So...we've booked our trip for April, but have never done separate airfare. For all of you who always book separate, when do you usually book you air (besides when you find a good deal?)I'm finding prices seem to be going up lately from Michigan. Thanks for all of your help!
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When I see a good deal. Seriously, if you see a good deal why would you wait, unless you were waiting on the funds. I've tried the 3 months out on Wednesday thing and it was hit and miss.
I always book airfare separately. I booked our Dec trip in Feb. I started checking about three times a week in search of the best airfare. We have found that booking directly with our selected Airline as being the best. This may not be the case if you live in a larger city. I live in a small state and in a rural setting, so this works best for me...unless I want to drive several hours and spend the night..Which generally is more costly overall.
Leaving mid week does make a difference. Booking early saved me over 300 US per person..compared to what the flight is now. Granted, I am leaving mid December....but April is also spring break for many colleges...so I would definitely start checking now. Hope this helps some. Once you start looking regularly, you will get a feel for the pricing. Try looking at some other dates to get acclimated to the charges. Good luck and enjoy Negril in April!!! One of the few months that I have never been to Negril.
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Booger ~ I would buy if I saw a great deal now. LOL I'm only waiting because I haven't yet...
Yetta~ thanks. We are leaving midweek, as our daughter is getting married on Monday the 15th in Negril. I keep looking every week...so far prices are a higher than I want to pay. However, I soon might just have to suck it up and pay.
Thanks guys!
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I actually booked our air for our Dec trip back in April, before I booked the hotels. It went down slightly for a bit after, but is way up from what we paid now. Watch for a seat sale and you might get lucky
Well not much for choice outa Detroit mostly Delta with a stop in Atlanta, the prices bounce around , when we booked for aug, we were finding the best balance between price and flight times. Seems to be around $600 is as cheap as it gets any more.
Trip #59 most of February
Being in NY does have it's advantages I guess. Still can find RT air for ~$325 sometimes. Your best best is like Yetta said. Keep looking often, esp. midweek, try multiple combinations (I use flexible dates option in the search engine) and you will get a feel for the flow of it. Try signing up for an airfare alert service like Airfare Watchdog. http://www.airfarewatchdog.com You put in the parameters and they notify you when a good deal comes along.
Good luck with the search. Congrats to you and your daughter.
No matter where we are headed we always book airfare first. There are a ton of places you can stay for a good price, but normally only one airline you can get a good deal on out of any particular city, and you need to be flixible to get the best prices for airfare.
Regrds,
Bob
Another option is to search for airfare on Bing - if you are within a certain number of months they will give you an indicator if they think the price will go down. Of course it can't predice refinery fires or other factors. I did find it helped my patience when I still have several months to buy airfare.
Kayak.com helped me find price drops for both of my upcoming trips. I signed up for daily email alerts for 2 or 3 departure/return combos. Every night around 11:00 pm I get my price alert for the day. I knew the typical best price to go for as well as the desired flight times, and was able to jump on it immediately. 12-14 hours later, the price had gone up already. I booked in June for both November and April, the price only dropped lower once, not for my exact dates (weekend flights) but for Tuesday or Wednesday departure and return.
The email alert will also show suggested dates when the prices are lower. The email shows the 4 or 5 carriers with the lowest prices and what those prices are as well as how many stops. Major airlines don't fly direct from my city (unfortunately) so it shows 1 stop prices as well as 2 stops (or more). We do have 2 charter airlines with direct flights, unfortunately it doesn't show those but they're also usually the highest price of course.
Good luck, it can be fun sniffing out a good price!
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