Since the dawn of the World Wide Web, travel has been changed. Since the creation of websites such as Expedia and Hotwire, traveling rates have become extremely competitive. Competition naturally lowers the cost for the consumer, and this is where we are at today. Purchasing airline tickets directly from the airline itself has become less and less of a reality. These discount travel sites have become huge influences on the cost of these tickets, and doing so by simply giving you comparisons and more information than the airline wants you to know.

There are several tips that can help you purchase discount tickets, some of which you may know and some you may not. But knowing all of the facts and little interworking of the airline industry can be vital to your success of finding cheap tickets.

The first step is getting familiar with the workings for sites I mentioned earlier. Expedia and Hotwire are two large web-based pools of information that can display rates from numerous airlines at once. Simply logging on at certain times of the day or week can have a large impact on the price of the ticket. Most sites tend to release new discount ticket prices on Wednesdays. Logging on Wednesday morning is a very good idea to try to strike gold early.

The season in which you travel also plays a big role in prices. For instance flying to a warm climate in the winter will almost always be more expensive than flying there in the summer. Beyond this, studies have shown that big discount times are from mid-January to the end of February, April through Map, and mid-September to mid-December.

Purchasing your tickets at least 21 days in advance will also keep the cost lower. Prices for any airline increase usually within 14-20 days of departure. In case you plan to travel during the holidays, there is huge potential to save large amounts of money if you travel on the day of the holiday and not before or after. Studies have shown there is a good chance that planes do not fill on holidays such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter.

If and when you do purchase a discount ticket, it is a great idea to sign up for the airlines rewards program. Most rewards programs will give you credits or points for every mile flown. When you purchase the ticket at a discounted rate, you are in essence receiving miles you didn't pay for which makes the rewards program all that more useful!

If you really want to bump up your rewards programs, enroll for a credit card that offers rewards on air travel such an American Expresses Blue Card, purchase the discounted ticket with that credit card, then enroll for rewards points with the airline! It's a win-win combination.

Traveling doesn't have to be expensive. With a little searching and a little thinking outside of the box with the help of rewards programs and credit cards that offers points for these purchases, you can knock down the cost big time.