Holiday flight? Start the search now

Yes, Virginia, holiday travel bargains are out there.

By ALISON GRANT, Newhouse News Service

Last update: October 10, 2008 - 1:54 PM

You'll have to dig to find bargains for travel over the holidays. Here are some tips for uncovering that uncommon deal.

Look now: Don't wait. Discounted fares are going like hotcakes.

Be flexible: Don't have set days you fly. Travelocity, Orbitz and Cheaptickets all have good flexible-date search functions. Kayak.com offers only three days on departure and return, and that's not a big enough window to capture all good options, professional fare finder George Hobica said.

Be thorough: Search individual sites of economy airlines such as Sun Country that post their lowest fares only on their own sites.

Know when to look: Weekends may be a good time to check fares. If fares go down, some airlines will refund the difference in the form of a voucher for future travel, even on "nonrefundable" fares. But remember, there's a change fee.

Check at the last minute: Deals offered at the last minute often pop up on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, when airlines post new fares.

Fly on holidays: Travel on Christmas Day, New Year's Eve or New Year's Day to save money. The priciest days are Dec. 26-28 and Jan. 2-4.

Celebrate early: Plan your family Thanksgiving gathering a couple of weeks early. There are some dynamite deals for the first part of November.

Think about location: Head somewhere besides a "sun and fun" spot. Those have "skyway robbery" air fares, "highway robbery" car rental costs and hotel rates that hold you hostage, said Tom Parsons of BestFares.com.

Head overseas: Consider a holiday abroad. Some of the capacity taken out of the domestic market has shifted to international flights. You can get great winter deals to Europe.

Beware luggage fees: When you start adding up travel costs, don't forget those pesky bag fees.

Take this scenario: A man flies from Cleveland to Chicago midweek and returns midweek. That ticket right now costs $167 on United Airlines.

But our sample guy has two bags that weigh 60 pounds each, both of which will be slapped with $125 overweight bag charges -- per bag, per flight. All of a sudden, that $167 ticket for a man who weighs maybe 190 pounds costs $500 more for his 120 pounds of luggage.

"Put your bags on the bathroom scale and try to get them under the 50-pound mark," said Parsons.

Of course, our Cleveland-to-Chicago traveler might be stuffing a hefty carry-on into the plane's overhead bin, too.

The basic rule for carry-ons is nothing bigger than 22 by 14 by 9 inches or heavier than 40 pounds. With baggage fees the way they are, look for passengers trying to push the envelope.

That could make for a long conga line waiting to clear security.

So pack light and bring a book. And be cheery to the staff.

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