It is not as easy as you might think to find cheap one way tickets for flights. It seems counterintuitive that flying one way can cost just as much as round trip, or even more! Cheap one way tickets used to be a thing of the past, but the good news is that with the ailing economy and huge losses in the airline industry, a few tricks can help you find cheap one way tickets now.
Many people think the internet is the best place to find cheap one way tickets. This is often true, and the benefit of buying tickets online is that you can compare prices and departure date/time combinations. However, in some cases travel agents can offer even better deals when it comes to cheap one way tickets. Travel agents are free to use and there is no obligation, so don't ignore this important resource when looking for cheap one way tickets. To really save money, you must research and compare!
If you are serious about getting cheap one way tickets, you need to be very flexible about when to travel. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays are the best days to find cheap one way tickets because these days are less likely to be booked by business passengers, who usually pay full price.
Another way to find cheap one way tickets is to look at flights that leave very late at night or early in the morning. Planes are often returning to their bases at these times and need to fill seats. By thinking of times most people wouldn't want to travel, you can usually secure cheap one way tickets.
Besides off-peak times and days, also think of off-peak times of year. You can get really cheap one way tickets if you can plan your flight for months such as February, March, October and November.
If you are having trouble finding cheap one way tickets, try to break up your trip a little. Sure, it's less convenient to have a layover but if you can arrange to have a connection in a hub city, you will be rewarded with very cheap one way tickets. Each airline has one or more hub cities that most of their flights go in and out of and you can save a lot of money simply by stopping over there.
If you are flying into or out of a large city, you also have more options for cheap one way tickets. Large cities have several airports in their vicinity. Consider flying to one of the non-major airports near your destination as you may find really cheap one way tickets.
Buy your tickets well in advance if you are hoping for cheap one way tickets. The earlier you buy them, the better. You can also find some cheap one way tickets if you wait until the very last minute but there is a lot of luck involved- you could get really lucky finding an underbooked flight or you could get very unlucky. This tactic for cheap one way tickets works best if you are flexible and spontaneous.
