How to Get Cheap Flights 2026 - 10 Tips & Deals

Learn to find cheap flights in 2026: student discounts, Trip Coins, credit card deals, last-minute savings & flexible changes on Trip.com.

How to Get Cheap Flights - Best 10 Tips & Video Tutorial

Let’s break down all the best ways to get cheap flights, from student discounts to loyalty perks.

Flight + Hotel Bundles on Trip.com – Save 6% on Average

Booking flights and hotels together on Trip.com’s “Bundle and Save” feature can cut your travel costs by an average of 6% compared to booking separately. This works because Trip.com negotiates bulk rates with airlines and hotels, passing the savings directly to travelers . Whether you’re planning a family vacation, couples’ getaway, or solo trip, bundling simplifies your booking while keeping more money in your pocket.

Best Time to Book Cheap Flights

Booking at the right time avoids overpaying—this data works for travelers worldwide, no matter where you’re flying:

• Domestic flights (any country): Book 1–3 months before departure. Prices usually jump 25% if you wait until the last 2 weeks (e.g., London→Manchester, Sydney→Melbourne).
• International flights (Europe): Book 3–4 months early. Popular routes like London→Paris or Berlin→Barcelona fill fast in summer, so early bookings lock in low fares.
• International flights (Asia): Book 2–4 weeks early. Carriers like AirAsia or Japan Airlines often drop prices 2 weeks out (e.g., Tokyo→Seoul, Singapore→Kuala Lumpur).
• Holiday travel (Christmas, Lunar New Year): Book 6–8 months early. These dates are busy globally—prices spike once 70% of seats are sold (e.g., New York→Toronto for Christmas, Bangkok→Hong Kong for Lunar New Year).

Trip.com’s calendar marks low-price dates in green—you don’t need to track data yourself; just look for the green highlights.

Cheapest Day to Book vs. Cheapest Day to Fly

These two tips work for every region—here’s what real travel data shows:

Cheapest Day to Book Flights

Sundays are the cheapest day to book. You’ll save about 6% on domestic flights and 17% on international flights compared to Mondays or Fridays. Airlines often update prices on Monday evenings, so Sunday bookings typically catch the best post-update deals (e.g., a Tokyo→London flight booked on Sunday might cost $650, vs. $760 on Monday).

Cheapest Day to Fly

• Domestic flights: Saturdays are cheapest. They’re 17% cheaper than Sundays, since most people fly home on Sundays (e.g., Sydney→Brisbane on Saturday costs $80, vs. $94 on Sunday).
• International flights: Thursdays are cheapest. They’re 15% cheaper than Sundays, as fewer business travelers choose Thursdays for long trips (e.g., Paris→New York on Thursday costs $580, vs. $670 on Sunday).

Trip.com lets you sort flights by “Cheapest Day” so you can see these savings at a glance.

Trip.com Flight Deals & Promos (Weekly Update)

Trip.com offers many flight deals for global travelers—these are all available on the site/app, no fake perks:

1. Student Flight Discounts (Up to 30% Off)

This is for full-time students aged 16–35 (any global university/college). Here’s how it works:

• Upload a valid student ID or acceptance letter during booking (the name on your ID must match your flight ticket).
• Filter flights with the “Student Fare” option to see discounted seats.
• Partner airlines include AirAsia, Scoot, and Eurowings—you also get extra baggage (up to 10kg) on some routes (e.g., Bangkok→Singapore).

2. Flight + Hotel Bundles

Booking flights and hotels together on Trip.com is cheaper than booking separately. For example:

• A London→Barcelona flight + 3 nights’ hotel might cost $450 as a bundle, vs. $560 if booked alone.
• The bundle tool works for all destinations—just select “Flight + Hotel” on the homepage.

3. Seasonal Sales

Trip.com runs real sales throughout the year:

• Black Friday (November): Up to 40% off flights (e.g., Dubai→Mumbai for $120, down from $200).
• Christmas Sale (December): Discounts on winter routes (e.g., Toronto→Montreal for $70).
• Lunar New Year Sale (January/February): Deals on Asian routes (e.g., Hong Kong→Tokyo for $300).

