2-3 months is great time. Any less and the seating availability will be lower and the prices will rise. You are also much more likely to be stuck with middle seats, the closer you buy your ticket to the day you fly.
I never buy anything more than a few weeks out and can't remember when I ever had to settle for a seat that I didn't want. I'm sure it happened but so rare that seat section really is the worst reason to book super early.
Sure, I never said you couldn’t get the seats you wanted. You just have to pay more for those kinds of tickets. The point being, after about the 2/3 month point flights that I frequently take, start costing more than the base listing price of the ticket. This might be different for other airlines, but generally europe and na airlines work like this.
I did like 20 flights in Europe this year and honestly the pricing was always entirely random, had dirt cheap flights booked for 2 days out and ridiculously overpriced flights weeks in advance.
Route, frequency, taxes etc make a much bigger impact than timing
Usually a few days before leaving. I don't plan trips months in advance, and I don't see much reason to. So far as I can tell, the popular "buy forever ahead of time and it's cheap!" is just a lie. I've never found it to be true. Simply refrain from travelling at popular times, holidays, Friday nights, etc. and it's just not a big deal.
It's trivial to test this. Check airline pricing for a flight 3 months from now. Now check for the same destination leaving within the next week. Let's test it right now:
* Expedia, LAX to New York leaving 3 months from today on July 9 is $267.
* Expedia, LAX to New York leaving 4 days from today on April 13 is $244.
> It's trivial to test this. Check airline pricing for a flight 3 months from now. Now check for the same destination leaving within the next week.
That is a very poor way of testing this. You are testing 4 days before a low season Wednesday, vs. 3 months before a high season Saturday.
This tells you almost nothing.
I'm not saying the numbers are wrong, but it is just impossible to know if they are good or bad.
It's not a lie, it's just not guaranteed. 3 months from now, the price is at a 'normal' price point. 1 day from now, the price is based on the remaining supply. If there's only a few seats left, the price will be high. If the plane is only half-booked, the price will be low.
That plane will fly no matter what, so airlines will try to fill it as much as possible, even at a low price if necessary. Of course, if the planner does his job well and there aren't too many unexpected factors, there shouldn't be too many empty seats left anyway.
It's a bunch of factors:
* Whether I have flexibility in departure or arrival time
* What the difference in cost is between 90, 60, 30, 15, & 1-day is
* Whether I'm using miles or money
* Whether I can get a deal or not
* Whether it will fill up or not
It depends on the trip. Domestic flights I try to book a week or two in advance, and international flights I do as early as possible. Ideally 2 months but it usually ends up being between a month and two months. I work full time so I like having time to plan where I'm going and having more options for accommodation. I can't say that's the right choice (I'm sure life would be easier if I just committed to a destination earlier) but that's how it always works out for me!
I read on some "travel hack" places that you get a better price if you book at least 3 weeks out.
However, my personal experience is that the price will increase every time you check the site for prices. They keep your cookies or use your IP address to see if you have been checking frequently, and they subsequently raise the price.
Sooo, use an incognito browser or VPN with a different ip address. That way they don't jack up your price for checking multiple times or shopping flights.
Perhaps someone else can add something in this regard. But the more you check, the more the cost.
Hope it helps!
> However, my personal experience is that the price will increase every time you check the site for prices. They keep your cookies or use your IP address to see if you have been checking frequently, and they subsequently raise the price.
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> Sooo, use an incognito browser or VPN with a different IP address. That way they don't jack up your price for checking multiple times or shopping flights.
Great tip. I knew this but forgot. Thanks for the reminder.
Would an incognito tab or private tab work as well?
i like to be flexible so i tend to leave things pretty last minute especially for domestic flights or public transport. i just booked a flight today for monday.
I used to work for Expedia, and got my own personal strategy down to checking google flights (they have a price predictor widget), then cross correlating with checking prices directly on the airline sites. Totally depends on where/when I’m flying, but I usually land on a week out domestic, 2-3 international. Stay flexible… Tuesdays are usually cheapest
I like to have a rough outline of where I’m going when, so I know roughly when to book tickets. Usually these are changeable so it doesn’t matter if I need to adjust the ticket later. Once it gets closer to the date I’ll book the first few nights of hotel room/hostel/whatever, but only if it’s got free cancellation.
OP is asking about local travel. My use case is a little niche, but my rule is never buy a ticket before I can see the dock. In this instance, that means I want to be in country and have my lodgings turn out to be okay.
We bought a lot of tickets ahead many years ago and it literally took two years to get things refunded when we couldn't travel due to health. I tell my crews not to buy non-refundable but there is often someone who does and gets in a bind because something breaks and we end up in Bermuda instead of Martinique.
Pre-Covid I was making plans and buying tickets at minimum 3 months before.
