Deal Alert: Domestic Flights to Florida From $49 Round-Trip
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
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Airfare deals are typically only available on limited dates. We recommend you use Google Flights to find dates to fly, then book through an online travel agency, such as Orbitz or Expedia, which allows you to cancel flights without penalty by 11pm Eastern Time within one day of booking. However, if you're using The Platinum Card® from American Express, you'll need to book directly with the airline or through Amex Travel portal to get 5x MR points. Remember: Fares may disappear quickly, so book right away and take advantage of Orbitz or Expedia's courtesy cancellation if you're unable to get the time away from work or family.
Winter is quickly creeping up on us, and if you're already dreaming about a warm getaway, today is the perfect day to book flights to sunny Florida. Three major carriers — American, United and JetBlue — are currently offering some extremely good deals to major cities in the Sunshine State, including Miami (MIA), Ft. Lauderdale (FLL) and Orlando (MCO). Even better, you can find these fares from a wide swath of departure cities all across the US — as far east as Philadelphia (PHL), as far north as Detroit (DTW) and as far west as Las Vegas (LAS) — for as low as $49 round-trip.
These fares are concentrated in the winter months of November through February, and in many cases you can book them as separate one-ways instead of round-trips. So if you're having trouble finding available dates, use Google Flights to search for flights in each direction — possibly even on different airlines — then book as two separate tickets on Orbitz, Expedia or directly with the airlines themselves.
For options on American and United, some of these fares are in Basic Economy with various limitations that you may not want. So you'll either want to pay a little more to upgrade to a full fare seat or make sure you have the appropriate co-branded airline credit card to avoid the worst of the restrictions.
Airlines: American Airlines, United, JetBlue
Routes: NYC/PHL/IAD/DTW/ORD/IAH/LAS to MIA/FLL/MCO
Cost: $49+ round-trip in economy
Dates: November 2017 through February 2018
Booking Link: Orbitz or Expedia
Pay With: The Platinum Card from American Express (5x on airfare), Chase Sapphire Reserve, Citi Prestige (5x on airfare) or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on travel)
Here are a few examples of what you can book:
Philadelphia (PHL) to Ft. Lauderdale (FLL) on American for $49 round-trip via Orbitz:
Detroit (DTW) to Miami (MIA) on American for $53 round-trip via Orbitz:
Washington, DC (IAD) to Orlando (MCO) on United for $68 round-trip via Orbitz:
Chicago O'Hare (ORD) to Orlando (MCO) on United for $78 round-trip via Orbitz:
Las Vegas (LAS) to Miami (MIA) for $80 round-trip on American via Orbitz:
Houston (IAH) to Miami (MIA) on American for $80 round-trip via Orbitz:
New York/Newark (EWR) to Ft. Lauderdale (FLL) on JetBlue for $82 round-trip via Orbitz:
Maximize Your Purchase
Be sure to use a credit card that earns additional points on airfare purchases, such as the American Express Platinum Card (5x on flights booked directly with airlines or American Express Travel), Chase Sapphire Reserve, or Citi Prestige (5x on airfare) or the Chase Sapphire Preferred (2x on all travel purchases). Check out this post for more on maximizing airfare purchases.
If you're able to score one of these tickets, please share the good news in the comments below.
H/T: Dan's Deals
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