It’s a great moment to start tracking prices and locking in your summer travel.
As a team, our mission is to help you pay as little as possible for airfare. Grabbing valuable flight deals during peak seasons depends on several moving parts, and a few popular shortcuts don’t actually work.
Tickets for holiday periods, school breaks, and the height of summer usually cost more. You can still tilt the odds in your favor and beat average prices, but ignore the myths.
For example, you might hear that a specific weekday unlocks cheaper tickets. Maybe a relative swears they landed a steal by checking fares at 12:01 a.m. on a Wednesday, or a friend sets an alarm for 1 p.m. on a Thursday to shop flights. Those tales don’t hold up.
Rumors circulate constantly. Below, we share what airfare analysts say about timing and pricing so you can squeeze more savings from your bookings.
Now Is the Time to Watch Prices for Summer Trips
Historical patterns suggest we’re heading into the sweet spot for snagging lower summer fares. We recommend that you begin searching now, set fare alerts with a major flight‑search tool, and grab deals the moment you see them.
As a general rule, start monitoring about three months before your target dates. Of course, jump earlier if you spot a standout fare.
A well‑known travel app that analyzes a decade of data and tens of trillions of prices advises booking roughly 25 to 150 days ahead of departure.
That aligns with guidance from a large search provider. For trips within the U.S., average prices have often been lowest about 38 days before leaving, with a historical low range around 21 to 52 days prior.
We’re big fans of robust flight‑tracking tools because you can set alerts for specific routes.
Say you want a summer getaway to South Florida. Using a major search engine for flights, you could look for July departures from Chicago to Miami. In one sample search, the cheapest dates were July 16 to 23 on a budget carrier for about $98 round trip.
You can also use a calendar view (often labeled “Date grid”) to spot the lowest combinations of departure and return days.
For international trips, the best window tends to start earlier. Aim to secure tickets abroad three to five months in advance.
Again, alert features can be your best friend. For example, we set a one‑week alert for Mexico. The tool showed the least‑expensive options across multiple carriers and flagged that prices were elevated, which signaled it might be wise to toggle price tracking.
You can also use a general comparison tool that checks available introductory offers without affecting your credit score. If you’re exploring travel rewards strategies, you can check which introductory deals you might qualify for.
Once tracking is on, you’ll receive an email when prices drop. Your search will also live on your tracking page so you can follow trends over time.
Here are additional ideas for peak‑season and holiday travel:
- When cash fares spike, consider using your stash of points or miles. One of our core mantras is simple: earn them, then redeem them.
- Fly on off‑peak days, arrive earlier, or stay longer. For example, going home for a couple of weeks around a winter holiday can price lower than a tight long weekend.
- Traveling on the actual holiday can reduce costs. Departing on Thanksgiving, New Year’s Day, or Christmas Eve often brings better pricing.
- Stay flexible with flight times. An early morning departure, say 6 a.m. instead of 10 a.m., can be significantly cheaper. Red‑eye flights also frequently undercut daytime options.
- Consider alternate airports. For instance, choosing the secondary airport near San Francisco rather than the primary hub can shave meaningful dollars.
- Subscribe to deal alerts. Follow social accounts that post fare drops and join our daily email where we often highlight standout airfare sales.
Is Any Booking Day Cheaper Than Others?
We hear this all the time: “Which day is the cheapest to book?” Many travelers assume particular weekdays reveal the best deals, but data suggests that belief is a myth.
There isn’t a magic booking day. However, there are favorable booking windows when airlines reduce prices, according to a consumer travel expert at a well‑known fare‑tracking app. As noted earlier, those windows often land one to three months out for domestic trips and three to five months in advance for international journeys.
When you’re heading overseas, planning ahead is crucial to securing lower fares. Travelers frequently book too far in advance or far too late, which pushes prices up.
This approach shifts if you’re using points and miles. Airlines sometimes release award space for coveted premium cabins either when schedules open or close to departure.
As for a single cheapest day to click “buy,” experts are clear: there’s no one golden day.
Another pricing analyst echoes the same point. The idea that booking on a specific weekday, like Tuesday, guarantees the lowest price doesn’t match reality. Fares fluctuate constantly based on route and dates, so no single day locks in the best deal.
What’s the Best Day to Travel?
Although the price you pay depends on when you book, midweek departures usually cost less than weekend travel. That said, Sunday can occasionally offer a sweet spot.
