Nothing gets in the way of an amazing vacation like exorbitant prices on airfare. Who wants to blow 60 percent of their holiday budget just for transportation to their destination of choice? To make things even worse, we all know that practically every seat on the plane is sold at a different price. The passenger next to you might have paid a couple hundred bucks less for his seat, which to reasonable people makes no sense at all. But instead of fighting this unusual fee structure, you can use it to your advantage to get the cheapest return flights possible when you fly.

Here are a few tips on how to do just that.According to conventional wisdom, you won't find the best prices by booking directly from the airlines themselves. While this may have been true a decade ago, that's not always the case anymore. On many occasions, you can find the cheapest return flights right on the carrier's own website — especially for international flights or those originating from outside the United States.

So in your search for the lowest airfares, don't neglect the carriers themselves just because that's what you were taught to do a long time ago.Of course, there are also a lot of discount travel sites now that have a searchable database of the cheapest return flights to your desired dstinantion available, so you should also focus on these places. But it's important to note that increasing competition and higher prices overall mean that the discounts aren't as deep as they used to be.

So if you're expecting dirt-cheap fares at Expedia or Travelocity, you will probably be disappointed. Yes, the prices will probably be lower than at regular travel agencies, but they won't be a steal.There are other techniques you can use to find the cheapest return flights. Many experts recommend searching for fares on Wednesday or booking as close to your departure date as possible. Little things like that in combination with diligent monitoring of the discount travel websites mentioned above can yield the savings you're looking for. Bon voyage!