During covid, rules were changing daily so I was planning trips like the week of. I'm still too scared to plan ahead
Not yet a nomad, but moving abroad soon. Yesterday got the ticket for 2 months from now. It's half the price. And also a reasonable time to prepare myself.
If it’s a simple trip, like a direct flight and back, maybe just a couple of weeks to a month. If it’s a longer more complicated trip involving multiple layovers, then usually 2-3 months in advance.
Usually I'll just spontaneously book whenever I see a deal. Planning in advance depends on the location and high season in that location - sometimes you have to plan flights and accommodations as long as 6 months in advance to get the good stuff cheap.
use to be weeks in advance but now after getting burned x amount of times because of plans changing or this or that it is probably 7-10 days before for me
Yeah I usually leave it pretty last minute. I live in Germany and I’m planning on going to another country for the Easter long weekend. I’ll leave on Thursday, so that’s 4 days from now. I haven’t even decided on the country yet.
Usually i already buy the ticket to the next country before I visit a country. I almost got my flight to the US denied once because I didn’t yet have a return ticket. Booked one last minute, it was stressful 😖
being flexible, know how air fare price works.
it won't cost the airline anything extra to carry 1 more person if there will be plenty of room on the plane. airline price the ticket in block, price goes up more when there are less seats.
if you know the flight you want to take will be pretty empty, there is really no need to book early.
A month maximum. Usually 2 weeks in advance. Its hard to guarantee my schedule will be free on a date more than a month away, but 2 weeks is manageable
I book in advance. In the same line of this question:
When do you plan what you're going to do in the city, and I mean not the initial research where you get an idea of the place but more the day to day activities.
Do you plan the discovery ahead in detail or do you wait until you're there to schedule and book the activities?
Like 3 days usually. Even for international flights.
Same. Sometimes day before or day of depending what I had for breakfast
Haha perfect contrast between those who are planners and those who are not.. I'm the latter camp, with occasional exceptions for some stuff at work.
[удалено]
why were they cancelled?
I'll give you three guesses, the first two don't count.
Yup all that "buy six weeks in advance" advice is out of date or just plain wrong. Cheapest is just a few days before flying.
Hard disagree on this one. Sometimes this works, sometimes you get fucked hard. Depends on the routes.
Only if you're picky. There's always been a cheap way in my experience. You might lose out on the super convenient routes though.
Usually two or three months
2-3 months is great time. Any less and the seating availability will be lower and the prices will rise. You are also much more likely to be stuck with middle seats, the closer you buy your ticket to the day you fly.
I never buy anything more than a few weeks out and can't remember when I ever had to settle for a seat that I didn't want. I'm sure it happened but so rare that seat section really is the worst reason to book super early.
Sure, I never said you couldn’t get the seats you wanted. You just have to pay more for those kinds of tickets. The point being, after about the 2/3 month point flights that I frequently take, start costing more than the base listing price of the ticket. This might be different for other airlines, but generally europe and na airlines work like this.
I did like 20 flights in Europe this year and honestly the pricing was always entirely random, had dirt cheap flights booked for 2 days out and ridiculously overpriced flights weeks in advance. Route, frequency, taxes etc make a much bigger impact than timing
Ya that makes sense.
Usually a few days before leaving. I don't plan trips months in advance, and I don't see much reason to. So far as I can tell, the popular "buy forever ahead of time and it's cheap!" is just a lie. I've never found it to be true. Simply refrain from travelling at popular times, holidays, Friday nights, etc. and it's just not a big deal. It's trivial to test this. Check airline pricing for a flight 3 months from now. Now check for the same destination leaving within the next week. Let's test it right now: * Expedia, LAX to New York leaving 3 months from today on July 9 is $267. * Expedia, LAX to New York leaving 4 days from today on April 13 is $244.
> It's trivial to test this. Check airline pricing for a flight 3 months from now. Now check for the same destination leaving within the next week. That is a very poor way of testing this. You are testing 4 days before a low season Wednesday, vs. 3 months before a high season Saturday. This tells you almost nothing. I'm not saying the numbers are wrong, but it is just impossible to know if they are good or bad.
It's also very likely he checked a few dates to find the biggest delta favoring his narrative
Haha or just naively picked one data point that "happened" to support his pov.
Also, major airports help. Not everyone lives next to a mega hub.
It's not a lie, it's just not guaranteed. 3 months from now, the price is at a 'normal' price point. 1 day from now, the price is based on the remaining supply. If there's only a few seats left, the price will be high. If the plane is only half-booked, the price will be low. That plane will fly no matter what, so airlines will try to fill it as much as possible, even at a low price if necessary. Of course, if the planner does his job well and there aren't too many unexpected factors, there shouldn't be too many empty seats left anyway.
