Big holidays like Thanksgiving come up fast. Many of us start hunting for flights home around the same time. Seats fill up, prices jump from day to day, and it can feel like you are racing a clock every time you open a booking site.
Even when government slowdowns begin to clear, crowded airports, long lines, and flight delays are still common during busy travel weeks. You can use flight tracking tools to see when your plane is late, but that alone will not fix high prices. You still need a simple plan that helps you find tickets that are both affordable and reliable.
We spend a lot of time watching how prices move and testing different ways to book. In this guide, we walk you through five clear holiday travel tricks that can help you stop paying full price for flights. Our goal is to give you a better chance of paying less than the first number you see on the screen.
1. Pick Weekday Flights Instead Of Weekend Rush
Most people plan trips so they leave on Friday and come home on Sunday. That feels natural for school and work schedules. It also means you are choosing the most crowded and most expensive days of the week.
Data from large flight search tools that study past prices shows that cheaper tickets often pop up on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. In many cases, Tuesday comes out as the lowest cost day when you look at long term price patterns.
If you are able to fly in the early or middle part of the week instead of the weekend, you can often cut your ticket price by about 13% to 20% compared with flying on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. Sunday tends to be the day when prices are highest because many people want to get home before the work week starts.
These tools also suggest that there is no single magic day to book your ticket. There is no rule like “always buy on a Tuesday” that works for every route. What matters more is the day you actually fly. For the best chance at lower prices, try to avoid weekend travel days when you can and look for departures in the first half of the week.
2. Give Low Cost Airlines A Real Look
If keeping your costs low is your main goal and you can live without extra space or fancy extras, it can be smart to check low cost airlines when you plan a holiday trip. These airlines are often smaller and run fewer nonstop routes. The in flight service is usually simple, but they can still save you a lot of money compared with large full service airlines.
How To Compare Total Costs
Most low cost airlines follow the same basic idea. The first price you see looks very low, but almost everything past a small personal item costs extra. You might pay more to bring a carry on bag, check a suitcase, pick a seat, board earlier, or get snacks on the plane.
Before you decide that a budget airline is the best deal, pause and do the math. Add up the base fare plus any bag fees, seat fees, and other charges you know you will need to pay. Then compare that total to what a larger airline would charge for the same dates and times. Sometimes the budget airline is still much cheaper. Other times, once you include all the add ons, the price gap almost disappears.
Low cost airlines can work especially well for short trips or quick weekend visits. They also work well for flights where you can travel light with just a small bag. For longer trips or journeys where you need to pack more, compare very carefully before you choose.
3. Mix One Way Tickets And Plan Layovers
Many of us grew up thinking that a round trip ticket was always the best choice. Today, that is not always true. Buying two separate one way tickets can sometimes give you more control over both price and schedule.
When you book one way tickets, you can mix different airlines and try different nearby airports. You can also choose the cheapest travel day in each direction. For example, you might find a great price flying out with one airline and a better deal coming back with another. You are not locked into a single company for the whole trip.
You can also cut your costs if you are open to flights with layovers. Nonstop flights usually cost more because they save time and remove the stress of changing planes. If you choose an itinerary with one or more stops, you often pay less for the same route.
Search data from major booking tools shows that travelers can sometimes save around 25% by choosing a flight with a layover instead of a nonstop option. That kind of discount can make a big difference during peak holiday travel when base prices are already high.
If you decide to use layovers to save money, give yourself enough time between flights, especially in winter. It can help to choose connections at larger airports where there are more backup flights during the day. A longer layover window lowers the risk that a small delay on your first flight will make you miss the next one.
4. Pay For Flights With A Travel Rewards Card
Another way to bring down the real cost of holiday travel is to pay with a travel focused rewards card and then redeem points or miles for flights later on. These cards earn points or miles on everyday spending like groceries, gas, and online shopping. Many also give you extra rewards when you use them for travel purchases.
Over time, those points and miles can be turned into airline tickets, hotel stays, and other trip costs. This means the money you already spend during the year can quietly build a balance that helps cover future holiday flights.
Some airlines and travel brands also work with issuers to offer cards that earn miles inside a single frequent flyer or loyalty program. These cards often add extra travel perks such as earlier boarding, a free checked bag, or discounts on food and drinks on the plane. These benefits can make flying feel a little smoother, especially during busy seasons. (Always review the latest list of perks, fees, and rules before you apply.)
To get the most value from a rewards card, try to pay your bill in full each month. That way interest does not erase your travel savings. When holiday season comes, you can use your points or miles to reduce the cash price of your ticket or pay for the whole flight if you have earned enough.
5. Let Apps And Price Tools Hunt For Deals
Technology can be a powerful helper when you are trying to find cheaper holiday flights. Instead of checking the same route again and again by hand, you can set up alerts with travel apps and websites and let them watch prices for you.
Let Alerts Find Deals For You
Some deal alert services and newsletters focus only on finding unusually low fares. They use both software and human fare hunters to scan for limited time sales and rare mistake fares. A mistake fare happens when an airline or travel seller posts a price that is much lower than normal because of a typing error or system glitch. Sometimes these deals can be up to 90% off the usual cost. They often disappear quickly, so you need to move fast when you see one that fits your plans.
Use Price Tools To Spot Cheap Dates
Many large flight search tools now offer special views that highlight the lowest prices. For example, you might see a tab or filter that shows the cheapest options for your route. You might also see a calendar that displays which dates have the lowest fares.
To use these features, you usually enter your starting city, destination, and rough dates. Then you switch to the price focused view to see where the best deals appear. You can slide your dates around a little and see how much a one or two day change can lower the price.
Some tools have added new budget friendly features in recent years. You might see tabs that focus only on the very cheapest flights for a given trip or sliders that let you cap the maximum fare. These updates make it easier for you to see at a glance which options are best for your wallet. Because websites and apps change often, take a moment to explore the current layout of whichever tool you like before you count on a specific button or tab.
When you put these ideas together picking weekday flights, giving low cost airlines a serious look, using one way tickets and smart layovers, paying with a travel rewards card, and leaning on apps and alerts you give yourself a much better shot at avoiding full price holiday fares. With a bit of planning and a calm approach, you can get to your holiday gathering with more money left over and a lot less stress along the way.
Join Our Free Travel Community And Plan Smarter Trips
If you want more help finding good deals and making sense of all these choices, we would love to see you inside our free TheMilesAcademy community. We share simple tips, real world examples, and step by step guides to help you feel more confident every time you search for flights, hotels, or other travel deals.
Inside the community, you also get access to our free card finder tool, which helps you match your travel goals and budget with the right type of rewards card for your situation. Instead of guessing your way through dozens of options, you can use our tool to narrow things down and focus on the choices that fit how you actually travel.
If you are ready to keep learning, save more on future trips, and travel with less stress, join our free TheMilesAcademy community and start using the card finder tool on your next trip plan.
