Best Times to Fly

Air travel makes it convenient to get to places that would normally take days if you were to drive or use other forms of transportation.  You can be on the East Coast in the morning and in the West Coast in the afternoon because of advanced technology.  If you’re a frequent flier, no doubt, you want to find cheap airplane tickets whenever possible.  The following pointers will help do just that.

Domestic Airfares:  Best Times To Fly And Save

Factors such as the day of the week you travel, time of day, and time during the year can make a difference in airfares.  For example, within the U.S., domestic air travel stays constant throughout the year.  However, if you plan to travel around the holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year, there may be an additional surcharge since there are fewer discount seats available.  To increase your chances of finding cheap tickets, make your reservation early.    

Generally, discount seats on nonstop flights sell out faster than on flights with layovers.  To save on airfare, book early if traveling around a holiday.  If you’re flying at other times during the year, wait for airfare sales.  However, if you don’t find any, and you only have 25-30 days left before your travel date, purchase your ticket at the lowest fare possible.

Another tip to find cheap air flight tickets is to choose your day of the week carefully.  Weekend rates may include a surcharge, and you will find fewer discounted seats on those flights.  Additionally, the best times to fly and save money during the day are late morning and early afternoon, as well as early evening.  

International Airfare:  Best Times To Fly

Advance purchase of coach class airfares on international flights can often change depending on the season you travel.  Airlines generally divide the year into as many as six time slices.  Each time slice may vary from “low season” to “shoulder season” and from “high season” to “super high season.”  This could mean a difference of about $600 between the lowest and highest season.  Additionally, only one-day difference can cause you to spend $300 extra on airfare.

Most airlines have similar airfares.  If there is a difference on the same fare, it could be due to the airline’s definition of a particular season.  If you need to book a flight during a high season, shop around.  It could be that a different airline may categorize it as shoulder season and result in a better rate for you.

Each season is determined based on the day you fly out of the U.S.  To save money, the best times to fly are to depart from the U.S. during low season and return during high season.  Although you will arrive in the U.S. during high season, you can expect to pay low season rates for the roundtrip.

Furthermore, airlines often divide the week into weekdays and weekend days.  These days may vary according to airline, but generally, weekdays consist of Mon-Wed, and weekends include Thursday-Sunday.  Weekend rates are typically higher since more people travel during those days.  If you can afford to wait and fly during a weekday, you most likely will notice a difference in your airfare.   

Best Time To Fly:  When To Reserve Your Seat

You may be surprised to know that between midnight and 1a.m. (in the time zone of the airline’s home base) on Wednesdays is the best time to buy your ticket.  For example, Delta’s headquarter office is in Atlanta and United’s home is Chicago.  The reason is that the computer systems are normally updated at this time.  This means that the airline’s system gets rid of any reserved but unbooked discounted seats.  If you can snap up these lower fare seats right after the update, you most likely will find a cheap air flight ticket.  

How To Research The Best Times To Fly

There are many tools on the Internet designed to help consumers find cheap tickets online.  One such tool is Kayak.com.  This website is known for finding the best flight tickets available.  You can use the “flexible dates” feature, find the “buzz” in searching flights, as well as search other websites in seconds.  Kayak can help you find the airfare within your budget.

Another useful tool is Lessno.com.  You can use this tool to search for flights, as well as hotels in European and Asian destinations.  Thirdly, you can take advantage of Mobissimo.com, which is a metasearch similar to Kayak.  This search engine can access all fares in Vayam as well.  Students and young travelers can use STA Travel for the lowest flights available.  Priceline and Expedia are other good choices.     

Of course, don’t forget to check with your travel agent.  Experience shows that consumers often find the lowest flights through their local agency.  Travel agents can access fares that are not available yet to search engines.

In conclusion, there are things you can do to find the lowest fare possible.  The time of the year, time of the week, and even time of day are factors when it comes to finding cheap tickets.  Take advantage of online tools, as well as travel agents to help you find the best times to fly and save money while you do it.