Booking flights for a family can feel wildly expensive—and often overwhelming. Flights frequently end up being the most expensive part of a trip, and when you’re traveling with multiple kids, that cost adds up fast.
When kids are little, families often have more flexibility on travel dates (current me is gently telling you to take advantage of that while you can). As kids get older, travel becomes restricted to peak times—school breaks, holidays, and summer—when everyone else is flying too.
So how do you find cheap flights for a family without turning flight searches into a part-time job?
After five years of traveling regularly with kids, this is the single strategy that’s made the biggest difference for our family—and helped us take far more trips than we otherwise could.
Why Flights are the Most Expensive Part of Family Travel
Lodging can often be adjusted. Activities can be scaled. Flights? Not so much.
Once you multiply ticket prices by four or five people, even “reasonable” fares become painful. And when travel dates are locked into school schedules, it can feel like you’re stuck paying whatever the airlines decide to charge.
But we’ve found that one key shift makes a huge difference.
The Flexibility Shift that Helps Families Find Cheaper Flights
A lot of advice about finding cheap flights focuses on being flexible with dates. That’s great in theory—but for many families, it’s simply not realistic.
Instead of being flexible on when we travel, we’ve learned to be flexible on where we go.
We plan around known vacation windows and stay open to destinations that have great fares during those times. That mindset shift has unlocked trips to Iceland, Denmark, Italy, Hong Kong, Jackson Hole, Hawaii, New York, Malta, Brazil, and more—often for less than flying domestically within the U.S.
For families tied to school calendars, destination flexibility is the real unlock.
Our Go-To Strategy for Finding Cheap Flights for a Family
There are plenty of points games to be played (I’ll tell you about the time I booked round-trip flights to Fiji for 40k points another time), but this is not that post.
This approach is about keeping things simple, repeatable, and manageable. It’s been our family’s go-to strategy for the last five years.
I signed up for Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights), and it has more than paid for itself—usually in a single booking each year.
How It Works
- You enter your home airport (or airports)
- You receive alerts for domestic and international flight deals
- You can browse deals by cabin (economy, premium economy, business)
- You can set alerts for specific destinations if you’re tracking one
The website and app are always available, but the real magic is in the alerts.
We already know the vacation windows we have throughout the year. When a deal comes through that looks interesting and aligns with one of those windows, I check the dates. If it fits—we book.
If it doesn’t, we let it go, knowing another opportunity will come around.
Why Flight Alerts Work Better than Endless Searching
Life with kids gets busy fast. I don’t have hours to spend bouncing between Google Flights, Skyscanner, and airline sites hoping to stumble onto a deal.
This system:
- Eliminates endless searching
- Reduces decision fatigue
- Turns travel planning into a simple yes-or-no decision
- Encourages discovering places we might not have otherwise considered
Most importantly, it keeps travel from staying hypothetical. Trips actually get booked.
Real Examples of Cheap Flights We’ve Booked as a Family
To make this concrete, here are some real fares we’ve booked over the years. All flights originated from SEA.
- Hong Kong – Air Canada
Booked end of May for September travel: $692 adults / $579 kids
(Saver options were available for less, but we upgraded) - Jackson Hole, WY – Delta
Booked June for December travel (Christmas–New Year): $163 per person - São Paulo, Brazil (GRU) – Delta
Booked February for November (Thanksgiving): $519 per person - Malta (via AMS) – KLM
Booked January for August travel: $559 per person - Copenhagen, Denmark (with free 3-day Iceland stopover) – Icelandair
Booked January for late May (Memorial Day weekend): $707 per person - New York (EWR) – United
Booked April for September travel: $197 per person
(Paid $114 per person after using United credits)
We sometimes see even cheaper deals come through, but because our dates are fairly fixed, we often book further out. That also gives us time to research destinations, plan activities, and sort out lodging.
Note: Not every flight here was a rock-bottom fare – some, like Copenhagen, were solid value for peak dates and added perks (like a free stopover), which matters when traveling with kids.
What to Know About Saver Fares, Refunds, and Flexibility
Some of the best flight deals are saver fares. After canceling trips in the past due to illness (hi, COVID), we usually upgrade to at least main cabin or choose options that allow cancellations or credits.
It’s not always the cheapest option—but flexibility matters when traveling with kids.
If you’re ever unsure, remember that U.S. airlines allow you to cancel within 24 hours of booking for a full refund (for flights booked at least seven days out). That safety net makes it much easier to act on a deal.
What Happens After You Book the Flight
Once flights are booked, the next thing that makes family travel exponentially easier—especially internationally—is getting through airports faster.
Many of these trips involve international arrivals, which is where Global Entry has been a game-changer for our family. Cheap flights get you there. Smooth arrivals make the whole trip better. (I’ve written more about using Global Entry with kids here.)
Family Flight Booking FAQs
Do you ever book flights with points?
Yes. But this system is how we decide where to go. Points are often layered in later.
Do you stick to one airline for loyalty status?
No. We prioritize good routes and pricing over loyalty.
Do you fly budget airlines?
Typically no. Once baggage fees and seat selection are added, the savings often disappear—especially with kids.
Checked bags or carry-ons?
When the kids were younger, we checked larger bags. Now everyone mostly manages their own carry-on. Winter ski trips are the exception.
What about smaller airports?
We currently fly out of SEA (and previously SFO), which see frequent deals. Smaller airports may get deals less often—but when they do, they can be excellent if you’re able to take advantage of them.
The Bottom Line
This isn’t about chasing the absolute cheapest flight every time. It’s about creating a system that makes family travel realistic, repeatable, and enjoyable.
By staying flexible on destination, using alerts instead of endless searching, and acting when the right deal appears, we’ve been able to travel far more as a family—without burning out on planning.
More trips. Less stress. And a lot more memories along the way.
