Planning to travel during the holidays? Hopper has released 2024 Holiday Travel Hacks. By being flexible with your travel dates, you could potentially save up to $200 per ticket.
For Thanksgiving, the most affordable option is to leave on or the day before Thanksgiving and return the following Tuesday, December 3rd. Travelers departing on Wednesday, Nov. 27, the busiest day, and returning on Sunday, Dec. 1, will pay $34. % more than those waiting until mid-week to return. You can save an average of $168 by moving your return to Monday or Tuesday.
Christmas travelers will find the lowest fares if they depart on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, with ticket prices dropping by up to 34%. To save even more, plan to fly home on New Year’s Eve. If you want to leave earlier, your next best bet is to leave on Monday, December 23rd and return home on New Year’s Eve.
More holiday flight tips
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Hopper also emphasizes that the timing of your reservation is critical to securing the best deal. Thanksgiving offers the lowest prices for the first two weeks of October. After that, fares are expected to increase by 5% to 10% each day for the two weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, increasing by as much as $30 per ticket each day.
The best time to book for Christmas is mid-October to early November, with prices set to rise by more than 32% in the last three to four weeks before Christmas.
To avoid costly trip interruptions, Hopper suggests choosing direct flights and aiming for early departures to minimize the risk of missing a connection. Flights departing after 9 a.m. are on average twice as likely to be delayed than flights departing between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m.
