Find inexpensive airfare

Ed. note - I covered this topic about six months ago, but enough has changed that it needed updating.

"How do you do it?"

I get this question a lot; how does a cash-strapped family squeeze international travel into the schedule and budget?

There's no way to travel for free, and traveling does cost money. This is how we set aside cash for our travel budget. Sometimes that means a trip once a year and sometimes it means a trip every four years, with no vacation anywhere in "off" years:

• I don't wear makeup

• I never get manicures/pedicures

• I get about two haircuts per year

• almost all my clothes and shoes are secondhand

• our cars are old

• we pack lunches for work

• I don't have a pricey coffee habit (well, I do, but I rarely indulge it)

• we don't eat gourmet meals

• we limit the restaurant trips we make, and when we do go to a restaurant, we limit how much we spend

• our grocery store budget is minimal (think rice, lentils, bread and vegetables)

• I have at least one side gig or second job year-round

Even with these shortcuts, travel is tough. If we want to see the world, it must be on a tight budget. I start with airfare, which is usually the biggest chunk of a travel budget; accommodations are a close second. Finding inexpensive airfare includes a few key factors:

• when you travel and book flights

• where you fly from

• which "class" you travel

• which airline you use

• where you land

• how you use commuter flights and hub airports

• which airfare websites you use

When you travel

Summer is vacation time, right? No!

I explore this in a separate blog post, Don't travel in the summer. Despite U.S. traditions, summer is when you'll pay the most for airfare and hotel rooms.

During "peak season," which runs from about June through August for most places, airfare costs three to four times higher than airfare during the shoulder season (September-October or April-May) or the off season (November-March).

Within these guidelines, you have just a couple cautions. Europe's Christmas markets create a surge in late December, and if you're traveling to the southern hemisphere, peak and off season flip.

My first choice for travel is September and October. In most places, the weather is dry and sunny, the temperature is ideal, the days are reasonably long and the growing season is still going. Translation: you have efficient time and daylight to explore, your food prices are lower and flowers are blooming.

You'll also save money by paying attention to when you book your flights, because last-minute flights are among the most expensive. Aim to book flights about 40 days before a domestic flight, and 70 days before an international flight.

Regardless of when you book your flights, remember that a little flexibility can save you a lot of money. If you fly from Toronto to Rome on November 22 and return on December 6, the airfare runs around $800. But if you fly out and return just a couple days later -- November 25 to December 9 -- the price drops to $478.

Where you fly from

Typical round-trip airfare to London from my hometown airport during the summer runs about $2,000.

Airfare from my hometown airport in the off season runs about $1,500. Flying from Chicago, a few hours away, runs about $1,000. Flying from Toronto, also a few hours away, is closer to $500.

Yes, a more distant airport requires more time off work; you need to take the train or drive. Factor these costs into the final price of your plane ticket. If it's as dramatic as our calculations, though, you'll still find one airport that saves you hundreds of dollars per person.

Fly from your closest airport when it makes sense, but never make that your only point of origin.

Which "class" you travel

Business class and first class are the most expensive ways to travel, of course. Unless you have a medical issue that prevents you from traveling economy class, it's an easy way to save 50 to 80 percent off your airfare.

Is it cramped? Yes. But you likely need to put up with it for only for a few hours -- the length of a work day or less.

Put up with the cramped quarters, don't be a jerk, and get over it. You'll live.

You'll save even more when you skip the baggage fees and travel with just a carry-on. Get tips at my Packing light is a breeze blog post.

Which airline you use

Some travelers are loyal to a particular airline for travel miles. I've crunched numbers and found that it's cheaper for me to fly with whatever airline offers the best price for each trip.

Here's a bit of advice, though; book directly with the airline, not with a third party. You'll get nearly identical airfare, but you'll find more departure and return time options. If you need to (gasp) change something later, customer service will be better than if you are three generations away from the people running the show.

Here's another tip; always buy trip insurance. Just make sure it's with a different organization than the airline. Even though your airline offers trip insurance, you could lose all your airfare if the airline goes bankrupt (WOW Air, anyone?).

Where you land

Choosing the right arrival airport is as important as choosing the right departure airport.

Berlin, Dublin, Frankfurt, Lisbon, London, Munich and Rome are a few of the reliably cheap "hub" airports in Europe. As long as you have the time to get to your final destination, use these lower-cost airports as springboards to get away to your getaway.

Hint: see the next segment for tips on how to do this.

Commuter flights and train trips from hub airports

Commuter flights within a continent have become remarkably affordable: outside the U.S., anyhow. You can save substantial money by flying into a hub airport and then picking up a short commuter flight to your final destination. A flight from Lisbon to Rome, for example, costs as little as $88 round-trip.

Just check the carrier's site for additional costs for things like baggage, including carry-on baggage. This is how carriers like easyJet and Ryanair make up the difference between their expenses and bargain-basement airfare.

Cheap flights make the most sense for people who travel light (think carry-on only), who don't mind very early or very late flights (the budget airlines often limit their daily flights), and who either travel alone or are OK sitting apart from each other.

Don't rule out trains, either. If you want to fly into, say, Strasbourg, France, it's going to be expensive. But if you fly into Frankfurt am Main, Zurich or Luxembourg and then take the train to Strasbourg, you're likely to spend less in time and dollars (Euros).

Airfare websites

"Where do you find deals?"

The sad truth is that there's no single place to find inexpensive airfare. Google Flights is popular, although people also swear by Skyscanner, Kayak and Hipmunk as aggregators to see what's available. Once you see what's out there, book directly with the airline whenever possible.

After a while, you'll notice that the factors covered first in this blog affect the price much more dramatically than the website where you find airfare.

Happy traveling!