Put airfarewatchdog, The Flight Deal, Google Flights, Fareness and trvlvip into your toolbox to score amazing flights and hotels on sale!

Need inspiration for your next memorable vacation? It’s impossible not to be inspired by the many flight and hotel deals we’ve seen this year. With lower fuel costs and increased competition we’ve found better prices than we’ve seen in many years. Do you want in on the fantastic supply of amazing premium and economy class flight deals? Let us show you how to stay on top of the amazing flight and hotel opportunities and the tools we suggest using to achieve the greatest success!

For most vacation travelers, the criteria for deciding on their next adventure is a combination of destination, duration, comfort and price. While amazing flight deals can provide inspiration, they can also produce frustration when you can’t easily find dates that work for you. While the sale prices are often valid for travel several months into the future, the sale fares are limited and those who have the most flexibility and book early get the best deals.

Studies show that the typical person planning a vacation will visit more than 20 sites before booking a holiday trip.

Sure, many websites track current flight sales – and they all have their niche. Our niche at trvlvip is Luxury for Loyalty. But we’re not egocentric – many other sites rock their space.

Let us help you lessen the research burden with four amazing travel tools:

#1. airfarewatchdog

We really like airfarewatchdog. With a constant flow of amazing flight and hotel deals it’s hard not to be inspired! This site is one of our favorites because you can easily set up deal alerts specifically for your preferred departure or arrival city or a specific route, and it’s easy to search the site for exceptional global flight deals from most major US cities.

#2. The Flight Deal

We also really like the The Flight Deal. While you cannot receive deal alerts specifically for your preferred departure city or a specific route, you can easily search the site for exceptional global flight deals from most major US cities by choosing your preferred departure city from the “Flight Deals” drop down menu (the first tab).

#3. Google Flights

When you find a destination of interest based on a flight deal, we suggest you use Google Flights to search for dates, the length of trip you prefer, and common trade-offs like number of stops, duration and airline choice (if multiple airlines are having a sale). While most search applications allow you to view flight prices and options over a few days, the Google Flights calendar view allows you to scroll through months well into the future to uncover great deals, and the “I’m Feeling Lucky” option allows you to do a global search if you are hoping for some inspiration. No big surprise that Google has “search” figured out, right?

Follow these seven steps with Google Flights:

1. Access Google Flights.
2. Add your departure and arrival city.
3. Add a departure and return date (by clicking on the small “31” icon below the departure and arrival cities) to see prices for those dates.
4. If you have flexibility, click on either “Flexible Dates” or “Price Graph” under the “31” icon again to see a calendar view and bar graph with prices for various departure and return dates well into the future; you can also add your preferences (e.g. non-stop flights, specifics airlines, specific airline alliances, etc.) and use the option at the bottom of the bar graph to see how the prices change for shorter or longer trips.
5. Finally, if money-saving options are available, you will see a “tip” at the top of your results alerting you possible savings if you fly on a different day or use a nearby airport.
6. Google Flights will then send you directly to the airline’s main website to book your flight.
7. If you’d like to learn more about Google Flights and the awesome inspirational tool to use if you are undecided regarding your destination take a look at our great Google Flights Tip.

#4. Fareness

If you don’t have specific dates and a destination in mind and want to be inspired, Fareness is also an excellent tool. Fareness allows you to enter a wide range of destinations or even types of destinations over a flexible period of time (e.g. Asia, Europe, the beach in February and March for seven days or over a long weekend) to receive an inspirational grid of suggestions showing the most competitive fares with a wide variety of destination choices.

If you find a deal or destination of interest you will see a calendar to compare prices and even view hotels for the same dates that can be sorted by price, stars and location. And while you can’t book directly on Fareness (they will send you to Priceline), you have the advantage of booking directly with the airlines and hotels, which will assure you’ll enjoy all of the loyalty benefits you are rewarded with by booking directly.

#5. trvlvip

Okay, now let us toot our own horn a bit. A fantastic flight deal from your preferred airline (or one of that airline’s partners) can be the first step in planning a wonderful trip. A lucrative travel loyalty promotion or discount can also be a deciding factor for which destination to choose and whether to favor one airline, hotel or car rental company over the others.

So, review trvlvip’s current Perks and promotions across the largest airlines, hotel chains and car rental companies while planning your trip and choose the filter function (at the top of the Browse Perks page) to explore your favorite programs.

And always remember that airline, hotel and car rental loyalty programs provide a fast track to more comfort and luxury whether you travel for business or pleasure. And an awesome flight deal on your preferred airline or one of their partners or with your favorite hotel company can be an easy way to rack up the award miles and points!

The Wrap-Up:

When you want vacation inspiration and to save money without sacrificing luxury or convenience, having airfarewatchdog, The Flight Deal, Google Flights, Fareness and trvlvip in your corner is your ticket to finding an amazing deal – so turn them on and start planning your next memorable trip today!

As always, let us know about your great travel successes by leaving us a nice note on Facebook and Twitter! Happy deal hunting!

Happy Loyalty, Happy Travels!