6 'travel secrets' that say they'll help you save money have gone viral on TikTok. Some may work, but others are just myths, an expert said.

• A TikTok video sharing "travel secrets" has gone viral. So far, it has been viewed over 11.5 million times.

• While many people were grateful for the tips, others described them as "myths."

• A travel expert told Insider that while some may work, others are unfounded.

If you've ever tried to book a flight and been shocked by the extortionate prices, you've probably tried researching tips to help you get the best deal.

A TikTok user who goes by @guletravels thinks they have the answer. A video posted on July 1 was labeled "travel secrets," and shared six suggestions for how to book cheaper flights. The user's bio says they work as a consultant in New York, and are "traveling the world." Many of their videos offer travel hacks and tips, and receive thousands of views, but their recent money-saving recommendation went hugely viral.

So far, it has been viewed over 11.5 million times. But some viewers are unconvinced.

"I read a bunch of these are myths though," one commenter wrote. "Pretty sure days of the week have nothing to do with prices it's about passenger volume which can fluctuate," wrote another, in response to one of the tips suggesting that it is better to book flights on certain days of the week.

To clear up confusion and figure out which of the popular "travel secrets" in this viral video actually work, Insider spoke to Katy Maclure, the editor of Detour, a weekly newsletter from UK travel app Jack's Flight Club.

Here's what she had to say about the tips shared in the video.

Partly true: Flights are cheaper on certain days.

The first travel tip shared in the video was, "Flights are cheaper on Tuesdays (at midnight), Wednesdays, and Saturdays."

"This one has some truth to it, but it's not universal," Maclure told Insider. She said that in the US in particular, it is typically cheaper to fly between Tuesdays and Thursdays than over weekends, as they are usually peak travel times because people want to avoid taking so many days off work.

She also said that a Saturday-to-Tuesday weekend trip is likely to be cheaper than a Friday-to-Monday trip. "Demand is higher on those days with people hoping to get the best of the weekend," she said.

False: Do make your booking on a weekend.

Tip number two was, "Do not book flights on weekends."

Maclure described this advice as "fairly unfounded" in today's landscape and said that airlines can sometimes even drop prices on weekends, although she thinks there was a time it could have been accurate.

"This tip probably goes back to the early days of internet ticket sales, when airlines uploaded their availability at the beginning of the week and all the best prices had gone come the weekend," she said.

False: Airlines can charge more based on your search history.

Tip number three was, "Always use incognito mode and clear cache and cookies. Airlines charge higher with search history."

There's a longstanding theory that websites will increase the price of flights if you look more frequently, to increase the sense of urgency and encourage you to buy. While Maclure acknowledged that this might have been true in the past, she described it as "practically an urban legend" today.

"Airlines do not charge more based on your search history," she said. "If you've been keeping your eye on a certain fare and it goes up the next time you look, it's likely because the airline sold their allotment of tickets available at that price."

Travel agency and flight search tool Skyscanner has also confirmed that this claim is false in relation to its process. "We're here to set the record straight: clearing your cookies will not affect the prices you see on our site," it wrote in a post in March 2023.

Maclure pointed out that if you're using a price aggregator tool, such as Skyscanner or Momondo, you're more likely to see discrepancies between the advertised prices and the actual price once you click through. She said that this is because the online travel agencies that advertise there often do not have the most up-to-date price information.

Sometimes true: Save money by using a VPN.

The fourth tip in the video was, "Use a VPN from a cheaper country. It will save tons of $$$. Try India."

A virtual private network, or VPN, uses encryption to hide your personal data and increase your online privacy. It can also allow you to access blocked or censored websites, and change your location. According to Maclure, this tip does have some truth to it. "But you don't really need a VPN to see the different prices," she said.

Instead, she suggests changing both the region and currency on whichever tool you are using to search for flights so you can see the prices from online travel agencies based in different countries.

"If you have a card that lets you make payments in a different currency without huge fees, it can definitely be worth the extra time to check," she said.

True: Using a price aggregator tool and setting your destination to "Anywhere" can help you find cheaper flights.

The fifth tip was, "Use Skyscanner or Kayak and choose 'Anywhere' on the destination to get flights under $100."

While Maclure said that this is true, she added that these flights often come with "nasty layovers," or that they will involve "your least favorite budget airline."

Instead, she recommended using Google Flights Explore. While it allows you to do a similar thing, the key difference is that it also allows you to tailor it more specifically to your preferences and filter by price, the number of stops, dates, trip length, and even airlines.

True: Some airlines offer student discounts.

The final tip shared in the video was, "Check for student discounts on StudentUniverse. Sometimes prices are half."

Maclure said that this tip is also true. "It's a little-known fact, but many airlines do offer student discounts," she said. Of course, this one will only work if you're actually a student.

The creator of the viral video did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Insider