Flying midweek can trim close to $100 off a domestic ticket on average. If you can be flexible and choose Tuesday or Wednesday instead of Friday or Saturday, you can materially lower your total trip cost.
We see similar findings across busy seasons. Midweek departures commonly save around $56 on domestic tickets over the year, with savings rising above $60 during spring break and summer. Around major winter holidays, midweek can cut $100 or more.
We also recommend booking the first flight of the day. Early departures can reduce the risk of delays and sometimes price lower too. Waking up at 4 a.m. isn’t fun, but saving real money can make it worthwhile.
How do you put this into practice when shopping for flights?
Use a real‑time price monitoring tool to decide when to travel for the lowest fare. Features like “track prices” or “watch this trip” help you follow a route before booking and alert you when fares fall.
When to Book Holiday Travel
Use the domestic and international timing guidance above to shape your summer plans.
The window to begin scanning for a European summer holiday is open now. Typically, you’d start monitoring in February and book three to five months ahead, which means right about now. Southern Europe gets especially popular in peak season, so padding that window with extra lead time can help.
For longer‑haul transpacific journeys, plan even further ahead. For trips to Asia or Oceania, consider booking about five to seven months before takeoff. For Europe and many other regions, a range of three to six months before departure often delivers the best prices.
The Right Time to Book Flights for Thanksgiving and Christmas
For the lowest domestic fares, plan to secure Thanksgiving flights in early to mid‑October and Christmas trips by Halloween. Historically, the best holiday airfare deals tend to pop in October.
We suggest you start monitoring in August, with a typical “book‑by” target around mid‑October, roughly the 14th. As a backstop, no later than Halloween is a good rule of thumb for both Thanksgiving and Christmas.
A large search provider’s trend report similarly finds that average Christmas fares are generally lowest about two months before departure. Based on observed patterns, Thanksgiving prices often bottom out around 45 days prior, and Christmas around 58 days prior.
So while it’s too early at the moment, set alerts for flights home beginning in August or September.
In one example, we created a fare alert for a 12‑day holiday trip, roughly Dec. 21 to Jan. 2. The tracker emailed us when the price dropped.
The tool also flagged that prices were high at the time of searching, suggesting it was smart to hold and keep tracking.
Another helpful feature is a price history graph for similar date ranges. It can guide which days make the most sense for your return home.
Keep in mind that prices often begin climbing about a month before a major holiday. Also remember that booking too early isn’t ideal either. Fares frequently come out high when schedules first load, so follow the windows above to improve your odds.
This is why we encourage you to enable alerts and watch prices carefully. Even better, reserve with refundable points or miles so you can pivot if a better deal appears. If you’re paying cash, booking with a carrier that issues a credit when your fare drops can help you lock in a low rate and capture later savings.
Best Time to Book Flights for New Year’s Eve
As with Christmas travel, we suggest locking in New Year’s trips by Halloween at the latest.
That advice applies to most major winter holidays. It pays to book earlier for those periods. We’d secure a New Year’s Eve itinerary before the end of October.
Best Time to Book Flights for Spring Break
If your spring break is in March, aim to book domestic flights in early February. If you’re going abroad, try to finalize plans before the winter holidays. Demand surges after the quiet stretch of winter, and many travelers wait too long, which leads to higher prices.
What About Hotels?
Hotels typically don’t require booking as far in advance, and you can still find good rates closer in. That said, popular spring break destinations—think warm‑weather beach cities—rarely discount at the last minute, so your strategy depends on the location. It can be an excellent time to use hotel points, since some properties release award space late, even in busy markets.
Cities that aren’t classic spring break magnets often price well at the last minute. For example, during spring week, we found a mid-range Malta hotel from about $230 per night, while peak‑season rates at the same property can run $320 or more.
We also see frequent last‑minute hotel deals in large metro areas, including over holiday weekends. Keep that in mind if you’re flexible.
Final Boarding Call: Your Fare‑Saving Playbook
There’s no single magical day or time to book the absolute lowest airfare. Your strongest play is to fly midweek, especially Wednesdays, for both domestic and international trips. Weekend departures typically cost more, though Sundays can sometimes surprise with competitive pricing.
Try to book domestic flights one to two months ahead, and aim for three to five months for international travel. If you’re using travel rewards, start checking early and keep watching available redemption options—early or last-minute releases can pay off.
