Diwali is finally over and it is time to visit India by booking online cheap flights to India from USA. The great love and affection await you at home. You must be thinking about the lowest air prices for the journey and perusing all over the internet for the same.
There are obviously high fares prevalent in current times. So, finding handsome deals without hidden charges and at the lowest prices becomes challenging. But what if we tell you ways and hacks that will save you great bucks on your flight tickets to India from USA.
You can easily save around $800 per traveler on your travel if you can avoid certain expenses listed here.
There are airlines that waive-off change of date fees
The first thing to know while booking online cheap flights to India from USA is which airlines do not charge itinerary modification fees. A one-time fee waiver comes included in air India flights and united airlines flights. The one-time rescheduling fees range from $90 to $140 depending on ticket type, travel class, airline, and time of the year. Booking your travel on these airlines with tripbeam can easily save you that much amount.
Qatar airways, emirates, and Turkish airlines also provide rescheduling fees waiver on some of the routes for US- Indian travel. But the caveat here is that if you change your travel date more than once then that will cost you a hefty fee.
Sticking to the international travel route
As already told, rescheduling an international flight incurs a fare difference thereby increasing the cost of traveling between USA and India. If you are willing to stick to your confirmed route, you can avoid paying a fare difference. As per the airlines, the categories economy, business, premium economy are further divided into subcategories that are priced differently and from there arises the pay difference. An existing air reservation is differently priced in the travel schedule than a new booking. An air fare difference is usually very high because the system reschedules a reservation in a higher subcategory of the travel class.
Checking baggage allowance before booking
You will be in for a big surprise checking in your baggage without prior knowing the free two-bags policy of the airlines. It is generally assumed by the traveler that two travel pieces of baggage are allowed but it is not always the case. While air India does offer the same privilege but not united airlines for instance. So, next time when you book online cheap flights to India from USA. Keep a tab on the baggage policy so that you don’t have to pay extra at the last moment. Book only those flights that offer the two baggage carrying.
Two one-way flights vs roundtrip flights
If you are booking last minute flight tickets to India then keep in mind the pros and cons of booking two one-way flights vis a vis roundtrip flights. Generally, two one-way flights are costlier than roundtrip flights but it comes with a caveat. If you are a frequent changer of dates of your flights, then it will be a costly affair to change the date of round trip flights. Moreover, a half-used round-trip flight booking is non-cancelable and non-refundable. Even if the refund is approved then it will be a tiny amount to the tune of only 10-20 percent.
Weekend travel vs weekday travel
Weekday international travel is generally cheaper than weekend travel and it is not a myth. Weekday flights say from new york to Delhi on Wednesday or Thursday cost lesser than weekend flights on the same route. Let’s see this through real-time example from Tripbeam.
Turkish Airlines offered the San Francisco to Mumbai flight at $1050 on Sunday and priced it at $1348 on Wednesday. That’s a whopping difference of 300 bucks. If in case you are four travelers( with kids) you can easily save around and over $1000 on your one-way trip.
Flying via Europe if US visa has expired
It is an effective way of saving money if your US visa has expired to bypass Europe. Having a European city for your layover will demand a transit visa. The fees for which cause you to shell out more money making the trip more expensive. The best way is to travel to India via the middle east and not Europe. No transit visa is mandatory for traveling via Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, and Istanbul. Check the itinerary properly before you book online cheap flights to India from USA and save yourself the unnecessary burden of paying for the transit visa.