Travel Expert Says 'Awash In Cheap Summer Flights'; Offers Money Saving Travel Tips

DENVER (CBS4) - Scott Keyes, who founded the travel website Scott's Cheap Flights in Colorado, says as Americans are returning to flying with loosened rules and regulations and widespread vaccines "we are now awash in cheap summer flights." But he warns it won't last.

In a recent interview with CBS4, Keyes said travelers thinking of booking flights for this summer should do it sooner rather than later as he expects killer flight deals won't last much longer.

He said an example of recent cheap flight deals from Denver included roundtrip to Miami for $59 per person, from Denver to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands for $212 roundtrip and from Denver to Japan for $453 roundtrip.

"There is no best day or best time to book your flight," said Keyes, but he said the cheapest days of the week to travel are Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday.

In a wide ranging conversation, the travel expert noted that business and first class seats, which traditionally have been prohibitively expensive, are now much more affordable for average flyers.

"Right now business travel is depressed," said Keyes, "And the fact there is not as much business travel means airlines have cut fares on first class seats to sell some to vacationers" -- rather than fly with empty seats.

He said due to the pandemic, Americans are sitting on an estimated $10 billion in unused flight vouchers. He urged anyone with flight credit to take a close look at their vouchers or credits and look for:

- Expiration date. If it's coming up, he suggests calling the airline and asking if they will extend the expiration date out 6 to 12 months. "They're trying to engender good will," and might be willing to extend the credits.
- What can you use the voucher for? Keyes said you should read the fine print and see if you can only fly the same route or can apply the credits to other flights.

Keyes said these days, airfares are like a roller coaster with prices driven by supply and demand.

"Today's expensive flights might be tomorrow's cheap flights," he said, so check back often on fares as they change rapidly depending on market conditions.

What about international travel? 
Keyes said "Most airlines are flying far fewer planes and routes to international destinations than they had been at this time two years ago. There are still good international deals, just fewer of them."

Looking forward, Keyes said after this summer -- a traditionally expensive time to fly -- he expects cheap flights to come back well into 2022.