When is the Best Time to Book Flights? Cheapest Days Revealed

When is the Best Time to Book Flights for the Cheapest Prices?

Ever wonder when the 'magic moment' is to snag those cheap flights? You're not alone! Forget the myth of booking a year out – it's usually not necessary unless using points. Travel gurus at Jack's Flight Club say 2-3 months is prime time for Asia. Data backs this up too. Cheapo Air, after crunching numbers on nearly a billion tickets, found around 71 days before departure is the sweet spot for Asian deals. For other destinations, think: 4-5 months for Europe, 2-4 months for South America, and 4-6 months for Australia/New Zealand.

Not too early please! When you book more than 10-12 months in advance, you’ll pay higher prices because the airlines haven’t adjusted fares based on supply and demand this far out.

Best Time to Book Flights By Region:

• Europe: Book 120-160 days in advance for the best prices. (4-5 months)
  
  
• Asia: Aim for 90-120 days before your travel date. (3-4 months)
  
  
• South America: Booking 70-100 days in advance is ideal. (2-4 months)
  
  
• Australia/New Zealand: Plan to book 120-180 days ahead. (4-6 months)

Keep in mind if you are traveling at peak season, you’ll want to book further in advance than if traveling in shoulder or off season. Do your research and when searching use the incognito option in your web browser so the airline can’t put cookies on you and increase the fare each time you go back to the site.

Airlines often drop prices on Mondays, so book on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. And fly on weekdays if you can! Tools like Skyscanner, Google Flights, and Hopper will keep you updated on price drops. Hopper is considered by experts to be the best of these three with special mention for their price predictor app.

Disclaimer: Of course, airline data is proprietary, and numbers can and will fluctuate. Plus, we see that what’s the best window this year may change next year so we and you should continue to monitor it. So, your best bet always is to track your desired flight time and date starting 5-6 months out using websites and tools described above.

When is the best time of year to fly?

In General: Travel in January or February can be the most affordable time of year to travel (especially when traveling to Europe) while summer and school as well as common holidays like Christmas is often the most expensive time to go.