How to Schedule Overseas Flights
Traveling overseas is almost always a rewarding venture, but booking the most economical flight to your destination can often be a daunting endeavor. Using a travel agent can ease the process and is probably the most convenient way to book international flights. But if you plan to book your flight on your own, it's possible for nearly anyone to find affordable overseas flights if you're willing to take a little time and do some online research.
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Instructions
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Get your travel documents in order. Before researching flights, make sure your passport is up to date. Some countries won't allow a U.S. citizen to enter on a passport that is six or fewer months away from an expiration date, so check with your destination country. A safe bet is to renew your passport if it's close to its expiration date. Also, find out if your destination country requires visas, and obtain those well in advance of your flight.
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Do your homework. Research which airlines fly to your destinations, and if there are specialty or country-specific airlines. Sometimes, foreign airlines have better rates than U.S. airlines flying to an overseas destination.
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Consider reward travel. Booking an overseas flight is a great opportunity to use all of those flight miles you've racked up. If you are a member of frequent-flier programs, check your airlines to see if they go to your destination. If so, see if you can use reward miles to book your trip. If you are a member of any other travel-reward program, such as through American Express or other credit card companies, see if you can transfer points you've accumulated with those programs to the frequent-flier program that flies to your destination.
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Use online travel sites. If you can't book international travel on reward miles, there are a plethora of websites that aggregate flights and fares from various travel sites to help you find the best fare and itinerary. Those sites include travelzoo.com, kayak.com, orbitz.com, expedia.com, cheapoair.com, cheaptickets.com and priceline.com. Using these sites can help you discover which airlines often have the lowest fares to your destination, and then you can go directly to airline sites to explore your options there as well.
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Be flexible. In an ideal world, you'd be able to book a flight directly from your departure city to your arrival city for a reasonable fare. But be prepared to connect for cheaper fares--maybe more than once. If your travel dates are flexible, consider traveling on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Saturday, when fares tend to be less expensive.
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Tips & Warnings
Be as sure as you can about your travel dates before you book. Travelers can incur steep fees when making changes to airline tickets these days, especially ones to international destinations.
If you're purchasing online, be aware of the rules and restrictions on tickets from those sites, and know whether you have to call the airline or the online booking agent to make any changes or for customer service on the ticket.
Pay attention to what airline is operating the flight you book. With airlines code-sharing so much on flights these days, one airline might appear to be operating the flight when actually it is another whose terminal and gate you have to be at on the day of travel.
Know what the baggage limits and restrictions are on the flights you book. International flights can have different rules based on the destination country.
