I’ve recently discovered the “Explore” feature of Google Flights. If you haven’t checked it out yet, it is a great way to find some amazing deals on cheap tickets to destinations all over the world.
If you know where to travel and when, you can save yourself hundreds if not thousands of dollars on flights.
There are tons of great destinations waiting to be explored just an hour or two flight from home.
Why not try out a new food scene, take in some amazing art at a new museum or listen to a great concert from your favorite band in a nearby city?
How about visiting family or that friend you haven’t seen for a few years? Nothing beats eating your mom’s homemade cookies or laughing so hard you cry while you catch up with your best friend from college!
Cheap Ticket Finder Tip #1
Here’s how to find cheap tickets to fly round trip all over the United States for under $100.
When using Google Flights, first go to the top of the page and click the second tab that says “Explore”.
Enter whether you will be traveling Round Trip or One Way. Then enter how many travelers you have and what class of flight you’d like to take.
Cheap Tickets Finder Tip #2
Next the trick is to enter the city you are leaving from (Denver in my case), but leave the “Where to” box blank . You can also click the ‘Where to” box and select the “Anywhere” option.
Then when Google asks for the dates go to the second tab for “Flexible Dates”. Search by weekend trips, weeklong trips or two week long trips over the next 6 months. Six months is the maximum amount of time you will be able to search.
You can also search by month if you are working around school schedules, busy times at work, special occasions or you just have a favorite time to travel.
My favorite months to travel are “shoulder season” in May and October. The weather is still nice and usually a little cooler, which I prefer. The prices are also usually cheaper for flights and hotels as well.
Once everything is entered click “Done”.
Cheap Tickets Finder Tip #3
Filter by number of Stops, Travel mode (willing to drive to nearby destination or not), Interests, Price, Airline, Duration and Bags included.
I like that you can search by interests. Choose Popular, Outdoors, Beaches, History or Skiing.
The more flexible you can be the more great deals you’ll find! That’s how I discovered how I could find cheap tickets to fly round trip all over the United States for under $100.
Below are some of the deals I found on the day I was writing this post. Search by the List or zoom in on the Map and explore where you could go.
These cheap tickets are not just last minute flights either. Take a few weeks or months to plan an exciting weekend away or plan a longer more relaxing vacation.
Why not zoom out and explore the Caribbean, Europe or Australia? While not under a $100 you can easily find flights a little farther away all over the U.S. under $200 and some great deals on flights for world travel too.
My Cheap Ticket Score!
I scored a round trip flight from Denver to Salt Lake City to visit a good friend I haven’t seen for years for less than $68!
I also found flights from Denver to Miami or Ft. Lauderdale for $56 or Denver to Las Vegas for $48 that week. I couldn’t take a round trip Uber from the suburbs to downtown for that price!
I found my cheap ticket deal on Frontier Airlines and they have roundtrip flights all over the country for less than $100. That is an insanely good deal!
What’s the catch??
What’s the catch you ask? Well, it’s all the extra fees they add on for seat selection, agent assistance, priority boarding, one time changes and the biggest fees of all? Baggage.
If you are going to book any of these extras I suggest you do it when buying your ticket. If you wait until after you’ve booked your ticket the prices go up and depending on the day, way up.
Frontier airlines not only charges you to check a bag, but also to carry one on. Even with extras, Frontier Airlines flights can still be a good value.
I couldn’t resist the challenge of actually flying on a plane to another state for less than an Uber.
I accepted the challenge and put my expert packing skills to the test. I did have to show that my bag fit in the sizer, but other than that everything went smoothly.
Now if you’ve read some of my other blog posts like Three essential travel bags you can’t leave home without! you already know that I do not check bags. I like the security and freedom of knowing all my things will make it with me and back to my destination.
I thought it was ridiculous to charge for a carry on bag. After all who on earth travels on a plane with no luggage? Until I had an aha moment! The personal item. How am I going to fly with only one personal item you ask?
I have the perfect bag and I stocked it with my four other travel essentials. To read more about how to pack light so you can take advantage of these insanely cheap flights check out this post.
Take my traveling light challenge and score your own cheap tickets, so you can squeeze more travel into your budget!
The cost of everything is going up these days and that includes travel. This post will give you 5 packing light must haves to avoid paying baggage fees.
There has been a huge surge in travel demand after years of lockdown and travel restrictions due to COVID and I’m sure you’ve noticed a tremendous increase in the cost of flights lately as a result.
Don’t worry though there are still ways to find great inexpensive flights and scratch that travel itch without breaking the bank.
I’ve found deals on low cost airlines lately which I talk about in another post, but how they make up the difference is by charging extra fees for everything, even to bring on a carry on bag.
That’s insane! Who could travel without a carry on bag?? Well, I’ve figured it out. I’m going to show you how to avoid baggage fees with my 5 packing light must haves and get you jetting off for the weekend in no time!
If you’ve read some of my other posts you know I do not check bags and I love the freedom and time savings of skipping baggage claim and only bringing a carry on bag.
What do you do though if your airline charges you for a carry on bag? I’m going to expand on another post I did about my three must have bags and make some slight adjustments, so you can take advantage of the great low cost airlines out there without paying extra fees for baggage. Now my 5 packing light must haves!
Packing Light Must Have #1 – Underseater Carry On
First, it all starts with what personal item you choose. I recently rediscovered a bag I used to use when I flew monthly for travel years ago for work. The underseater!
This bag, as the name implies, is a bag that fits entirely under the seat in front of you and can be used as your one “personal item”. I found the latest version of my bag on Amazon for less than the cost of the baggage fee, one way, for my flight to Park City.
The American Tourister Underseater now comes in some fun colors too like teal, pink and purple in addition to black. It also has a fun geometric design interior.