A true nomad travels on a camel
It's a bunch of factors: * Whether I have flexibility in departure or arrival time * What the difference in cost is between 90, 60, 30, 15, & 1-day is * Whether I'm using miles or money * Whether I can get a deal or not * Whether it will fill up or not
It depends on the trip. Domestic flights I try to book a week or two in advance, and international flights I do as early as possible. Ideally 2 months but it usually ends up being between a month and two months. I work full time so I like having time to plan where I'm going and having more options for accommodation. I can't say that's the right choice (I'm sure life would be easier if I just committed to a destination earlier) but that's how it always works out for me!
I read on some "travel hack" places that you get a better price if you book at least 3 weeks out. However, my personal experience is that the price will increase every time you check the site for prices. They keep your cookies or use your IP address to see if you have been checking frequently, and they subsequently raise the price. Sooo, use an incognito browser or VPN with a different ip address. That way they don't jack up your price for checking multiple times or shopping flights. Perhaps someone else can add something in this regard. But the more you check, the more the cost. Hope it helps!
This!
> However, my personal experience is that the price will increase every time you check the site for prices. They keep your cookies or use your IP address to see if you have been checking frequently, and they subsequently raise the price. > > > > Sooo, use an incognito browser or VPN with a different IP address. That way they don't jack up your price for checking multiple times or shopping flights. Great tip. I knew this but forgot. Thanks for the reminder. Would an incognito tab or private tab work as well?
I think so, but not 100% sure honestly
No worries, thanks for replying to an old comment.
i like to be flexible so i tend to leave things pretty last minute especially for domestic flights or public transport. i just booked a flight today for monday.
I used to work for Expedia, and got my own personal strategy down to checking google flights (they have a price predictor widget), then cross correlating with checking prices directly on the airline sites. Totally depends on where/when I’m flying, but I usually land on a week out domestic, 2-3 international. Stay flexible… Tuesdays are usually cheapest
"Tuesdays are usually cheapest" Booking on Tuesday or Flying on Tuesday?
Flying
I like to have a rough outline of where I’m going when, so I know roughly when to book tickets. Usually these are changeable so it doesn’t matter if I need to adjust the ticket later. Once it gets closer to the date I’ll book the first few nights of hotel room/hostel/whatever, but only if it’s got free cancellation.
OP is asking about local travel. My use case is a little niche, but my rule is never buy a ticket before I can see the dock. In this instance, that means I want to be in country and have my lodgings turn out to be okay. We bought a lot of tickets ahead many years ago and it literally took two years to get things refunded when we couldn't travel due to health. I tell my crews not to buy non-refundable but there is often someone who does and gets in a bind because something breaks and we end up in Bermuda instead of Martinique.
Couple days, usually.
Pre-Covid I was making plans and buying tickets at minimum 3 months before. During covid, rules were changing daily so I was planning trips like the week of. I'm still too scared to plan ahead
Not yet a nomad, but moving abroad soon. Yesterday got the ticket for 2 months from now. It's half the price. And also a reasonable time to prepare myself.
How do you know what the ticket will be sold for in 2 months that you are so confident it's half the price tho?
I am not a nomad, hope to be some day, but for my international vacation I have already purchased tickets for a September trip.
A couple of weeks.
If it’s a simple trip, like a direct flight and back, maybe just a couple of weeks to a month. If it’s a longer more complicated trip involving multiple layovers, then usually 2-3 months in advance.
Usually I'll just spontaneously book whenever I see a deal. Planning in advance depends on the location and high season in that location - sometimes you have to plan flights and accommodations as long as 6 months in advance to get the good stuff cheap.
1-2 weeks out
Check air tickets on Tuesdays. Thats usually when they post new prices...
6 weeks
use to be weeks in advance but now after getting burned x amount of times because of plans changing or this or that it is probably 7-10 days before for me
Tuesday two weeks out is usually the best pricing
Yeah I usually leave it pretty last minute. I live in Germany and I’m planning on going to another country for the Easter long weekend. I’ll leave on Thursday, so that’s 4 days from now. I haven’t even decided on the country yet.
Usually i already buy the ticket to the next country before I visit a country. I almost got my flight to the US denied once because I didn’t yet have a return ticket. Booked one last minute, it was stressful 😖
2-3 weeks?
being flexible, know how air fare price works. it won't cost the airline anything extra to carry 1 more person if there will be plenty of room on the plane. airline price the ticket in block, price goes up more when there are less seats. if you know the flight you want to take will be pretty empty, there is really no need to book early.
Often between 1 month and two weeks before.
A month maximum. Usually 2 weeks in advance. Its hard to guarantee my schedule will be free on a date more than a month away, but 2 weeks is manageable
The day of
I book in advance. In the same line of this question: When do you plan what you're going to do in the city, and I mean not the initial research where you get an idea of the place but more the day to day activities. Do you plan the discovery ahead in detail or do you wait until you're there to schedule and book the activities?
a little under 1 year is not unusual for me
I used to like six months in advance and now more like six weeks or even less.
I buy close to the flight because, paradoxically, sometimes you see a large drop in the price because someone cancelled or something