Deal Alert: US Cities to Mexican Beach Destinations From $196 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 the 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.
If your summer vacations plans are still up in the air, — or you're ready to book your sunny winter or spring break getaways — you might want to consider a trip to Mexico. And thanks to a new deal we're seeing today, getting there could be a lot more affordable. American, Delta and United are currently offering discounted flights to a trio of Mexican beach destinations — Cancun (CUN), Cabo (SJD) and Puerto Vallarta (PVR) — from over a dozen major US cities, including several in the Northeast. These discounted fares start at under $200 round-trip and are valid for travel from August 2018 through May 2019.
To find these low fares, head to Google Flights and plug in your desired departure and destination cities. After finding the dates that work best for you, book directly with the airline or with an OTA such as Expedia or Priceline. If you want to make sure that your ticket includes a carry-on bag, you can use Google Flights’ newest feature, which allows you to filter out no-carry-on bag fares.
Note that some of these fares are in fact in basic economy, which means you may not get the usual carry-on allowance, be able to select your seat ahead of time, be eligible for an upgrade or earn elite qualifying credits as per usual. However, it’s possible to defeat many of basic economy’s negative aspects by having airline elite status or a co-branded airline credit card.
Airlines: American, Delta, United
Routes: ATL/BOS/BWI/CLT/DEN/DFW/DTW/EWR/IAH/LAX/MIA/ORD/PHL/PHX/SNA/SEA to CUN/SJD/PVR
Cost: $196+ round-trip in economy
Dates: August 2018 – May 2019
Booking Link: Orbitz, Expedia or directly with the airline
Pay With: The Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on airfare), Chase Sapphire Reserve, Citi Prestige (5x on airfare plus excellent trip delay insurance) or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on travel)
Here are a few examples of what you can book:
Miami (MIA) to Cancun (CUN) in October for $196 round-trip on American in Basic Economy:
Dallas (DFW) to Cancun (CUN) in September for $206 round-trip on American in Basic Economy:
Los Angeles (LAX) to Puerto Vallarta (PVR) in March 2019 for $216 round-trip on Delta in Basic Economy:
Newark (EWR) to San Jose del Cabo (SJD) in November for $227 round-trip on American:
Dallas (DFW) to San Jose del Cabo (SJD) in August for $227 round-trip on United:
Seattle (SEA) to Cancun (CUN) in April 2019 for $234 round-trip on United in Basic Economy:
Maximize Your Purchase
Don’t forget to use a credit card that earns additional points on airfare purchases, such as The Platinum Card® from American Express (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 Card (2x on all travel purchases). Check out this post for more on maximizing airfare purchases.
Featured image by M Swiet Productions / Getty Images.
