Industry experts advise anyone hoping to travel over the holidays to make reservations as early as now.
One such expert, Phil Dengler, a co-founder of the travel website ‘The Vacationer,' also supports the idea. While speaking to FOX Business, he stated that, despite the disruptions and cancellations this summer by nearly every commercial airline, it’s still the most appropriate time to make a flight reservation for the upcoming holidays.
While Dengler believes June and July are the ideal months to arrange holiday travel, he adds that it’s still possible to get a good bargain before the prices surge. He also states that booking your flight early increases your chances of getting a non-stop early morning flight.
Dengler encourages travelers to book early morning flights since they have a lower chance of being canceled than afternoon or evening flights. He also believes that uninterrupted flights decrease your chances of encountering flight cancellations or delays.
Dengler adds that early bookings enable travelers to save lots of money.
Clint Henderson, the managing editor of the travel website 'The Points Guy,' concurred, adding that customers should set Google flight tracking price alerts for autumn and holiday travel immediately.
Clint states that domestic flight fares have decreased by a quarter, down from the summer season high, and that the longer you take to book a flight, the higher the likelihood that you’ll spend more on holiday travel.
However, with costs still high, Henderson advises redeeming travel points accumulated during the coronavirus outbreak.
Specifically for Thanksgiving, buyers should make reservations by the end of August or the beginning of September at the latest. Dengler predicts that after Halloween, prices will rise significantly.
Dengler noted that from November 1, round-trip airfare could increase by 40 percent to approximately $400. During the week of Thanksgiving, passengers may anticipate an additional 25 percent hike in costs, bringing the average round-trip fare to around $500.
Meanwhile, he predicts that last-minute international flights booked during the week of Thanksgiving would cost an average of $820, a 32 percent increase from before the price jump.
The optimum time to make reservations for Christmas is anytime before Thanksgiving though buyers should strive to lock in fares before the end of August or the beginning of September.
Mid-September, or around 90-100 days in advance, is when domestic and foreign travel discounts for Christmas are at their peak. Two weeks before the holiday, Dengler predicts that round-trip airfare would increase by 7 percent to an average of $460. A round trip will cost an average of $510 during the week of the Christmas holiday, an 11 percent increment compared to the previous week.
Dengler suggests that travelers should strive to secure Christmas flights before Thanksgiving to avoid the highest price spikes, which can be as much as 23% in December.
Considering hotel bookings, Henderson states that customers shouldn't hurry to make reservations since, even now, the costs are still high.
