How to Rate an Airline: Fair, Good, Bad, or Ugly

Travel
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Hello All,

I come seeking your travel wisdom.

Clark always says, “Find the deal, then find a reason to go.”

Well, how do I tell if a deal is great, good, or just ok?

Example (just an example, I swear I’m not packing for this):

Economy round-trip to the Bahamas for Christmas for $295 via Going.com.

Is this a Great Price, a Good Price, a Fair Price, or just okay?

Is there a magical site like camelcamelcamel.com but for flights?

And before you say “Google Flights!”

Please, I beg you — give me the Clark-smart breakdown. I’ve clicked, I’ve scrolled, I’ve cried. I still can’t figure it out.

Any tips, tricks, or travel hacks welcome.

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Playing with Google Flights you can get a feel for how the price compares:

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Doesn’t Going give you insights on how good the the fares are?

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Thank you, I was hoping to see a 12 month (14 would be perfect) view, something like this from CamelCamelCamel

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I signed up with Going.com because I thought they offered that feature too. If it’s available, I haven’t been able to find it, and unfortunately, customer service wasn’t able to help either.

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If Going sends you an email deal, it will be a bargain. However, the dates and conditions are usually strict. What I would do is click on the Going information and then double-check on Google Flights or Kayak or the actual airline website to confirm.

As pointed out, Google Flights will tell you if the fare you’re looking at is average, low, or high. And you can use the graph to look at past pricing.

But with so many fare options these days (basic economy, main, refundable or not, etc.) we all need to get in the habit of really researching before pulling the trigger and purchasing the airfare. It’s no longer a simple “click to purchase” decision if you’re wanting a deal. Of course, sometimes the hassle to save a few bucks isn’t worth it - like if UA, AA, Delta, and SW all have fares within $20-30 of each other, I’ll pick the best schedule with good connections instead of defaulting to the lowest price.

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