How I Save Tons of Money on Airline Travel

Now that my husband and I are debt free, we've been saving every single penny for traveling. I've done a lot of research, tried a lot of different scenarios, and have come up with what I believe are some of the best tips for traveling cheaply!

Make friends with ALL the airlines. I have a junk mail account just for my airline accounts! I've signed up for the free rewards programs and/or emails from Southwest, Alaska, Jet Blue, United, Spirit, Delta, and more! My email inbox lets me know when the best deals are, and most of theses airlines have rewards systems for booking (which can lead to a free checked bag, free flights, priority boarding, and more!).

Be flexible with your travel dates, and/or destination if possible. The more flexible you are, the cheaper you can fly. Some days/times are cheaper to fly out than others, and airlines often have sales on certain destinations. I used Google Flights to check all the airlines for a range of dates. If you can't be flexible, book out as far as possible to avoid higher rates. Occasionally the price can fluctuate downward, so let the airline know if that happens after you've purchased so they can refund the difference.

Book one way tickets, not round trip. I have found that usually no one airline has the cheapest flights both ways. I break up my trip into two one ways (on different airlines) to save the most money.

Play the credit card game. Do you have good/excellent credit? My husband and I open travel cards for the bonuses. A typical card opening bonus is between $200 - $500! That can go a long way to travel. We also use a travel card for all our bills. We prefer the Capital One Venture, because we feel it gets the most bang for our buck.

Tell the airlines how you feel. If you have any issue with your flight, send the airline a polite letter. They will often grant you a credit. I just booked a flight to LAX for two, FREE thanks to a credit from customer service. I think the big key here is being polite. They want to work with you and help you, and are more likely to give you perks if they are treated with respect.

Don't check a bag. When possible, travel light! We never check bags. We can get a weeks worth of items in a carry on (my favorite one is from Ikea . The front part zips off into a backpack if it won't fit into the overhead bins). This saves us hassle, AND money. Most airlines charge for checked luggage these days!

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Okay, okay, I know this doesn't work for everyone, but if you have traveling aspirations and any interest in working for an airline, DO IT. Flight Attendants, for example, make pretty good money and get tons of perks! My Aunt works for Alaska and she and her whole family fly for free, plus she gets a large number of standby passes for family and friends. She also gets to hang out fun places like Hawaii on Alaska's dime for layovers! If you do know anyone who works for an airline, ask them if they have any free passes to spare.

I hope someone finds this useful! I look forward to sharing more tips about traveling cheaply, including how I find the best hotel rates!