How to find cheap flights for a specific destination and specific dates

1. Visit Google Flights: https://www.google.com/flights

2. Enter your departing city and destination, along with dates.

3. The dates with the cheaper airfare will be in green text. It's typically cheaper to depart on a weekday, but if you have work commitments, then select the days that work for you.

4. Flight prices usually increase one month before the target date, be sure to track the price to see if you're getting a good price. Sign up for email alerts for the flight you want so you can receive an email when there's a good price.

You can see the historical price history for a specific flight.

5. Once you find a good deal on flights, you can save even more if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and book using the Chase Travel Portal.

Alternatively, if you're a Chase Ritz-Carlton cardholder and you're traveling with a friend, you can save $100 on roundtrip domestic airfare. The sale prices are often reflected in the Visa Infinite Discount Air Portal.

In the screenshot below, I was able to book two roundtrip tickets from SFO to LAX for $54 using the Visa Infinite Discount Air Portal (via the Chase Ritz-Carlton card).

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How to find cheap flights for flexible destinations and flexible dates

If you're more spontaneous and you have a flexible schedule, Scott's Cheap Flights is an awesome resource to get deal alerts.

1. Sign up for Scott's Cheap Flights

2. Keep an eye out for deals that interest you via email. Below is an example of a flight deal.

3. If you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve, flight deals are often reflected in the Chase Travel Portal, so you can save even more when booking with points.

How to find cheap flights for flexible destinations and set dates

You can use Google Flights to search for cheap airfare on specific dates.

1. Visit Google Flights: https://www.google.com/flights

2. Enter your specific dates and hit the search button.

3. You'll find a map view of airfare.

4. If you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve, flight deals are often reflected in the Chase Travel Portal, so you can save even more when booking with points.

IFTTT Recipes

IFTT stands for "if this, then that." Below are a few of my favorite recipes to use for setting up deal alerts. h/t Flyertalk for the IFTTT recipes.

Mileage runs deals alert

https://ifttt.com/applets/169928p-flyertalk-mileage-run-deals-alert

https://ifttt.com/applets/232873p-flyertalk-mileage-run-deals

Premium fare

https://ifttt.com/applets/254587p-flyertalk-premium-fare-new-thread-notification

Glitch fare

https://ifttt.com/applets/269100p-glitch-fare-alerts-from-flyertalk