Airlines don’t want you to know this: You can uncover huge savings on flights with the right strategies. While LLMs like Grok, GPT, Claude, and Gemini are great at analyzing pricing patterns and helping you plan your booking strategy, you’ll still need external tools or platforms to access real-time flight data.
These AI systems can help you refine your search, understand dynamic pricing, and make smarter booking decisions, but they rely on integrations with flight search engines or price alert systems to give you live updates. In this article, we’ll dive into six AI-powered strategies uncovered by Gina Acosta that will expose hidden airline pricing tricks and show you how to get the best deal on your next flight.
7. Understanding Flight Price Patterns
Prompt:
“I need to fly from [departure city] to [destination city] between [date range]. Analyze the typical pricing patterns for this route. What are the cheapest days to fly, best times to book, and any seasonal price variations I should know about?”
This prompt helps you analyze the typical price fluctuations for flights on your chosen route. By understanding when prices are typically lowest, what times of year are most expensive, and when is the optimal time to book, you can plan your flights to minimize costs. Airlines tend to charge more during peak travel seasons and certain days of the week, so being strategic with your timing could save you a significant amount.
6. Alternative Airports for Better Deals
Prompt:
“For my trip from [city A] to [city B], what are ALL nearby alternative airports within 100 miles of each location? Calculate potential savings if I use these alternatives, including ground transportation costs. Show me the total cost comparison.”
This prompt asks for nearby airports that could offer cheaper flights. Sometimes, flying out of or into a smaller or less busy airport can lead to lower fares. While there may be additional costs to get from these alternative airports to your final destination, the total savings from a cheaper flight might outweigh the extra transportation costs. This prompt helps you consider all your options and choose the most cost-effective airport combination.
5. Mastering Hidden City Ticketing
Prompt:
“Explain hidden city ticketing for my route from [departure city] to [destination city]. Find flights where [destination] is a layover city on a longer route that costs less. What are the risks, rules, and how much could I save? Give me specific flight examples.”
Hidden city ticketing involves booking a flight that stops at your actual destination on the way to another city. Airlines typically price longer flights more affordably, so by booking a flight with your destination as a layover, you can potentially save a lot of money. However, it’s important to understand the risks: Airlines do not approve of this practice and may penalize you, especially if you check luggage. This prompt helps you find these hidden city opportunities and weigh the risks versus the savings.
4. Snagging Mistake Fares and Pricing Errors
Prompt:
“Create a search strategy to find mistake fares and pricing errors for flights to [destination] or [region]. What websites, tools, and alert systems should I monitor? What patterns indicate a mistake fare vs. a normal sale?”
Mistake fares are airline pricing errors that can result in deeply discounted tickets, but they don’t last long. This prompt helps you develop a strategy to identify mistake fares, which can often be spotted using specific tools, alerts, and websites. Recognizing the difference between a mistake fare and a standard sale is crucial to making the most of these deals. By monitoring the right platforms, you can pounce on these errors before they’re corrected.
3. Airline Points Arbitrage: Is It Worth It?
Prompt:
“I’m looking at a $[price] flight from [origin] to [destination]. Analyze if it’s cheaper to: 1) Buy points/miles and book with them, 2) Use a credit card signup bonus, 3) Transfer points from another program, or 4) Book a positioning flight to a cheaper hub. Show me the math for each option.”
This prompt helps you determine the best way to use miles or points for booking your flight. Depending on the flight price and your current rewards balance, purchasing points, using a credit card bonus, or transferring points from another program might save you more money than paying with cash. It also explores the option of booking a positioning flight to a cheaper hub, which could be especially useful for flights with significant price differences between connecting airports. This prompt provides a detailed analysis of all the options to ensure you make the most cost-effective choice.
2. Beating Dynamic Pricing
Prompt:
“Explain how airline dynamic pricing works and how to beat it. Should I clear cookies, use VPN, search in incognito mode, or use a different device? What’s the optimal search strategy to avoid price increases? Also, tell me the best time of day and day of week to book flights to [destination].”
Dynamic pricing is a technique airlines use to adjust prices based on demand, search history, and other factors. This prompt helps you understand how airlines apply dynamic pricing and what you can do to avoid paying inflated prices. Searching in incognito mode, clearing cookies, and using a VPN can help you sidestep price hikes. The prompt also reveals the best times to book, as airlines often offer better deals during off-peak times. By following this strategy, you’ll be less likely to encounter sudden price increases as you search.
1. BONUS: Complete Booking Strategy
Prompt:
“I need to book a flight from [origin] to [destination] departing around [date] and returning around [date]. My budget is $[amount]. Combine all strategies: alternative airports, optimal booking time, hidden city ticketing, points programs, and mistake fares. Give me a step-by-step action plan to find the absolute cheapest option.”
This prompt is the ultimate way to combine all the strategies into a single action plan. By factoring in all the previous methods—alternative airports, the best times to book, hidden city ticketing, points, and mistake fares—you’ll be able to find the absolute best deal. This is the prompt you use when you’re ready to go all in and secure the cheapest flight possible by combining multiple strategies. It ensures you leave no stone unturned in your quest for savings.
