Best time to buy plane tickets year round

Here are some tips for timing your ticket purchases to get the best possible rate for buying plane tickets for every occasion. Just keep in mind that airline prices are an art, not a science.

If youre traveling:

At a normal time (Not During the Holidays or High Season)

Non-peak domestic flights present one of your best shots at timing your ticket buying. This will be easiest if its a route youre familiar with and you have a sense of what a good price is.

When to buy: Recent fare analysis by the Airlines Reporting Corporation, which processes ticket transactions for airlines and travel agencies, reported that over the past four years passengers paid the lowest price for domestic flights when buying just about six weeks in advance.

So, when buying your tickets:

Check available tickets eight to ten weeks before your departure. If the flights arent too booked, wait until six weeks prior.
At six weeks: If the price looks good, go ahead and book. If the tickets look a little high but your flight is pretty full, buy anyway because fares will probably only go up. If the price is high and your flight is pretty empty, you can choose to wait a week or two to see if prices decrease.
Consult resources like Kayaks fare chart and Momondo to see if your flights price is likely to go down. Put a fare alert on a few different airlines.
Right before youre two weeks out, buy your tickets. If you book within 14 days, airlines assume youre a business traveler and will charge you a premium.

To a Popular Location in the High Season

Disney World during summer break. Aspen during ski season. Anywhere warm during the winter. When youre trying to go somewhere at a popular time, buy tickets well in advance.

When to buy: One to three months in advancepreferably three.

Bonus tip: Prices will be lowest if you avoid the usual Friday to Sunday weekend cycle. If youre going for a weekend, try using the weekend trip option under the flexible trip search on most web resources like Kayak. This lets you define weekend however you want, whether Friday to Sunday or Saturday to Monday, so you can find the cheapest options.

Around a Holiday

Thanksgiving is the absolute hardest to buy tickets for, because everyone is trying to fly out and return on the same days (Wednesday to Sunday). Christmas is more flexible because people choose different days off. Notice when holidays fall midweek. For example, if July 4th falls on Wednesday (like this year) some people take time off before, some after. This allows you more flexibility in buying tickets.

When to buy: At least three months out. Aim to buy Thanksgiving tickets the Tuesday after Labor Day; dont book too early because rates will usually come down at least a little after the summer, when rates are high because gas is expensive.

Bonus tip: If you can, avoid Sunday flights and traditional travel days. That could mean leaving before and coming back later than most people, or flying on the holiday itself. You can often save 50% on a ticket by flying Christmas Eve or day. For example, you could leave Thanksgiving Day and return on Saturday for cheaper fares.

In the springtime

Avoid spring breaks are in your region, if at all possible. Spring is pretty expensive across the board because of spring break and Easter holidays. Spring breaks are different for college kids, families, public schools, private schools, etc. You can search your local school districts website for the dates.

When to buy: If youre traveling any time during your areas spring break, at least three months in advance. If not, you can look at how full your flight is and try to time your purchase for the best prices.

Over the summer

If youre looking to travel this summer, book your flights right away because there will almost certainly be more fare increases to come. Take earlier morning flights because rain delays are a lot more common in the summer.

When to buy: Three months before your departure, depending on where youre going. More than any other season, buy early because gas prices are notoriously high. Prices usually only go up as the summer progresses.

Bonus tip: Extend the summer for better pricesif you can book your vacation for May or September, youre likely to save as much as 25-50% on air and hotel. You can also find deals when certain regions have slow seasons because of school schedules. For instance, Northeast schools are usually in session through mid-June, so beaches in New England offer deals in early June. Southeastern schools start back in mid-August, so beach destinations in South Carolina and Florida may offer late August deals.

During the fall

Autumn isnt typically leisure travel season since kids are back in school, so there are a lot of great fare sales, particularly last-minute ones around late September or October. If you are open and flexible, this is a great season for an off-peak leisure trip to a mountainous area or somewhere off-season like Mexico.

When to buy: You can wait longer and be more open to last-minute deals (like two to four weeks in advance) in the fall. If you need to go somewhere in particular, though, buy six weeks in advance so you arent gambling.

