Spring airfares?

[Winston112]

I keep checking airfare for March and April of 2003 and it is $300+. Is that the norm that time of year or is it too early to get a good deal?

[tink2dw]

Much to Early!! Keep checking!

[MELSMICE]

I disagree w/ it being too early to book for Mar/Apr 2003. We always book a year in advance & the fares have never gone down for that time of year - only up. We always go at Easter, so the fares are always the highest, but I know that Mar/Apr is break time for many schools as well as colleges.

I can't tell you what to do, however, I never want to chance waiting at that time of year. Some people wait for Southwest fares. Next year we leave Buffalo on Apr. 10 & return on Apr. 26 - the best we could find was $273 - including tax & we were on the phone the minute the fares came out. They just kept getting higher & higher by the minute both through the airlines, on the internet & through a travel agent.

$273 is more than we have ever paid, but the other options were $500 - $600 or $700!! We went with the $273. Good luck.

[poohbear2]

I am on MELSMICE side for this one. Although, this is the first time I am going during Easter( timeshare week), I asked around and read the boards and eventually went to a friend who had been a TA for many years. She said if you can find an airfare for this time period under or around $300.00 grab it. She
said airfare for this week will go UP. At least that is what the trend has been in the past. I am frugal and like to wait but because I really want to go this time period, I went for it now. Good-Luck!

[travelbug]

Hi, winston112! I'm also from the Detroit area, and always on the lookout for good airfare to Fla. It's definitely not too early to find good rates, but you have to check the websites often and jump when a deal comes up.

I got my ticket with Delta for end of Feb./beginning of Mar. 2003 from Flint to MCO for $202. Then I stumbled on a Delta ticket from DTW to MCO for $177 for Easter 2003 (Apr. 17-27 to be exact). I decided to go to Ft. Myers then instead, and got the exact same price. That was amazing, since it's usually pricey to fly to Ft. Myers for Easter. I found that rate on a Sunday afternoon, bought my ticket right away, and by Monday morning the special was gone.

Delta seems to be running a number of excellent deals from the Detroit area - maybe trying harder to compete now that Northwest runs so many more flights??? Just guessing.

Keep checking often, and don't forget to check on rates out of Flint. Sometimes the rates are cheaper than flying out of Metro, plus the Flint airport is extremely easy to navigate in comparison!

Good luck! I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! :)

[Poly Pal]

If your travel dates fall between April 12 and April 27, 2003 (the two weeks around Easter) then it is probably too late to get the best fare to Florida. Jump on that $300 deal right away if your travel dates are in that time period.

We're paying $292.50 on Delta Express (non-stops) for Hartford to Orlando for next April.