Booking airline tickets is no cheap venture, and even for the price most airlines’ economy seats offer very few comforts. And if you’ve always wanted to travel business class and enjoy a little luxury as you fly, you likely know a single ticket can total hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Yet you can save money and still fly business class – if you know where and how to find discounts. If you want to score a seat in luxurious business class but don’t want to pay full price, here’s what you need to know in order to save big.
Use Travel Points and Airline Miles
One of the best ways to save on business class airfare is to use the rewards you have saved. If you’ve traveled in years past, you likely have a few airline miles and hotel points saved up from different loyalty programs. And you can easily turn those points and miles into free flights – or a free business class upgrade!
Check your airline loyalty accounts and hotel rewards programs to see what you have saved up. If you have plenty of hotel rewards, many hotel chains allow you to turn those points into other travel perks, so you can ask about transferring those points to airline miles. If you have airline miles saved up, all you need to do is plan your next flight.
You can either use your miles to book a business class ticket for free or upgrade your economy ticket to a business class one for free. Simply head to your favorite airline’s website and use your points to see what you can cash them in for – and you won’t have to pay to do so.
Book with a Travel Credit Card
Another way to turn previous activity into deeply discounted or free business class airfare is to use your credit card. If you book travel with a special travel rewards credit card, you’ll not only rack up rewards, but you can also get perks and deals.
Travel rewards credit cards allow you to earn points that can be cashed in for all kinds of travel perks. From discounted or free hotel stays and flights to cheap business class upgrades, a travel credit card can be a huge help when you’re looking to save on a business class ticket.
Many travel rewards credit cards give you thousands of free points when you open a new card and spend a certain amount of money. You’ll also earn bonus points on every travel purchase you make – so the more you travel, the more you’ll earn.
And once you’ve racked up enough points and you’re ready to book a flight, you can turn those points into deeply discounted business class upgrades. You can use your points to get upgraded from an economy seat on different popular airlines. Or, if you have enough points, you might even be able to book a business class seat without spending anything. The key is to have a good travel rewards credit card with plenty of perks on all purchases so you can earn points quickly.
Search Online for Discounted Tickets
Finding cheap or discounted business class tickets can take time and effort, but if you do your homework before flying or booking a ticket, you can save big. And one of the best ways to find discounted business class fares is to search online for price comparisons and offers from different airlines.
There are plenty of websites online that offer deals on flights – and those sites can offer discounted prices on business class tickets. Make sure to search sites like Orbitz, Kayak, Travelocity, Skyscanner, and Google Flights regularly when you’re looking to book cheap business class airfare. These sites let you easily compare prices from different airlines, but you’ll need to check them often, as prices and offers are constantly changing.
In addition to discount travel sites, you’ll also want to search for business class bargains at specialty sites that offer heavily discounted business class tickets. When airlines notice that tickets for certain flights aren’t selling, they’ll offer their business class seats to special business class consolidators. These consolidators will be one of the only ways you can find business class fares at huge discounts.
Check these consolidator websites frequently to see what kind of a steal you can find on business class flights:
- Executive Class Travel
- Alpha Flight Guru
- Flight Snap
- SkyLux Travel
- ITA Matrix
- Last-Minute Business Class
Remember, the key to getting a great deal on business class airline tickets is staying on top of current prices and deals. Search often for these offers, and make sure you compare pricing before settling on a deal to make sure you’re paying only as much as you have to.