Booking a business class seat on short notice is pretty much a wild dream. You are thinking of couchette class, champagne on arrival, lounge access…but then check the price, boom, three times your budget. The good news is, it’s not always impossible to get cheap last minute business class tickets without ending up broke.
Some Sneaky Ways Airlines Fill Empty Business Seats
Something most folks don’t know about last minute business class tickets is that the airlines don’t like to fly with empty premium seats. Buying a seat that’s unsold just before takeoff is not money well made for them. Then what do they do? Quietly, they slash prices and offer upgrades, but you won’t hear about them shouting. It’s got to know how to spot these hidden gems.
- Same-day upgrade deals: During check in at the airport and also online when you check in, look out for upgrade offers. Airlines sometimes throw a low cost business seat right into that discount too. You can also get an upgrade for (a fraction of) the price of the original business fare.
- Use your loyalty points—even if it’s not a full fare: And you don’t need a million miles to fly business. Now some airlines even let you do the part cash, part miles deal. It’s perfect if you’ve got some previously unused points from when you went to Miami last year.
- Look for “mistake fares”: Airlines screw something up every once in a while. You’ll find a business class ticket that’s supposed to be $2,000, is actually showing at $500. The most notable find, in this case, will get snatched up fast, so sites like Ask for Airlines and SecretFlying are good to watch. They’re magic when they happen, but no guarantees.
Less Obvious Hacks That Can Actually Work
Most people think last minute business class tickets are only for those who plan months ahead. But here’s what travel insiders know:
- Split your trip in half: If you can, book two one way tickets instead of a round trip and maybe you’ll find a better deal. On some legs you’ll fly business one way, economy on the other — but you get so much as a taste of that legroom, it’s worth it.
- Try calling a consolidator: This is the folks that get special access to fares that don’t show up online. They are sort of ticket brokers. Maybe a quick call will show you deals you’ve never seen yourself. It’s even more effective because not many people do this anymore.
- Fly during odd hours: Less people want to book super early morning or late night flights. The further away you are from departure time, the better and especially on weekdays if a business seat is empty only a few hours before departure your chances of getting a deal go up.
- Check smaller airline websites directly: Far fewer people pay attention to big name carriers, but regional or lesser known carriers will on occasion drop last minute business class tickets of premium seats they need to fill. They won’t always show up on comparison sites so it’s worth looking at their own pages.
Of course a lot of travelers assume that business class is out of their league and don’t even look at it. The truth is, however, that they do exist. There are cheap last minute business class tickets. All you need to do is be flexible and act fast and not be afraid to look outside the norm book tricks, but I guess that goes without saying.
When you fly next, don’t stick your nose up to the business class tab—you can be lucky enough to fly like a king.
