# Travel >> Transportation >> Air Travel

How to Find the Best Airline Prices

The pricing of airline tickets is byzantine. Travel a few days apart to the same destination can be several hundred dollars more expensive. A booking made a few weeks before the departure can be more expensive -- or cheaper -- than a booking made a different number of weeks ahead. Regardless, the best way to find cheap airfares is to use a site which has access to the databases of the airlines in real time.

For long-haul travel, aggregator sites like Expedia or Orbitz work well. For short-haul flights, and for flights inside the U.S., it pays to check with the airlines directly, especially low-fare airlines. It may be possible to get deals on last-minute prices through an auction site such as Priceline.

Instructions

- 1
  Go to one of the aggregation sites which offer price comparison, or allow you to set your own prices, such as Priceline or Orbitz.
- 2
  Select the "Flights" tab. Enter departure and arrival cities in the "From" and "To" boxes. Typing the first letters will give a list of available cities to select from. Enter the dates for the flights in the "Departing" and "Returning" boxes, or using the built-in calendar.
- 3
  Fill in the number and type of travelers. Click the "Search" button. This may have different names depending on the site.
- 4
  Verify the prices on the resulting page. Select the flights for departure and arrival. Prices presented are still an indication; it's not until you order the tickets that you actually see their cost.
- 5
  Fill in the traveler details, verify the flight details and personal information. Click the "Buy" button (which may have different name on different websites). The final ticket price appears.
- 6
  Cancel the process to compare other prices, or confirm the purchase. Fill in the payment details and confirm the order. The tickets will be delivered electronically.