If you’re a senior looking to travel, you may be eligible for significant discounts on airfare. There are airlines that offer special senior flight discounts and airfares, but finding and claiming them can be a challenge. In this article, we’ll explore the various discounts available and provide you with helpful tips to take advantage of them.
Your working years are behind you, the kids are all grown up, and now — finally! — you get to just focus on yourself. Life begins at 55, right? Or 60, or 65. However you define ‘senior’, one thing’s for sure: it’s the best time to travel. And that’s not only because you can finally book all those dream trips without any guilt. It might also be much cheaper to go traveling now. Why? A nifty little perk: senior flight discounts.
Start planning your next trip now:
Do any airlines give senior discounts on flights?
Yes, some do. This would be a really short article if the answer was no! True, not all airlines offer this perk. But a handful of major carriers have some decent deals especially aimed at you. Nice!
The catch? Well, there’s more than one. Some airlines limit which flight routes offer senior discounts. Others have quite complicated rules about exactly who can claim their senior fares. And some change their offers from year to year.
The result? Researching senior discounts on flights can be a lot of work. That’s where we come in. Below, you’ll find our complete guide to senior discounts on flights so you can just relax.
But… senior discounts might not always be the best deal
Come again?
Well, before we get into which airlines do offer senior discounts, it’s well worth pointing this out.
Because there are lots of flight sales and deals floating around these days, it’s possible that a senior discount doesn’t represent the very best price for your flight.
For example: imagine the senior discount offered is 5% off the ticket price. But the airline is also offering a 25% discount on a limited number of seats for that flight. It’d be much better to buy a seat in the flight sale than it would be to claim your senior discount, right?
So, what are some other ways to find a low-cost fare that might be even better than a senior flight discount? We’ve put together some tips at the end of this article, so keep reading if you want a better idea of all the options.
Which airlines offer senior discounts on flights?
This is a list of airlines that either publish their senior discount policies on their websites or responded to our request for information.
All the details here were accurate at the time of writing, but please note things can change — so we’d advise giving the airline a call well ahead of time to check that these discounts are still offered and what you need to do to claim them.
American Airlines senior discounts
American Airlines offers senior discounts in a handful of Latin American markets only — and some of the rules are a bit complicated.
- For travel originating in Ecuador, passengers aged 65 and over can claim 50% off the adult fare.
- For travel originating in Honduras, passengers aged 60 and over can claim 25% off the adult fare — but there are a few catches. It only applies if you’re a Honduran citizen, OR if you’ve clocked up more than 10 years of legal residency in Honduras. OR if you’re retired or pensioned due to incapacitation — in which case, it doesn’t matter how old you are.
- For travel originating in Panama, men aged 60 and over, and women aged 55 and over, can claim 25% off the adult fare. (Note you must be the qualifying age at the time of purchase). This also applies to retired residents of Panama who have a Retirement Card issued by the Panamanian government.
For all of the above, the discount applies to flights to any city served by American Airlines — anywhere in the world.
But! The discount may not be used in addition to any other discount, coupon or promotional offer. And passengers must show proof of their age either at the time of purchase or boarding.
British Airways discount for seniors
British Airways regularly offers exclusive deals for AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) members.
Currently, AARP members are offered the following senior discounts on flights:
- $65* off for travel in economy Standard* fares only (World Traveller).
- $65* off for travel in premium economy (World Traveller Plus).
- $200* off for travel in business (Club World).
*AARP discounts don’t apply to economy Basic fares.
You have to book by January 31, 2024. Find instructions for booking online and keep an eye on future offers for AARP members at this link.
Delta senior fares
Delta only offers senior discounts on flights to certain destinations. The amount and availability of the discount are subject to change and can’t be booked online. To find out if you qualify, call the reservations line at 1-800-241-4141.
Southwest offers for senior travelers
Southwest doesn’t offer senior fares at the moment. Find out more about the fare types Southwest offers today.
United senior discounts
United offers senior discounts to select destinations for passengers aged 65 and over. You can ask for more details on senior fares when booking over the phone, or select the ‘seniors (65 and over)’ category when you’re booking at united.com.
How else do I find really cheap flights?
Want to find out if you can get a better deal than your senior discount? Here are some really easy ways to do just that:
- Be flexible about when you fly. Taking off midweek instead of at the weekend can save you hundreds of dollars.
- Be savvy about when you search for deals. We’ve found that booking on a Tuesday can be way cheaper than booking on a Thursday.
- We recommend doing a flight search on Skyscanner first, so you can compare your senior discount with all the other deals out there. We always show the best prices at the time of your search, so you’ll be seeing the very cheapest fares available.
- Flight prices change frequently: the same seat might cost $150 one week and $350 the next. With our free Price Alerts, you can track these changes on your specific route so that you know the best time to book.
- Watch out for add-on fees, like baggage and food. You can save a lot of money by taking carry-on luggage only (even better, some airlines don’t charge for carry-on) and by taking your own snacks/lunch/dinner.
- Even when you think you’ve found a great discount — check the fine print! You’ll always be thankful you did.
- Sign up for airline newsletters, which are often the first place to announce special prices or sales. You can sign up for our newsletter, too, where we round up the best prices we’ve seen that week.
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