when they're supposed to. Don't rush into it, save a bit at a time, and you can make it anywhere!
Note: A savings plan would be an intelligent decision at this point in time.
MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER FOR CONSTANT UPDATES ABOUT...LIFE, LOVE, AND TRAVEL! @WANDERLUSTWAD
Happy Wandering...