How to find airline tickets/fares without spending hours on dozens of sites?
Seconding Kayak. I always start there as a baseline. Then I go to Orbitz, because I personally like the UI better than the other aggregators. I will run my desired dates and itineraries. After Orbitz I’ll try Travelocity. I almost never use Expedia. It used to be the best IMO, and now it’s so clogged with sponsorships and partnerships I don’t believe I ever see the true lowest fares. Once I get a handle on fares, schedules and airlines, I go to the individual airline sites and check there. Even if I’m saving $5 by booking it there, I’ll do it. Other times I will find that the aggregators are the only ones with access to a certain routing. Keep in mind that the aggregators will not have Southwest, Jet Blue or Virgin America, so if you are going places that those companies fly to, you will have to check them separately as well.
I usually use Farecast to figure out when’s the best time to buy (if I know far in advance when I’ll be travelling) and then I book directly through the airline. I won’t book through the aggregators (Expedia, Hotwire, etc) because they have NO ability to help when things go wrong or if you need to change something. And usually the airlines have cheaper prices or the same price with no booking fee. I also sign up for RSS feeds from Travelocity and Spirit, and often find the best deals through those sale updates.