Trip Coins: Earn Free Discounts (Real & No Expiry)

Trip Coins are Trip.com’s loyalty currency—they’re free to earn and never expire. Here’s how it works for flights:

• Earn coins: For every $100 spent, you can get 25 travel coins. For instance, a $500 flight can earn 125 Coins.
• Extra bonus: Write a review (with photos) after your trip and you can get 50 to 200 reward coins. Recommend a friend. When they book their first flight, both of you can get 500 coins.
• Coin exchange: 100 travel coins = 1 US dollar for the next flight. If you have 1,000 coins, you can save 10 dollars on a 200-dollar air ticket.
• Global use: The coin is applicable to any flight on Trip.com, no matter where you are flying (for example, Paris → Tokyo, Sydney → Los Angeles).

Link Frequent Flyer Numbers for Double Rewards

You can earn both airline miles and Trip Coins on the same booking—this is real and works with many global airlines. Learn more about Frequent Flyer Numbers.

• When booking a flight, please look for the "Frequent Flyer Number" field (under "Passenger Information").
• Enter the phone numbers of airlines such as Delta Air Lines, British Airways, Qantas Airways or Air China.
• After the flight, you will receive air miles (as usual) and travel coins used at the time of booking.

For example, a $600 British Airways flight from London to New York can earn 600 British Airways miles plus 150 travel coins (worth $1.50).

How to Use Trip.com’s Flexible Date Flights for More Savings

Airlines with Flexible Flight Tickets (By Region)

This list covers airlines that typically offer flexible fare options (such as the "Flex" fare mentioned earlier). Important Notice: Your mileage may vary (YMMV) - Policies may change, so be sure to carefully check the details before booking.

How to Book a Flexible Flight

The easiest way to book flexible flights is to start from the airline's official website, which can ensure that you clearly see all the fare rules. Look for "Fare type" (avoid "Basic Economy Class" as it offers little flexibility), and select the options marked "Flexible", "refundable", "Additional" or "Free" (these options are more expensive than the basic fare but offer flexibility). Before booking a ticket, click on links such as "Fare Rules" or "Fare Conditions" to check two key things: whether changes are charged (or free), and whether cancellations can get cashback (not just airline credit). Once the rules meet your requirements (such as free date changes), the reservation is completed.

Trip.com offers “Flexible Flight” tickets, see more about how you can save with flexible flights. Arranging dates flexibly is one of the easiest ways to save money - here's how you'll learn step by step on Trip.com:

• When you search for flights, switch to "Flexible Dates" (it is next to the date field). Choose a range like "±3 days" (meaning 3 days before or after your ideal travel date).
• Trip.com will display a calendar encoded in different colors: green dates are the cheapest, yellow ones are mid-range, and red ones are expensive.
• You can also add nearby airports (for example, if flying to London, including Gatwick Airport and Stansted Airport next to Heathrow Airport) to see more affordable options.

Cheap Last-Minute Flights: Find Discounts 1–2 Weeks Out

If you need to catch a flight as soon as possible, Trip.com's "Last Minute" page shows the discounted seats that airlines want to fill. Here are our expectations:

• Timing: The best time to trade is 1-2 weeks before departure (not the day before, as prices usually rise then).
• Flight times: Early morning (5-7 a.m.) or late night (after 10 p.m.) flights are the cheapest. For instance, a flight from Berlin to Amsterdam at 6 a.m. might cost 40 dollars, while at noon it would cost 60 dollars.
• Global Routes: Trip.com covers all regions. Toronto → Chicago, Bangkok → Ho Chi Minh City, Sydney → Auckland.

How to Book & Save on Multi-City Flights

If you are going to more than two places (for example, London → Paris → Rome, Tokyo → Seoul → Beijing), use Trip.com's "Multi-City" search to save:

• How to book: On the Trip.com flight homepage, select "Multiple Cities", and then add the destination and date.
• Savings: Booking this way is 30% cheaper than separate one-way tickets. For example:
• • London→Paris (one-way: $80) + Paris→Rome (one-way: $90) = $170 separately.
  • Multi-city booking: $119 total.
• Easy Management: All flights are in one booking—you can change or cancel the whole trip from “My Trips.”

Budget Airlines on Trip.com: Find Cheap Flights (No Hidden Fees)

Trip.com enables you to filter out budget airlines around the world - all of which are genuine airlines with all costs displayed at the front:

• Popular budget airlines: Ryanair (Europe), AirAsia (Asia), Scoot (Asia/Australia), Xinjiang Airlines (North America), EasyJet (Europe).
• How to filter: Select the "Budget Airlines" box on the flight search results page.
• No hidden fees: Trip.com will display the total price (including taxes and checked luggage, if you add them) before you make a reservation. For instance, the Ryanair flight from London to Madrid shows a total cost of 35 US dollars (not 20 US dollars plus 15 US dollars).

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