Five travel tips to get the most bang for your buck on flights these holidays

1. Book early

Fares increase as departure dates draw closer and the flights start to fill up. To take advantage of FlySafair’s low airfares, booking early is a must.

2. Travel mid-week

Flights on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday are usually the best value for money. So, if you can coordinate your leave to get away a day early, you could save.

3. Opt for flexibility

These uncertain times call for more flexibility, which is why FlySafair has updated its change and cancellation policy across all its fare options. Passengers who book a Lite or Standard Fare ticket can cancel their flight and receive a refund voucher, less a service fee of R300 per ticket. Standard Fare ticket holders will have two fee-free changes, while Premium allows for unlimited fee-free changes. This applies to all flights departing before 31 March 2021.

4. Download the FlySafair app and subscribe to the newsletter

Search for and book your next flight through the FlySafair app (available on Android and iOS). You’ll also be able to manage your booking as well as access your boarding pass on your smartphone. Subscribe to the FlySafair newsletter and be the first to know about the latest deals.

5. Plan your annual leave

With some careful planning, the upcoming public holidays could make your annual leave days go further. For example, Freedom Day falls on a Tuesday this year and if you put in a day’s leave on Monday, 26 April, you’ll enjoy four days off. To compare, search and book affordable flights these holidays, visit this website here.

With Human Rights Day, Easter weekend and Freedom Day around the corner, the airline hopes South Africans will seize the opportunity to enjoy a well-deserved break while also supporting the local travel industry.

“Many of our passengers had their festive travel plans disrupted due to the second wave of COVID-19 infections and the host of restrictions that came with it. We’re hoping that with the string of public holidays on the horizon, South Africans will rekindle their travel plans,” says Kirby Gordon, Chief Marketing Officer at FlySafair.

The re-introduction of level three lockdown restrictions in mid-December was another heavy blow for everyone in travel and hospitality, from big hotels and smaller guest houses to airport shuttle drivers and restaurant waiters. The new COVID-19 variant has also prevented many international tourists from escaping the winter-stricken Northern Hemisphere to warmer South African shores.

“Things were starting to look up in late November and early December. Domestic airlines had returned around 43% of their seats to the market, which is still unsustainably low but was a high point in the recovery to that stage. In February, it looks like that number may have dropped again to about 38%, which is a huge blow,” says Gordon. “We need to get South Africans travelling again to encourage a sustainable recovery for the tourism industry.”