Black Friday 2020

*Updated November 22nd, 2020

With Black Friday being less than a week away, I decided to resurface this blog. I have updated the content to align with this year's searching, new techniques, and cover how last year's findings.

When it comes to the holidays, people enjoy spending time with their loved ones and a good bargain. Black Friday is one of those things I feel like people either really enjoy or absolutely hate. Black Friday has been around longer than I remember (although more stores are open than what I remember) and people flock to the stores to get the best possible deal. Although I do remember Black Friday starting on Friday where now it happens at like 6 pm Thanksgiving day for some stores. A little overboard for me.

But who says that Black Friday deals are only for items like electronics? For those wondering if there are Black Friday deals for travel, let me be the first one to say YES! You can find some unbelievable deals and within the last 3-4 years, Black Friday goes into Cyber Monday and Travel Tuesday now.

I first heard of travel deals on Black Friday when I was getting my hair cut about 5 years ago. The lady informed me that she got 1/2 off her tickets to Australia the year before to visit her boyfriend. So, that year, I was determined to see what she was talking about.

My first year of looking for travel deals on Black Friday taught me a lot about what not to do. Like, don't have your heart set on a destination, dates, departing airport, or really anything. I can say this is advice I give people nowadays when they ask me to help them find a deal to anywhere that is cheap. The more restrictions you apply to your travel, the harder it becomes to find the lowest price. Now, this doesn't mean go into Black Friday shopping with nothing.

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Having an idea of a destination is good because this creates the foundation of what you are looking for. For me, this is the only thing I go into Black Friday shopping knowing. It helps me control the chaos because travel companies will only publish so many offers which are taken quickly. Let's just say the first year I did not purchase any travel deals because of how overwhelmed I got when trying to find the best deal for a destination I hadn't thought of. Seriously, I saw so many deals that I wanted to start comparing deals with other destinations, but by the time I went back to the first deal, it was gone. I was a complete mess the first year.

The second and third year was better as I actually purchased flights. The first trip I purchased was from Atlanta to Los Angeles for only $90 round trip direct flights. The year after that I found tickets for Puerto Rico from Atlanta for only $112 round trip direct flights. I found these deals through Frontier Airlines which offered deals throughout the weekend and stayed around for more hours which was different from the other travel sites like Expedia.

(Driving from Suan Juan to Loiza)

I can vouch that Expedia offers unbelievable deals on a wide selection of travel deals like hotel rooms and airline tickets, BUTTT can be overwhelming. (I have not used this site anymore when looking for Black Friday travel deals.) If you like complete chaos, then Expedia is right for you. That first year, I knew every hour there would be new deals and that some deals were only available to the first 50 customers. Imagine thousands of people looking at the same deal as you and only the first people get it…talk about pressure! And it was one of those things that are there one moment and then you blink… BOOF, GONE!

The deals are just that good. Hotel rooms on sale for 40% to 70% off or higher! If you can stay calm under pressure, then this is the place to look. For 2020, I am only focusing on airline tickets. With the travel industry being at an all-time low due to COVID19, I am super interested in what I will find this year.

Now for me, I do my research weeks in advance on what deals may come out during this timeframe because of wanting to catch the best deal possible. (This is the best tip of mine because if I know I want to visit Costa Rica in 2021, then I need to find airlines that travel there.) And not every destination will be on sale which is something to watch out for. If I know I can find tickets to Paris for less than $500 (round trip) before Black Friday then finding a “deal” offering $550 for those flights is not worth it. Be careful of the wording companies use which makes it seem like this is the “lowest” deal ever. A marketing technique.

Sunrise over Los Angeles

(2019 list) So far, I have listed the following companies to offer a travel deal worth looking into:

· Tour Radar (offered 75% off last year)

· Frontier Airlines

· SkyScanner

· Southwest

· Alaska Airlines

· Hawaiian Airlines

· Expedia, of course

· Travelocity

· Hopper (Reading this one is best for Traveling Tuesday)

2020 list:

~Skyscanner

~Hopper to set up travel alerts for certain destinations I have been dying to visit

~Reading, research, and more reading. Learning new techniques like signing up for emails with certain companies to receive notifications of new deals going live.

~Frontier Airlines

~American Airlines

Now, there are 5 more days until Black Friday starts, so more companies will leak their Black Friday deals, so it is important to keep researching what companies plan on having travel deals. Last year, I learned that airline companies were dropping prices the Tuesday after Thanksgiving and it was called Travel Tuesday.

When learning about it last year I found that this is when any "leftover" flights go on sale and companies are just wanting to get rid of the tickets. So not sure how 2020 will look with everything going on with flying right now. I read that this is when deals can be the lowest of the entire year because of wanting to get rid of the tickets.

2019 Travel Tuesday was a disappointment. I am hoping my changing my techniques for 2020 that I will find some amazing deals. Fingers crossed!

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Now comes the hardest part...knowing if it's a good deal?!

This is where trusting your gut comes into play. The deal will be one that you want to call your friend or family member and brag about the deal. Let your friends ask you “how did you find THAT TRAVEL DEAL?”

Prepping can help eliminate stress while ensuring you are getting the best possible deal. Knowing that deals can be there one second and not the next will help you know when to jump on a good deal. Another key thing to remember if you need some time thinking about buying the tickets, know exactly how you found the deal last time. It sounds crazy, but looking up flights from the homepage of a site vs. navigating to the booking page can make a difference in prices.

Sounds silly, right? Over the years I have noticed airline prices will vary even if you just looked at the minutes before but navigated to that price a different way than before. You wouldn’t believe how many times I try to go find that deal I saw earlier and navigate a different way and that price is jacked up. Back out, even clear cache and cookies, and try your best to negative the same way you did when you found those tickets. It’s crazy, I know! However, taking an extra few steps can help save you money for the next trip! 😊

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And there you have it, folks, how I prepare for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Travel Tuesday travel deals. I wish each of you luck this year with finding a good deal and would love to hear what deal you find. Throughout the upcoming weekend, I will post deals I find on That Travel Deal's Facebook page. Once you find your deal, head over to the Facebook page, and leave a comment.