If I were asked how I start every single trip I plan, I would most certainly say: with Google Flights! It is hands down the most reliable and informative search engine for finding flights anywhere in the world. I enjoy it so much that I often will spend time searching for flights that I have no intention of booking.  I do the research to help you save time and money! 

What I love about Google Flights:

There are several things that make google flights so easy to use, making it an excellent tool when looking for flights. Not only is it user friendly, it is simple, comprehensive and valuable, streamlining the process of searching for flight options all over the world. A few of the reasons I love using it includes:

• User-friendly interface: Google Flights has a clean and straightforward layout. It’s easy to navigate and understand, even for first-time users. It is super fast in its results! No matter how many of the features/filters you use, or how broad your search criteria, results are almost instant.
• Price comparison: A major perk is its ability to compare prices across a vast network of airlines and online travel agencies. This saves time and effort, letting you see all the options in one place. The layout that is displayed makes it easy to compare and contrast each option against the others and filters help narrow your search even more.
• Flexible search options: Google Flights offers various ways to find results. You can search for specific destinations or explore possibilities based on your budget and desired travel dates. It allows you to search up to 7 departing and arriving airports, expanding your results to better find the cheapest options.
• Price tracking: A valuable feature for budget-conscious travelers is the price tracking tool. You can set up alerts to be notified if the price of your desired flight fluctuates. I use this all the time! I simply search the flight and then toggle the price tracking tool. Before I know I get emails with each price change so that I can better manage when I book.
• Calendar view: This allows you to see price variations for different days within your travel window. This helps you identify the most economical days to fly. A full 2-month display will always be available allowing you to make changes to your itinerary based on cheapest options. Adjusting your travel dates by just 24-48 hrs can massively change the flight cost. 
• Multi-city search: Planning a trip with multiple stops? Google Flights can handle that too, searching for the best combinations of flights for your itinerary. This is another easy to manage feature, making a complicated itinerary that much easier. 
• Map search: My favorite feature! The Explore map allows you to see the cheapest places to fly from your designated airport. You can pull the map inward to find smaller airports within a region as well as take a broader view seeing all possible options.

How to use: Let’s start with a tutorial to unveil some of the key features. 

• To begin: set your data to include departure airport– you can list up to 7, separating each by a comma. For example: BWI, IAD, JFK. Next add your destination– this can also be up to 7 airports OR anywhere OR Caribbean, Europe, etc. Get the jist?

* A note on Washington DC. Listing this as the departure airport automatically includes IAD, DCA and BWI. Same goes for listing New York including JFK, LGA, EWR.

* You can select One way, Round trip or *Multi-City

*Multi City: Let’s say you are planning an epic itinerary taking you through multiple European countries. When using the multi-city search option you can select up to 5 destinations. You have flexibility in arranging your trip stops and Google Flights will automatically search for flight combinations between your chosen destinations.

Set the dates: If you simply click the calendar for departure a 2 month display will produce all the lowest offers for those 2 months. That helps you instantly see if let’s say flying on a Tuesday is much cheaper than flying on a friday. Lowest fares will always be in green. From the calendar, you click on the dates you would like to fly. 

Click the dates you desire and select Search and a super comprehensive list of all the flight options including stops, layovers, cost etc will magically appear. This is a great feature allowing you to easily compare your options! 

* As you can see, it also indicates if this is a good flight deal or not. I take this with a grain of salt, but think it helps me decide on booking or not.

How to Book: This can feel tricky since you cannot book your flights through Google Flights. Instead you click on the flight you would like and you will see a display like this:

You can book through these links OR, I like to go to the specific airline website and book directly there. That way, there is no third party involved. I use Google Flights for the research part of my planning, and then head over to the airline websites to book.

Explore Map feature: My favorite way to get inspiration for a trip. I use this feature mainly in 2 ways:

1. View of the whole world by typing Anywhere

2. Specific region views such as Europe or Caribbean.

* Remember, you can zoom in on the map to uncover even more destinations within the view.

Utilizing filters:  There are many helpful filters to define your search even more and specify what you need out of your flight itinerary. The filters include:

• Stops – Airlines- Bags- Price- Times- Emissions- Connecting Airports- Duration   – 

Airlines: Let’s say you have status with a specific airline, or opposingly, you know you do not want to fly a specific airline you easily opt in or opt out of your choices. You may also do the same with Star Alliance,OneWorld, and Sky Team.

Bags: Adjusts fares depending on checked/carry on luggage that you plan on having.

Price: You can cap your search at a certain price point. For example, when using the Explore map, I could set my max price to be at $500. This would display only those destinations that cost $500 or less. 

Times: This helps in the planning process of the itinerary. You can adjust take off or landing times accordingly. Know you land in Paris at noon and need to search for a flight out to Istanbul? Set the departure setting for 3pm or later to ensure you have the time you need to make it to the next flight! 

Emissions: This filter allows you to prioritize flights with comparatively lower carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions compared to the typical options for your chosen route. This factors in things like seat class, type of aircraft, and flight itinerary.

Connecting airport: In this feature I use the Layover duration feature to weed out any itineraries that may have obnoxiously long layover times. 

How to track flights: I currently have this feature set on more than a handful of flights that I am always interested in. If you have a destination you know you want to go, it’s nice to get email alerts with price changes. This alert allows you to consider booking tickets when pricing is low. Additionally here, you can see a weak view which can be helpful when strategizing when to fly. 

Which airlines are included: Spoiler alert:  A LOT of them! For that reason, it’s easier for me to simply say that Southwest Airlines is not included in these searches. Interestingly, oftentimes the flight will come up, but there will be no cost associated and you have to go to the website to find the information.

I love Google Flights and think it can be a powerful tool when looking for travel inspiration or when you are ready to find flights to make your dream trip a reality! Good luck!