How far out should you book a flight for the best price?

Jul 26, 2024

You may be wondering: how far in advance should one book a flight to ensure the best price.

This is one of those activities that can be very enjoyable—you are preparing a trip after all—but also rather tedious because nobody wants to overpay for their tickets. One key question is: when should one call an airline with the intention of booking a ticket so that they can acquire the lowest possible fare? The answer will be dependent on several factors.

The General Rule

Specifically, for domestic flights, try to make them 1-3 months before the date of the flight, and for international flights, try to make them at least 6 weeks before. However, what may be considered as the ‘right time’ may not necessarily be the same for the other persons or for a specific place and time of the year, day of the week, among others. Here’s a more in-depth look at how far in advance you should plan your air travel: Here’s a more in-depth look at how far in advance you should plan your air travel:

Domestic Flights

Regarding flights within the United States, it is generally advisable to book your tickets at least three weeks before the planned travel date but no more than three months before the trip. The prime booking window is usually 1-3 months ahead. The prime booking window is usually 1-3 months ahead.

3 months out: It’s when, on an average basis, the airlines release most of their seats and the best available fares for future travel. Booking about a month or three before the flight is also beneficial because it will enable you to get some of the cheapest flights before the prices are hiked.
6 weeks out: Fares rise during this period because travel companies anticipate demand to rise in the coming months. If you make a booking about 6 weeks prior, you stand a chance of finding good deals, though there are likely to be a few cheap seats available.
3 weeks out: However, it is still possible to find offers for 2-3 days before the flight if there are many people on the plane. However, available options will be more restrained at this stage.
Last minute: It is not advisable to search for domestic flights with a two-week lead time to the date of the trip, as this is not the best time to get the cheapest flights. If you don’t want to book your flight well in advance, last-minute flights will cost you a fortune unless you come across a few good deals.

The main message is that the 3-month range is the ‘Goldilocks’ for travel hacking US domestic flights because it isn’t too far in advance or too close to the date of travel.

International Flights

When it comes to planning travel overseas, there is a change in the guidance given. For international flights, you’ll generally see the lowest fares by booking much earlier. For international flights, you’ll generally see the lowest fares by booking much earlier.

5-8 months out If possible, begin to track the fares and plan your trip 6 months to 8 months before the date of travel. Internationally, there is always the factor of time in visa applications, amassing of vacation days, etc. For instance, just like domestic flights, the airline’s best international fares are as far as 11 months in advance. So 5-8 months is your window To sum it up, there is a window of 5 to 8 months to complete the course before the total amount is due.
2-3 months out: This is still a fairly good window for the purchase of an overseas trip and getting a fairly good flight rate. The only thing that should be anticipated is that the price will be much higher than before when you booked 8 months ago. Award availability also dwindles.
6 weeks out: On some occasions, you can find some discounts that bring the prices within the 1.5-month range but such offers are rather rare for international flights. You are likely to get the hotels at a cost close to or at the ‘peak season’ rate.
Less than 4 weeks: Only if there is an available seat sale should one book an international flight less than a month before its scheduled departure.

It is normally advised when participating in global travel to book early, at least for 2-3 months and preferably 5-8 months before the travel date. This is because it is always advisable to keep an eye on exchange rates and flight costs before making any decision.

Other factors that influence Price Other Variables that Influence Price

However, many other things impact the fares you are likely to get in a car, apart from the booking timeframe. Here are some key considerations: Here are some key considerations:

Time of departure: It is recommended to book flights during the off-peak time, as this is considerably cheaper than any other time of the week. Other factors may include red eye and early morning flights that tend to have lower fares as well.
Seasonal factors: This is because contractors use anticipations of increased demand during certain periods of the year to jack up prices. It will be wise to check for increased costs during the summer and the holidays, as most companies adjust their prices during these seasons. A wide survey indicates that January–March is usually the best period when hotels offer the best rates.
Destination: If one is planning to fly to New York or London, it might be very expensive as compared to flying to a small town. This is due to demand. Like other destinations, Costas in the Caribbean and Europe experienced increased rates during the high tourism period.
Operating airline: Full-service companies have higher year-round base fares that can be compared to cheaper operating low-cost airlines such as Spirit, Frontier, and RyanAir.
Stopover: Non-stop flights are considered to be more expensive than those that involve one or more stops.
Days until departure: A flight that is to be booked 300 days or more before the scheduled date will have different fare rates from a flight with a departure date within two weeks.

As you can see, the question of when to book is not simple and depends on many conditions! It can be noted that being an informed travel shopper is very beneficial.

Tips for Getting the Best Booking.

Here are some key tips to keep in mind for scoring deals on airfare:

Adaptive: People who have no fixed time have better bargaining power compared to those with restricted time when booking a flight. If you have to travel during the times that most people fly, you will have to pay a higher price regardless of the time you book your flight.
Searching for a particular flight Most of the Delta Airlines Flight booking websites and airfare searching tools enable you to input your preferred rate, which the tool will monitor and notify you when the flight is available at your preferred rate. This takes out the guessing game of trying to determine when to make the purchase.
Avoid booking flights with connector layovers. Such flights are also good weather-saving strategies. They enable you to have a break and a rest at the airport before proceeding with the journey.
Subscribe to flight deal notification services. There are numerous websites, like Scott’s Cheap Flights, that send out daily, or even in real time, alerts for missed fares and other good deals before they are gone!
Do not travel during school holidays and special occasions; if you travel on these days, you are likely to pay dearly for your flight. This greatly saves you a lot of money—flexibility in your dates.

The Bottom Line

Thus, despite the guidelines regarding the best periods to book airlines, it is crucial to understand that the process of searching for cheap tickets involves certain aspects, including flexibility, advanced preparation, and timing. The 9-month range is when most airlines have chief fares booked, which denotes that most of the bookings occur during this period. but these are cheaper as they are booked in advance but the price goes up as the flight is fully booked. When you plot your route 6+ months in advance and use online alerts and travel hacking tips, you have better chances of targeting savings. You have to know that whoever wakes up first will get the worm!

Book your Delta Airlines ticket now! Call +1 833-902-2090