Best day to find cheap airfare is almost here
Most people expect to get the best deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but are those really the best days? Well, it depends on what you’re looking to buy.
When it comes to travel, your best bet might be to exercise a little patience and hold out for Travel Deal Tuesday, which may be shaping up to be the Black Friday of airfares. Tap or click for quick and efficient packing hacks for travelers.
Travel Deal Tuesday is a newer concept when it comes to the holiday sales cycle. It takes place on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. If you have travel plans, then this is the time to shop for tickets.
Travel Tuesday’s origins
Airfare-finding app Hopper, which also predicts future airfare prices, crunched the numbers from last year and found more than double the normal fare sale activity the Tuesday after Thanksgiving.
It looked even deeper and discovered historical evidence for big sale activity on that day over the past several years. So Travel Deal Tuesday has quietly been a thing for a while, but it’s now getting wider recognition.
Thanksgiving is a hugely busy holiday for air travel, so it can be hard to find good rates around that time. Once the holiday is over, the demand for travel eases up. That means airlines are offering good deals to encourage people to book new trips.
Are the deals really that great?
Hopper said it can predict future airfares with 95% accuracy up to six months before departure. The company offers up some predictions for U.S. average deal prices for Travel Deal Tuesday and they sound pretty great.
For example, Hopper expects to see some round-trip flights in the range of $369 to Paris, which is an average savings of $477. That means your dream vacation may be closer than you think. It’s also expecting major savings on hotels.
Ways to get the best travel deals
Now that you know there are amazing travel deals available on Travel Tuesday, it’s time to make a game plan. Here are some suggestions to help things go smoothly.
Stay flexible
As usual, airfare bargains can be dependent on when you want to fly. You’re more likely to grab a killer price if you have some flexibility in your dates.
In a similar vein, you may be able to save if you’re willing to put up with making connections along the way, rather than fly direct. Look at your options and see how much you’re willing to compromise in search of a deal.
Take advantage of price-watch services
The Hopper app’s “Flex Watch” feature is a personalized deal finder that alerts you when destinations you’re interested in go on sale. Sites like Google Flights and Kayak also have price-tracking features that notify you when an airfare bargain is available.
Don’t miss out
Set up your airfare alerts in advance or get them going the morning of Travel Deal Tuesday so you can focus on your day and not feel like you have to check prices every few minutes. If a deal looks good, jump on it. Discounted fares can sell out quickly.
Tags: alerts, apps, Black Friday, book, company, deals, Feature, features, future, Google, numbers, sales, Thanksgiving, tracking, travel, trip
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