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Budget Travel

Unlocking the Secrets of Domestic Low Cost Air Travel in the USA

08 Mar 2024

Americans travel more domestically than internationally and the same is true for most countries of the world. Though, in the USA there are more domestic flights every day than in any other nation. The USA is a large country with different states in different time zones. There are states in the north where the winters are severe and destinations in the south that enjoy good temperatures throughout the year. There are two major oceans on the east coast and west coast. There are cities next to mountains and others like Las Vegas with a desert around them. Most metro cities also have large economies, large enough to match those of some developing countries. So, you can see why so many people are keen on traveling domestically in this country.

Competition to attract your attention

cheap flights

As in every business, there are different airlines employing different means to attract the maximum percentage of potential passengers towards themselves. There are more than a handful of low-cost airlines that prefer to call themselves budget airlines offering cheap flights and most people who intend to minimize their travel expenses travel with them.

The advantages of traveling with low-cost airlines

advantages of low cost airline

  • The most obvious one is that they charge a much lower amount for fares than other major airlines.
  • You have the option of picking what you need and what you don’t. They may be charging you a low amount for budget travel but you will be expected to pay for other services including baggage, meals & beverages and Wi-Fi connections. There are airlines that will include all these in your air ticket like the Southwest, but the real low-cost ones won’t, so you can choose the airline that you pay the least for flying with.
  • They offer dedicated services to their passengers and they clearly tell their passengers what they will be offering and what they won’t. So, you can bring your own food if you don’t want to try the packaged meal on offer that you won’t be paying for anyway.
  • If you are only taking your handbag, you won’t be paying for the baggage that you are not taking with you.
  • They will have points to recharge your electronic devices but if you don’t need any Wi-Fi connection, you won’t be charged for these.

The disadvantages of traveling with budget airlines

disadvantages of low cost airline

  • There are only economy seats onboard their aircraft, so you don’t have the option of opting for business class or first class seats.
  • Usually, you will be assigned seats as you board the aircraft and if you want to go for seat election, you will have to pay for this. 
  • The seats have a limited legroom and they charge more for those with more of it.
  • You will have to be active and research i.e. learn about what the airline offers or you will be better off flying with the airlines that include all the frills in their airfare.
  • If you are willing to pay for the meals & beverages, usually the choice for these may be limited. 

Choose the ideal airline for yourself

choose the ideal airline

There are several low-cost airlines in the USA like Frontier Airlines, Allegiant Air, and JetBlue Airways. There are others too like Sun Country Airlines that are considered ultra-low-cost airlines. So, you will be looking for cheap domestic flights from them, though some of them like Spirit Airlines offer international flights too. Still, the international destinations to which these flights are much limited when compared with those on offer from the major airlines, and most destinations are in nearby countries like Canada. 

Sure shot ways of minimizing travel costs

Choose the ideal airline

Whatever the purpose of your travel may be, whether you are traveling for business or pleasure, you will want to spend as little as you can. The flight costs eat up a large part of your travel budget and if you can minimize these, you will have more to spend on things you would like to do or on souvenirs that you would like to buy. Even when your flights are sponsored by your company, they too would like to minimize their expenses. And for all this, there are the low-cost airlines. But these no-frills airlines are very different from each other in terms of what they will charge you for.

Afterthoughts

So, you will need to spend some time figuring out the various permutation combinations, before you figure out the airlines that offer the cheapest flights over the route you plan to fly. They have good new offers every other day and they will often suggest flights to certain destinations for less. They are also very generous with their reward points that will lower the air ticket price every time you fly with your preferred low-cost airline.

By FlightsChannel Team
Category
Featured Blog
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