Long Haul Air Tickets
Air Tickets have never been so inexpensive, with more long haul carriers, many routes are now incredibly competitive. Shopping around can net you substantial savings, if you are prepared to be flexible with the dates and don't mind which airline you travel with.
There are websites on the internet that will compare many different agent's websites in one hit, meaning you only have to put the flight details in once. This saves you a lot of leg work!
One such example is Travel Supermarket, which even has a 'travel spy' feature that can also look at past searches for your date range and destination.
Long Haul flights do not always have the cheapest fare on the internet. Try looking at the ads in newspaper travel supplements. Offers advertised by larger travel agencies can often be found.
Also, if you are a student or under 26 years of age, STA Travel offer discounts on many long haul, European and RTW fares.
As I said, flexibility is the key, but you can get more value from your trip in a couple of other ways too.
Value Added
Flight + Hotel Combinations
If you require hotel accommodation at your destination, sites like Expedia and Opodo give you a discount for booking both flight and hotel at the same time.
Stopovers
If your flight has to stop en-route to the destination, some airlines allow you to collect your luggage and join the flight a couple of days later. Stopovers are a great way of breaking up the journey allowing you to see a new city and culture.
For example, it is common for airlines to allow stopovers on flights from Europe to Australia/New Zealand. Stopover Options
Internal Flight Packages
Some airlines also offer packages of a long flight with a couple of internal flights included.
With the advent of budget airlines, travel within a country can be easily purchased independently, but those with limited time at their destination often cannot afford to be flexible enough to get the cheapest fares.
Overbooking
Airlines frequently overbook flights, because believe it or not, passengers frequently miss or do not turn up for their scheduled flight! This means the airline runs the risk of having too many passengers and too few seats.
For the backpacker with no firm schedule, this can be a good opportunity. The airlines will usually offer free hotel accommodation and compensation for anyone wishing to wait around for the next flight with an available seat.