Free Airfare: Can You Really Fly for Free?

Free airfare!! Fly for free!! The advertisements are emblazoned across the internet in a variety of different teasers. It seems too good to be true; how can anyone expect to really fly for free these days?

The advertisements speak the truth, but a closer look is needed. After all, few things in life are truly free. There is always a caveat to the free offer, but in some cases, saving the money on the airfare is generally a boon.

How You Really Can Fly for Free:

1. When flights are overbooked, most airlines often offers booked passengers a free flight voucher in exchange for giving up their seat on their current flight. Look carefully at your voucher, however; there are usually stipulations on allowable travel. There are actually people who book flights with the specific intention of getting bumped in order to receive the free airfare!
2. Time share marketers often use the magnet draw of free round trip airfare to attract new prospects for their time share properties. The airfare is truly free, with the condition that the traveler agreeing to be receptive to a marketing presentation of the company’s time share properties. Purchase is not required, but the marketing approach will be intense. The prospective time share holder generally must give up several hours of their time throughout the period, usually a weekend, but has the rest of the time on their own to explore the area.
3. With a depressed economy, cruise lines are finding it more and more difficult to fill berths on their ships. Creative marketing has come up free airfare offers to help increase interest in cruises. In many cases, the free airfare is only one way to a repositioning location for a cruise ship, and is often a foreign port.
4. Even all inclusive resorts are feeling the pinch of the economy. Offering free airfare for kids when accompanied by two paying adults, resorts such as Sandals and Disneyland hope to attract families to their various destinations. Often, only select resorts are compatible with the free airfare offers, so careful attention must be paid to the details of the offers, which also usually carry “limited time only” caveats.
5. Frequent flyer miles; still a great way to rack up points for free airfare. Although many people believe they need to fly gazillion times in order to earn points, there are numerous other ways to earn them. Hotel stays can provide additional miles, such as Hyatt Gold Passport’s offer for 3,000 additional US Airway miles when staying two or more nights at a Hyatt property through August 31. AAdvantage members can earn more points when renting vehicles through Avis in either the US or Canada through the end of 2009. For Delta SkyMiles and Northwest WorldPerks members, 2,500 bonus miles can be earned by flying a Delta Shuttle between New York and Boston, or New York and Washington, DC.

Yes, there truly are free airfare offers available for the discerning traveler. Know the facts before you commit to any deal, however; most do have stipulations, restrictions, requirements and additional costs that will need to be satisfied. But if they fit right into your plans anyway, you really can fly for free.