Bonus tip: Avoid fall convention hotspots like Las Vegas, NYC and Orlando. A great time for a cheap leisure trip is between Thanksgiving and Christmas. For trips during that time, start looking in September.

In the winter

Aside from the obvious winter holidays, traveling in the winter will depend a lot on where youre going. "The key to budget travel is to approach ahead. When it comes along to family trips, globetrotting, well-deserved trips and/or going to see new locations we have never been before, the truth of cost and budgeting is generally in the back of our thoughts. Planning and consuming our travel budget correctly is a consideration for most families. Curbing consuming and charges, while still delighting your vacation to its fullest, is the key to confirmed success and fiscal liability. Your pocketbook and family will thank you! The thought behind economizing money while traveling is simple: Even if your personal finances is incredibly small, you can still take a break and enjoy life! Simply put, life is just too short to never step out of the door or departing the homestead! Also remembering that while traveling, regardless of whether on a resources or not, even the smallest of things can all add op to a large vacation or travel expenses!..". If its a warm getaway, youre buying in the high season. If youre going somewhere less popular (read: to and from colder locales) youll have more leeway.

When to buy: If youre going skiing, book extremely early because ski season is so short and flights to tiny ski towns are often smallat least three months in advance, if not as early as September. If youre traveling somewhere warm, give yourself three months. If youre going to an unpopular destination, you can play closer to the bone and try to time the best prices. (Check out the section about off-peak travel for the plan of attack).

Cheap Flights, Cheap Airline Tickets, Plane Tickets, Buy Cheap ...
www.bt-store.com
Search and compare cheap flights using millions of discount airline tickets. Best Travel Store is a cheap airfares leader since 2002. Buy cheap plane tickets and get ...
Cheap Flights - Book Cheap Tickets & Airline Tickets FlightNetwork
www.flightnetwork.com
Book cheap flights and airline tickets at up to 49% off. FlightNetwork offers cheap tickets to Canada, US and international destinations at the lowest fares.
The Best Time to Buy Guide for 101 Products and Services
www.freeshipping.org/blog/best-time-to-buy-guide
Timing is everything, it seems. Knowing when is the best time to buy that new car, house or lawn mower could be the difference between saving hundreds if not ...
CheapTickets - Cheap Hotels, Flights, Airline Tickets, Airfare ...
www.cheaptickets.com
Find cheap airline tickets and score cheap hotels with our Best Price Guarantee. Save on cheap flights, hotel deals, vacations, car rentals, cruises and more.
Cheap Tickets, Cheap Flights & Discount Airfare OneTravel
www.onetravel.com
Search thousands of cheap tickets and cheap flight offers to your favorite destinations around the world. Book vacations, find hotels, surf for discount airfare and ...
Whatever You Do, Don't Buy an Airline Ticket On ... - Yahoo!
finance.yahoo.com/news/pf_article_111970.html
Jan 29, 2011 From Yahoo! Finance: Whatever You Do, Don't Buy an Airline Ticket On ...
Best Time to Purchase Airline Tickets and Hotel Rooms Away.com
away.com/travel-advice/travel-ta-travel-ta-best-time-to-purchase...
Knowing when to buy a plane ticket or book a hotel can save you hundreds of dollars on your next vacation. Travel writer Kate Siber interviews industry experts for ...
KAYAK - Cheap Flights, Hotels, Airline Tickets, Cheap Tickets ...
www.kayak.comFlights Hotels Cars Vacations
Find and book cheap flights, hotels, vacations and rental cars with KAYAK.com. Hotel, flight and travel deals. Search hundreds of travel sites at once.
American Airlines - Airline tickets and cheap flights at AA.com
www.aa.comFlight Status AAdvantage Login Flight Check-In
American Airlines has airline tickets, cheap flights, vacation packages and American Airlines AAdvantage bonus mile offers at AA.com
CheapOair - Cheap Tickets, Flights, Airline Tickets, Cheap Plane ...
www.cheapoair.comRound Trip Flights Flights Airfares
Book cheap tickets & save big on your flights. We offer cheap airplane tickets year round. Travel for less with our cheap tickets, hotel rates and more!