This bag may look small, but with my other packing light must haves and a few packing skills I’ll share, you can be jet setting off for the weekend anytime you want for less than the cost of taking an Uber from the suburbs to downtown and back. Why not have your Saturday night on the town exploring a new fun city?!
A large tote bag, medium duffle bag or backpack would work as well. I just like the convenience of a wheeled bag. Plus a wheeled bag just feels classier.
This bag also has a zippered compartment that the telescoping handle retracts into to save space. The new version also added a strap so you can add it to the handle of a larger bag if you are going on a longer trip. I upgraded my bag to the new version and gave my old one to my travel companion. Now we can both take advantage of packing light must haves to avoid baggage fees!
Packing Light Must Have #2 – Packing Cubes
I know. I know. Everyone talks about packing cubes, but seriously I never travel without them!
Packing cubes keep everything neat and organized and they definitely save space. Just don’t bring seven of them okay?! Only take 3-4 cubes for a 7-10 day trip and 1-2 for a weekend trip. Max!! If you are traveling on a longer trip just do laundry and don’t bring any more clothes. Trust me it will be easier on you.
My packing cubes came from my favorite travel guru, Rick Steves’ website. They are super light, see through, mesh, packing cubes.
I use the big one for all my bottoms or as pictured in the large photo above, all my dresses. The bottoms fold up perfectly and fit nicely in the large cube or I can fit seven dresses if I roll them up tightly (dresses are great by the way if you are traveling to warmer locales, built in air conditioning, just sayin). I can also fit my swimsuit and cover up in there if I’m going somewhere with an ocean or a pool.
Then I use one medium cube for all my shirts. I roll them up to save space and I can fit seven in there easily. I like that I can see all my shirts when I’m deciding what jewelry and accessories to bring.
My pajamas, light robe and hair towel all go in the other medium packing cube. Yes, I do use a Turbie Twist okay! It’s less breakage for my long hair because there is less weight pulling on it than a bath towel. The microfiber also helps my hair dry quicker and it saves my towels from stains when I’m putting my makeup on. I’m sure the hotels appreciate me not ruining their towels too. 😄
Last, but not least I have a solid, opaque, small cube I put all my bras, underwear and socks into. That way TSA doesn’t get a free peak at my lingerie in case they need to open my bag. We are classy, remember? 😂
If I’m only going to bring one personal item, like my underseater bag, I can fit either one large cube or the two medium cubes, but not both. Personally, I like to keep things a little separate, so I use the two medium cubes.
Here are a few packing tips from your best friend:
- Choose a color palette for your clothes to minimize the amount of shoes and outerwear you need to bring. I like white, navy or black as a base and then throw in some different colors to keep things interesting. 😄
- Wear your walking shoes and jacket/sweater on the plane and only bring a low profile pair of flats, sandals or flip flops in your carry-on. The underseater bag has a nice pocket in the front for your shoes.
- Bring a medium sized Ziplock bag to store worn socks and underwear to keep them separate from your other clothes.
- Unpack all your clothes when you arrive at your destination. It gives the clothes a chance to unwrinkle. Then pack each days clothes back in the packing cubes at the end of the night. By the end of the trip all your clothes are packed and you can savor your last night of vacation instead of wasting the night packing!
Packing Light Must Have #3 – Hanging Toiletry Case
I love having a toiletry bag that I can hang up. It’s nice to have everything at eye level and it’s great when you don’t have a lot of counter space like on a cruise ship or at a European hotel. Plus you save extra counter space for your traveling companion(s) which keeps them happy. Plus it keeps everything neat and organized.
Hang it on the back of the bathroom door or a towel bar. I’ve even hung it from a light fixture on the wall in a pinch! The bag I currently use literally went out of stock the day I first made this post, but I’ve linked to a similar one. While I have not personally tried this one, I have always been happy with the quality and durability from L.L. Bean.
This one below has a built in mirror and also comes with a hanging shower caddy which I think would be pretty handy as there is not always enough shelf space in the shower, especially if you are sharing with other people. I just may have to upgrade!
Look for a hanging toiletry bag that can fit a clear bag of liquids in the front pocket. That leads me to my number 4 packing light must have…
# 4 – Clear Bag for Liquids
I like to put all my liquids in a clear cosmetic bag. It’s so much nicer than using a quart sized bag and lasts much longer. I’ve linked to a similar bag to the one I use on Amazon that is TSA approved.
A clear cosmetic bag will keep all your liquids from spilling on anything else. I keep most of my toiletries packed all of the time, so it’s a snap for me to pack for a last minute adventure.
I’ve even waited until the morning before a flight to pack my bag for a trip. I have a checklist saved in my phone’s Notebook app, so I never forget anything. It’s a little more work on the front end to put the checklist together, but it will save you time and stress in the long run.
# 5 – Soft Sided Cross Body Bag
What is really great about this bag though, is that it’s soft sided and you can easily fit it into the space left over in your underseater carry on bag.
Remember, to take advantage of the great low cost air carriers you will only be able to take one personal item, so your purse will need to be put inside your underseater before you board. This bag is a lot more pliable than a more structured bag and will fit more easily.
These bags also come in a variety of colorful and whimsical patterns that I just think are really fun! Choose the one that is uniquely you. 😄
While not a “must have” I do also like the matching Sakroots Eco-Twill Encino Essential Wallet which I can clip to the inside zipper pocket in the main compartment of my purse. I’m less likely to drop it that way or have a thief grab it.
These 5 packing light must haves will save you money, keep you organized and stress free whenever you travel! Do you have any packing must haves? Leave me a comment! If you liked this content please enter your email to subscribe below and make sure you don’t miss out on my next post about how to fly all over the United States for under $100.
This post may contain affiliate links where I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. I do not recommend products that I have not personally used and loved.