Some travel industry experts claim that discount airfares on last minute flights can save travelers up to 75% compared to full-price tickets.

Since airlines make more money when their flights are fully booked, they may offer discounted tickets to fill empty seats and maximize their profit. Generally, though,
when you book your reservations a couple of months in advance you will get the lowest prices.

However, if you're willing to take a chance and can get away at the last minute, here are the tactics that some experts recommend:

How to get cheap airline tickets

• Discounted flights are most often found through either the reservation system of the airline itself or travel agencies.
• Some airlines, like Southwest, offer "web only" discounted ticket prices that are only available directly through them on their website.

What's the downside?

However, there is a down side to waiting for the last minute to try to get the cheapest airfares, as there may not be a seat available for you and your traveling companion.

And, that's the challenge when it comes to finding the cheapest, discounted airfares.

• Sometimes you can find terrific deals on last minute flights that almost makes it seem like the airline is giving away their air tickets. At other times, you may find that every last seat on every airline is booked and even if there was a seat, the demand is so high that there are no discounts to be found. You could even end up paying a premium.

If you have to go somewhere on a specific date these tactics are not for you. Make your reservations in advance. And if you find lower prices between the time you book your flight and takeoff, call the airline up. They might make up the difference. In this sense you can have your cake and eat it too. You'll have the security of having those important reservations and the possibility of still saving some more money.

How do I increase my chances of getting discounted airfares?

Being able to find discounted airfares has a great deal to do with when you travel.

• If you need to fly when everyone else does because of a major travel holiday, such as Thanksgiving, Christmas or Spring Break, then you will get the best discount by booking as early as possible. If you are traveling during other times and you can be flexible about your flight dates, then you will have a better chance of being able to grab deeply discounted fares.

There are some travelers who enjoy the excitement and thrill of hunting for those extreme discount airline tickets that are sometimes available for last minute flights. They enjoy sitting down at the computer and seeing what airfare deals are available so they can get out of town for a few days.

• This might be for you if your exact destination is less important then getting a spur-of-the-moment cheap vacation that you might not be able to take at full price.

Those who have the constitution for last minute bookings are generally very experienced travelers who have flexible schedules and who can make quick decisions. They also either always have a travel bag packed and ready to go, or are able to throw a few things into a suitcase and be out the door and to the airport in under an hour from the time they land their discounted flight deals.

However, last minute travel is not something that can be undertaken by everyone and is particularly not well-suited for families or for groups of more than two.

How many discounted seats are usually available?

• Many times, if these discount airfares are available they're only for one or two seats that are left on any particular flight.

But if you're traveling alone or with one travel companion and you like the idea of spur-of-the-moment travel then taking advantage of last minute flights and discounted fares can make for many memorable cheap vacations which might not happen otherwise.

Last minute travel packages.

If you haven't found any seats but you've just got to get away, check out CheapCaribbean.com for some of the best prices on last minute travel packages on the internet.

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