Best time of the day for free upgrade according to holiday expert

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With the rising cost of living, finding the best deals is essential when going on holiday this year. According to travel expert at Next Vacay Naveen Dittakavi there is a specific time of the day travellers are more likely to get a free upgrade, and it is a great way to save money.

He explained that trying to get free perks rather than paying for extra costs, such as airline upgrades, will help holidaymakers save hundreds.

Naveen revealed that “you need to pick the right flights to increase your chances” and according to the expert, it is always better to fly when no one else does.

Flight attendants are more likely to move passengers to First Class on an empty flight. “Flights that depart on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays are the lowest volume business travel days,” he said.

Early morning flights are “usually packed with business travellers, so it’s unlikely that you would be able to get a free upgrade here,” he explained.

“Your best option,” according to the travel expert, is “choosing to fly on national holidays or flights in the middle of the night”.

This is because “you’ll be able to avoid the business traveller rush who needs to be in the office by 9am”.

He added: “Since these types of flights are usually full of families, you’ll have an even better chance of landing a free upgrade to business class if you’re in a couple or flying solo.”

Naveen shared other tips to save money on your next trip, including flying between Tuesday and Thursday.

“When looking for flights, you should avoid flying on weekends. Tuesday to Thursday are the better days to fly and you want to avoid flying during peak season, so summer is obviously going to be more expensive around the holidays when the flight prices get bumped up,” he said.

The expert also recommended booking the holiday six weeks to two months in advance for a summer trip.

“Any closer and you’ll start to see those prices tick up, or worse, they might sell out, since plenty of airlines are already struggling with the overload of travellers this year,” he warned.

He also recommended “using your time wisely to watch price trends and get an idea of what’s a good price for your destination sooner rather than later” as demand has been soaring for summer travel.

Another way to save money is booking through an airline rather than a third-party site as there is a chance that the airline will go “above and beyond for you” if you book with them.

Booking through sites like Expedia can be tricky as if travellers ever have a problem or challenge with the flight, they will have to go through a third party to resolve it.

“An airline is more likely to have a team to quickly deal with the issue either in-person or via a call service. With a third party, it’s likely the best option they could give is to refund you, which isn’t helpful if you’re just looking to get to a destination.

“The airline, on the other hand, will do everything in its power to get you to your destination,” he explained.

Other money-saving tips are to be destination-savvy and book car hires in advance. “When looking for tickets, you’ll want to keep these things in mind, and if you’re flexible, you can adjust your plans accordingly to make sure you find the cheapest flights anywhere,” he said.

This is because there are many variables that go into what city will be the cheapest place to fly into at any given time, from seasonality to flight time.

In terms of car hire, holidaymakers should book their car a few weeks before their trip. “You can even choose to pay on arrival option for more flexibility,” the expert suggested.

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