2020 is not a typical year as far as the tourism industry is concerned. The coronavirus pandemic looks set to write off much of the first part of the year as people cancel or postpone their vacations based on the best government advice. While the coronavirus may be terrible news for wobbling airlines and struggling hotels, it has come as a potential godsend for people looking for deals on vacations for this fall. If you play your cards right and are familiar with certain loopholes and tricks when it comes to booking tickets, you may be able to land yourself a fantastic vacation at a bargain-basement price. Read on to find out how.
1. Book Flights and Hotels Now
With such a massive drop in the demand for flight tickets, airlines have been forced to drop their fares dramatically. At the same time, by the estimations of public health officials, the curve of new virus cases is likely to have flattened in just a few months, leaving us free to travel to wherever our heart desires again. If you are confident that we will have sent coronavirus packing by September or October, you should book your flight tickets now to save a ton of cash in the ticket price crash. The same goes for accommodation; many hotels are desperately looking to fill their bookings now at incredibly low prices. Reserve now to take advantage of some of the fantastic deals that are currently doing the rounds.
2. Using VPNs to Score Lower Prices
When it comes to buying flights, not all countries get the same deal. Flight comparison websites use algorithms to display a different set of prices depending on which country our IP address shows up as. A neat way to trick the flight companies is to use a VPN to set your IP address to a country in which flights are cheaper. For the last few years, China has been the cheapest country from which to buy flight tickets, while Canada is the most expensive.
Note: It may be worth investigating whether setting your IP address to some of the countries which are worst affected by the coronavirus crisis could help you find even lower prices due to low a demand for flights. Alternatively, book tickets directly from the websites of cheap airlines like Flynas to find some equally great flight deals.
3. Shake Off the Tracking Cookies
Have you ever noticed that ticket prices have a tendency to go up the more you shop around flight comparison websites? No, you are not imagining it; websites like these use sophisticated tracking cookies to move prices up and down according to how much money they think they can squeeze out of you. You can find a way around these underhand tactics by first clearing your browser cookies and then using a private browser window to thrown them off your trail.
Out of every crisis is born opportunity. This maxim is especially applicable to the current situation in the tourism industry. If you book at an opportune moment using the tricks mentioned above, you may be able to land yourself some cheap flights as part of a deal on a well-deserved vacation to celebrate the end of the coronavirus ordeal.
