How to Make the Most of Google flights

Google flights is a fast and reliable flight search engine. Finding the least expensive flights for your desired dates and making a reservation directly with the airline takes just a few clicks and a few seconds. Google’s information comes from the formidable ITA Matrix database, which many users are unaware of. Here are a few techniques for using Gooogle Flights to locate a great fare on your next vacation.

  • Get Updates on Flight Costs

Google Flights  will send you notifications on your phone or email when the price of your desired itinerary drops to a certain point.

Keep in mind to choose a rewards credit card that provides a bonus category for airline expenditures when making your flight purchases. The Chase Sapphire Preferred, for instance, is often regarded as the finest personal travel card due to its generous sign-up bonus of $625 in travel and 2x points for every $1 spent on airfare and hotels. As an alternative, the premium Amex Platinum travel card offers 5x points for $1 spent but comes with a steep $550 annual fee.

In the event of a fare rise, Google flights will notify you with a red box indicating the expected amount of the increase and the timeline for when it would take effect, based on predictive algorithms that examine historical pricing patterns.

These warnings don’t appear on every path, but they’re worth keeping an eye out for. Browse the web normally, and when you’ve decided to monitor airline costs, you’ll start getting these notifications.

The alert will let you know when Google flights predict that the price of a ticket will go down. When that occurs, a green box will appear with an estimated financial gain.

  • Monitor Changes in Airfare

One useful feature of Google flights is the option to see pricing trends over time. If Google thinks prices will go up or down, it will notify you. This second piece of advice will allow you to check the price of flights on your own, using Google.

If you often take the same flight for work or pleasure, this tip may come in handy. Select the flights you’d want Google to keep an eye on by clicking the “Track Price” option, either before picking a departure flight to monitor the average ticket price or after picking a departure and arrival flight to monitor the price of a particular itinerary.

In the menu option “Tracked Prices,” Google graphs the daily price changes with a moving line. Google will keep sending you pricing forecasts right up to takeoff. The graph may also be used to plan ahead and perhaps catch a price drop by purchasing a ticket at a certain point in the future.

  • Look Around the Map

Some people recommend clicking the “I’m Feeling Lucky” button in the Explore Map section of Google flights. The Explore Map function is a handy tool for rapidly getting a birds-eye perspective of flight costs if you have any leeway in your departure or destination points.

If you’re in the mood to toss darts at a map and let Google decide where you should go, you may use the I’m Feeling Lucky button. You may narrow down your results by using more specific search terms such as “Europe,” “Spain,” “Asia,” etc. Do nothing but keep pressing the button if you don’t like their ideas.

Dr. David K Simson
The author, Dr. David K Simson is a trained radiation oncologist specializing in advanced radiation techniques such as intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT), volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) / Rapid Arc, stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), stereotactic radiotherapy (SRT), stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). He is also experienced in interstitial, intracavitary, and intraluminal brachytherapy.