Best time to buy plane tix?

[lrisvold]

I'm planning my camino Frances for this June/July and am flying from the USA to Madrid round trip. Is there a "best time" to find the best deals on airline tix or is it hit or miss? Right now they're running around $1400 (USD).

 

[Damien Reynolds]

In my experience, the closer you get to the day you want to go, the higher the cost. Try kayak.com.

 

[SYates]

I'm planning my camino Frances for this June/July and am flying from the USA to Madrid round trip. Is there a "best time" to find the best deals on airline tix or is it hit or miss? Right now they're running around $1400 (USD).

Have a look at http://www.skyscanner.net and set departure to US All Airports and look at the whole month option (accessible via the little calendar icon). Flexibility in from where you fly and dates can make for big savings! Another, relatively new option is to fly with http://wowair.com/ via Iceland. Wowair flights book out fast, so you will need to be an early bird. Buen Camino, SY

 

[Al the optimist]

Some travelling across the pond advocate looking at "Open Jaw" tickets.

 

[pudgypilgrim]

="SYates, post: 271871, member: 21152" Another, relatively new option is to fly with http://wowair.com/ via Iceland.

Even regular Icelandair and Norwegian can be very inexpensive (for me, from FL they're cheaper than WOW), but they oddly seem to have good fares only one way (Norwegian to Europe, Icelandair back). You may be able to save a lot by choosing different airlines for each trip. For me, going to/from Paris, it's between $1300 and $1400 if I book round trip, but only $757 round trip going on Norwegian and coming back on Icelandair. If I booked a regular round trip ticket on either one, it would cost about the same as any other airline, if available. (They're both weird that way--sometimes you can't go the other way at any price.)

EDIT If you consider Norwegian, be sure to read their carry-on allowance. It's pretty small.

 

[WldWil]

Flying from Wisconsin and got mine about $100 less. I actually bought the $80 cancellation insurance given that it was myself and for a lot of days into the future, but figured I would make up on it by buying sooner. For airfare, sooner is better, especially if you want to help layout your travel time. I do not fly until September.

 

[dougfitz]

Get on the airline and travel agency mailing lists. That will alert you to any specials/sales.

 

[SuGardner]

We are traveling to Madrid during the same timeframe and last week we got tickets for $1190 RT (NC to Miami to Madrid on American Airlines). We checked Kayak and Priceline every day. The prices seemed to fluctuate all over the board, but some days the price drops substantially so I would just keep checking. Where are you traveling from?

 

[lrisvold]

We are traveling to Madrid during the same timeframe and last week we got tickets for $1190 RT (NC to Miami to Madrid on American Airlines). We checked Kayak and Priceline every day. The prices seemed to fluctuate all over the board, but some days the price drops substantially so I would just keep checking. Where are you traveling from?

I'm traveling from Des Moines, IA. I'll have to connect in Chicago or Dallas-Ft. Worth. Last week prices were $1350, today they're about $100 more. I've heard Tuesday is the cheapest day to buy tix so am thinking of purchasing tomorrow before they go any higher. I figure the longer I wait, the higher they'll go.

 

[naplesdon]

I don't want to offer you a travel torture scenario but I have flown out of Miami on Air Portugal. They are less expensive than many other larger carriers and fly to Madrid. So if you were to book a trip from Des Moines to Miami and connect there you might find yourself a lower fare.

 

[SuGardner]

I'm traveling from Des Moines, IA. I'll have to connect in Chicago or Dallas-Ft. Worth. Last week prices were $1350, today they're about $100 more. I've heard Tuesday is the cheapest day to buy tix so am thinking of purchasing tomorrow before they go any higher. I figure the longer I wait, the higher they'll go.

Not to confuse you any further, but I thought Tuesday's were the cheapest day to buy also. But, two Friday's ago, the prices plunged. Unfortunately, we didn't have our act together with exact dates (our son is starting with us but leaving us in Leon and we hadn't figured out dates) so we waited. The next day they popped up $200/per ticket. We waited until the next Friday and they dropped $100 per ticket so we purchased.

The airlines have an algorithm that they use where they are releasing flights/seats based on buying patterns within specific timeframes. So, if they haven't dropped (on Tuesday), I would still wait a little longer but check everyday. I think they may drop because fuel costs have been lower. I guess I'm a bit of a risk taker. ...Once you buy though, you probably won't look back so whatever makes you comfortable. Buen Camino (and maybe we'll meet in June). Buen Camino!

 

[CaminoKentucky]

As Irisvold mentioned above, I have also heard that Tuesday is the best day to get less expensive flights,
Specifically after 3pm. That strategy worked well for me on my 2nd Camino last Oct/Nov.
Buen Camino!

 

[Sakami]

I don't think there are any easy won bargains this spring in airfare. Certainly more expensive than previous years when I've booked from the U.S. to Europe.

I ended up buying RT BOS - MAD for about $870 departing in April and returning mid June. Perhaps I might have saved $50 or so buying a couple weeks earlier, but the current booking returns direct to Boston and time is money after all.

While researching flights I did notice something that surprised me a little. I could book a multi-city flight, arriving in Bilbao from Boston and returning from Vigo, for the same price as RT BOS - MAD. I didn't end up booking that in order to rendezvous with family, but it would have been very convenient had it conformed to my plans.

Not sure how I would spend an 11 hour layover in Istanbul...

 

[Mark Lee]

$1400.00 seems a bit high.
I'd hold off a bit, checking frequently. Also if your days are flexible, that can make a difference.
I prefer to book directly with the airline if possible and not through a travel site or agency. When you book directly with the airline it enables you to choose your seat immediately and a heck of a lot easier to deal with any problems that may arise like cancellation or moving your flight dates. Of course if it's way cheaper through a travel web site, I'd go with that for sure.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Google, once again, is poised to take over a commercial segment. Try flight searches on Google Travel's Google Flights:
https://www.google.com/flights/

If history is any indicator, it will be using the best of the flight search engines, like Vayama, Orbitz, etc.

http://www.travelpulse.com/news/tra...-friend-or-foe-to-airlines-and-hoteliers.html

 

[lrisvold]

Flights purchased. I didn't want to wait any longer in case they go up even more. Thank you all for your comments.