Traveling on December 22nd back to Negril for Christmas. When is the best time to buy airline tickets? Already reserved my room and was suprised that I had a hard time finding a room for that time frame. TIA :cool:
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Traveling on December 22nd back to Negril for Christmas. When is the best time to buy airline tickets? Already reserved my room and was suprised that I had a hard time finding a room for that time frame. TIA :cool:
my advice: watch the pricing and book at a rate ou feel is reasonable, then never look at it again. I go by what I paid the year prior as a gauge of what is reasonable. In my particular case, the flights I bought in the fall have about tripled since I bought them. It was about 5-6 months prior to my flight, which seems to be uncommon, but I paid only about $30 dollars more than last year so I felt comfortable with the pricing (plus, my airline started charging for first bag :( ).
The best way to handle this is to know what is a good price and when you see that price pounce. I usually think about the 90 day out point the pricing is usually pretty good. After years of playing the price game though I learned that knowing what you should pay based on past experience and just grabbing when it is there is pretty solid strategy.
Good luck figuring that out. I always check prices every day until I book and then quit looking. There is no rhyme or reason to figuring out airfare pricing.
The consensus seems to be 53-54 days prior to departure, for whatever reason.
but for Christmas travel I usually book early like June or July. If you can book with Southwest if the price changes you can rebook with no fee.Quote:
Originally Posted by TAH
I don't know what time is the best. All I know is have the money ready when you are looking. I was just browsing for fun found a great price and by the time I had the money that price changed much higher
I have down 57 days for domestic flights, 171 days for international flights. Might have been from Conde Nast or some other similar publication. Also says Tuesdays are best, so the closest Tues to those timeframes is where I would check.
~Moose
I just checked old emails from years past. Our 2 most recent trips to Jamaica I found the best prices at 75 and 82 days from travel respectively. My best advice is to check prices daily and be ready to jump when you see a price you can live with. Like sammyb said, if you book with Southwest and find a lower price later, they will refund the difference or give you a credit for the difference depending on with price category you purchase. If it is the "wanna get away" price, the best they will do is give you a credit for your next flight within a year for the difference. Hope that helps.
Different sources will give you different timelines.
I start searching as soon as I have my dates set.
I set up fare alerts on sites like Kayak and Orbitz.
Also check sites like ITA Matrix or Vayama.
But I also do random searches several times a week and at odd hours.
The best fare I ever found was on a Saturday night 6 months before our trip.
Just happened to catch a 12 hour unadvertised sale.
Follow price trends and be realistic in your expectations.
Pick a number you like and when you get it or close to it, buy.
Most importantly, don't stress. You're buying tickets to paradise!
I like this idea. I've been checking everyday and the prices have been going up! I've never travelled to Negril during Christmas and a little anxious as what to expect for airfare. Southwest isn't booking until June so I have some time.Quote:
Originally Posted by sammyb
Thanks for all the great information!
Tuesday, but keep watching them, they go down as departure nears....Southwest and JetBlueQuote:
Originally Posted by LindyLou
:)
I would get them ASAP especially for that month
Really?? That's what I've been afraid of. Still think I'm going to take my chances with Southwest.Quote:
Originally Posted by deanna
I noticed this one time: Late Winter (late Feb & March, maybe into April) Southwest schedules Saturday nonstop flights from Milwaukee (MKE) to Montego Bay. Early on they only offer Premium and Business Select (or whatever they are called) at a high price. This year I checked closer to departure and they were offering 'coach' tickets for around $120 less.Quote:
Originally Posted by danabana12
Always remember though... if you have a preferred airline, and you find that the price doesn't seem to be coming down, it may be because of heavy bookings. Keep an eye on those seating charts! They won't start filling a second flight just because one is already filled up! We got lucky this time... found two of the last five seats available for tomorrow's Delta 2:00 arrival, and we're fortunate find two seats together.
I check prices everyday before we book. I check both Southwest and Delta at least once or twice a day. The prices will eventually drop, if even just for a day. I've never paid more than $450 round trip. This year I was patient and got both tickets for $393pp round trip out of Nashville. If you are diligent, it pays to be patient.
I don't think there are any rules about "book on Tuesday", "book 40 days out", etc. that are reliable.
The first question is, do you care about exactly when you go, what route you take, and what seats you get, or do you care only about price? I want to be in JA as early as possible on our travel day, and leave as late as possible on my return day without taking an overnight flight, so my flight choices are very limited. I also like some choice of seating. That means I book early - 4 months out, usually - and pay somewhat more than if I shopped hard for the cheapest option. I know how much I've paid in previous years, and the day I see something that is the same as or less than I paid last year, I book it.
The advice on not shopping until you're ready to buy is spot on. They know you're looking - they track the searches - and their pricing algorithms will use that information against you.
Last year, a friend's scheduled flight was cancelled, so he had to rebook 3 weeks out, and he got tickets on my same flight for 40% less than I had paid. That price lasted literally for an hour, then returned to 10% more than I had paid. So if you ever see what appears to be a really good deal, be ready to jump on it!
And my time is worth something to me, so the "it pays" is subjective. How many hours are you willing to spend to save $50.?
Hours? It takes me about 20 seconds to check flight prices on my phone. If it takes you hours you're doing it wrong. I can even do it on the toilet. Nothing like multi-tasking! Now that's productive! :DQuote:
Originally Posted by wrtiii
This is the most stressful part of getting to paradise. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Ras Walleye
Exactly 40...very, very frugal, yet very impatient.Quote:
Originally Posted by wrtiii
Only if you let it be. Your stress has no impact on prices so why bother.
And then there's the unexpected tricks of Airline Roulette! Saw great prices direct for flights to Jamaica, pounced on them. All paid for. Great price. Great time. Direct. Hotels booked ..... and here comes the exciting part - the airline cancelled the flight with no direct replacement. God has a killer sense of humour! :)
We rallied and rebooked. It was a tricky one! Sometimes, you just don't know!
If you book with Southwest you can rebook if the price goes down without any fee. I changed my flight 3 times because the price came down, plus there are still 2 free bags on international flights.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cleome
Definitely waiting for Southwest to open their tickets. Two free bags? That's a huge bonus. Thanks for the info.