How Far In Advance Book Flights?

When it comes to planning travel, the question often arises; how far ahead should I book my flights?

It may become a daunting task to book a flight since one has to look for a suitable ticket that will offer the best ticket price or airfare. Among other questions that travelers have concerns with, the most popular one is on the appropriate time to book flights. With respect, is it more cost effective to book 6 months in advance? Or is 2 months enough time to be able to get a reasonable price? The answer will depend on several conditions, such as the place where you would like to go, when you plan to travel, and how open you are to change your plans. Here's a comprehensive guide on how far in advance you should book flights to save money:Here's a comprehensive guide on how far in advance you should book flights to save money:

Domestic Flights When it comes to US flights, the majority of the gurus suggest that you should only book your domestic flights one to three months in advance to ensure that you get the best price. This is applicable to routes with high demand such as New York to Los Angeles or Chicago to Florida during holidays/summer holidays. Prime booking window is from 4 to 8 weeks before the intended travel dates. Still, the same companies offer low-cost last-minute domestic flights as well, sometimes just several weeks or days before the flights. It is always recommended to book your ticket a month or two before the date of travel to have the best shot at obtaining the cheapest fare.

If you are planning to travel during the festive season or any other busy times such as the Christmas, Thanksgiving, you should consider booking as early as possible, maybe up to four to six months earlier. For other busy days such as during the school year, try to make a reservation 1-3 months in advance. Typically, midweek fares and red-eye fares tend to be lower so it is advisable to compare your fares with these in mind. In general, 3 or 4 days prior to your intended date of travel, fares increase because there are fewer seats available on aircrafts.

International Flights There are some modifications to the guidance on booking windows when it comes to international flights that span across oceans, or between continents. The majority of travel professionals advise that you purchase your international flight ticket at least 3 to 8 months before your intended date of travel. These destinations have a prime booking window that is 2-4 months beforehand on the international markets. Demand for certain global regions must be kept in mind when considering this model. For example, going to Europe in the summertime or to Australia during winter could take bookings 5 to 7 months in advance to get fair charges.

Ideally, it is always helpful to travel in the off-peak seasons for international flights since this will make the airfare more expensive due to events like Olympics, World Cup among others. Even with the dates you wish to travel be sure to try with your destination on different dates – at least one day earlier, or a day later can dramatically change the cost. Flights may search across multiple days as well so do not forget to clear your cookies/browser history as well.

Why It Is advisable to Book Flights in Advance There are several advantages to booking flights earlier:There are several advantages to booking flights earlier:

Flights costs more – This depends with the time you are booking for your flight, in most cases, the closer you are to the date of travel, the more you are likely to pay. Advance booking also makes sure that seats are available at cheaper rates compared to when the demand is high. This is because during such periods, hotels are usually fully booked, and the cost of basic services such as meals and accommodation can be greatly reduced.

More options available – The first things that come to the mind when talking about the benefits of early flight booking include wider availability in terms of the routes, airlines, flight timings, and connections. It also means that you can plan for your most suitable schedule in the middle of the month or for a number of weeks within a certain month.

Time-saving – Pre-booking airline tickets is timesaving when one is planning for a major event like a vacation. You can book your flights well in advance and know that your fares are fixed and not to rise as it is more often the case to have to worry about it.

Group bookings – When arranging a family holiday, school educational trip or other organized tours, etc. it is possible to arrange that all the group members travel on the same aircraft through advance booking. But it is much easier to get a block of seats on one plane if you are arranging in advance.

Airfare is a very sensitive aspect of traveling and this therefore requires a lot of careful planning and research in order to get the best fares. Follow these tips to score the best price on airfare, no matter when you book:Follow these tips to score the best price on airfare, no matter when you book:

Be Flexible - Try to take a flight on a different day, during any time of the day, at more airports and look for different connections as well. Flights that operate on these days are also usually cheaper than flights on the weekend or during other peak days of the week.

Check prices a week before and after the date of travel - Sometimes the sales are available on a different day than the initial chosen date.

Also, use specific airline mailing lists to book during special occasions such as flash sales or coupons that may exist on given route.

Book flights with full service airlines - Although new generation low cost airlines are offering cheaper fares, full service airlines such as KLM, Lufthansa, Air France, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have bigger networks and more frequent flights, which helps them to offer cheaper fares on certain days than others.

Book on Sunday and Wednesday - A study done on the industry presents Sunday and Wednesday as the worst booking days for that they attract relatively high average fares compared to the weekends.

Look into the low-cost airlines of the US – There are also airline companies such as Spirit Airlines, Frontier Airlines, and JetBlue that feature extremely low base rates that can be used for benchmarking.

Of course, the above advice does not hold at all times given that there are always some exceptions depending on the season, destination and so on. However, by adhering to these general guidelines, you’ll be in good stead on how early you should book your flights. Remember to look for the fare sales also though While not as frequent as the daily deals, you will find some great deals to grab.