Best Time to Buy Airfare for December

[jcf]

Should I go ahead now or wait???

I heard midnight was the best time to actually buy??

 

[goofy4tink]

Guess it depends on what airline you're looking at. I just booked my Dec air a day or so ago, with JetBlue. My fare going down already jumped $25, in just two days. Glad I booked when I did....as soon as they opened that window.

 

[Donald is #1]

Guess it depends on what airline you're looking at. I just booked my Dec air a day or so ago, with JetBlue. My fare going down already jumped $25, in just two days. Glad I booked when I did....as soon as they opened that window.

Me too! I booked Jet Blue Friday night for my December trip. I would be funny if we were on the same flight.

To the OP, I decided to book now because I was concerned about the rising fuel costs. Of course, with Jet Blue, if the price drops, I can call them (for a fee) and get a credit to my account.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

Should I go ahead now or wait???

I heard midnight was the best time to actually buy??

As other have implied, if you can get a fare that makes you happy (or at least one that reduces your anxiety), go for it. If you are going when schools are generally out, then this is particularly true. Sales rarely include the holdiay season.

If you are going in early to mid-December, this is historically a very slow time for all travel. I would expect to continue to see sales on airfare, even if the sale price is higher than sale prices for this time frame have been in the past due to fuel costs. Although I have seen some sales from LAX to MCO thru mid-Nov, I think it is too early yet for the best sales on December travel. I would expect those sales will materialize in August or later after the airlines have a handle on how the summer travel season went.

While it used to be true that the best fares were available at certains times of the day, with so many tickets bought online, this is not usually the case anymore. However, it still may be the case that a good fare will not last for long once it does become available. When you see a fare that looks good, try to act quickly.

You might want to post when and where you are flying from and someone who has traveled from there in past may be able to give you some more insight. -- Suzanne

 

[Terrif]

We just checked jet blue from Boston and they want $800 RT for one person! Anyone know of a better airline to check? We are arriving dec. 27th Delta wants $900! HELP!

 

[luna99]

Me too! I booked Jet Blue Friday night for my December trip. I would be funny if we were on the same flight.

To the OP, I decided to book now because I was concerned about the rising fuel costs. Of course, with Jet Blue, if the price drops, I can call them (for a fee) and get a credit to my account.

I also booked our december flight this past saturday.. it ended up costing about 314 per person round trip for DH and I and we figured we wouldn't find anything much less than that so we went for it.

 

[Terrif]

May I ask where you are flying from?

 

[Terrif]

I just saw your central New York sign. Which airline and airport if you don't mind me asking. My hubby is thinking of driving at this point from Boston 20something hours in December Yuk!

 

[Donald is #1]

We just checked jet blue from Boston and they want $800 RT for one person! Anyone know of a better airline to check? We are arriving dec. 27th Delta wants $900! HELP!

You may want to check Manchester or TF Green. But check your flight times too. I looked at all three airports for my November flight ($440 RT per person) and though the 1 stop flights looked cheaper than my Jet Blue non-stop flight, when I found comparable flight times for both legs the prices were about the same.

 

[Terrif]

Thanks. We have used manchester before but never TF green. We may be waiting out South West. Are you flying out of Boston on Jet Blue. I don't think they fly out of Manchester.

 

[Donald is #1]

Thanks. We have used manchester before but never TF green. We may be waiting out South West. Are you flying out of Boston on Jet Blue. I don't think they fly out of Manchester.

Yes we are flying out of Boston. The Jet Blue non-stop flights are just sooooo convient. By the way, you may want to check Air Tran. Their flights seemed to be much cheaper than the other airlines. Though, I will admit I didn't book with them because I don't know them very well.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

We just checked jet blue from Boston and they want $800 RT for one person! Anyone know of a better airline to check? We are arriving dec. 27th Delta wants $900! HELP!

Are you using a consolidator to check prices? I like kayak.com to check flights. It'll also check for nearby airports if you wish and you can set up searches that will notify you by email every day about fares. Once I find a fare I then purchase from the airline itself because if you have any problems it's easier to get it fixed if you've purchased from the airline. But I find kayak and others to be invaluable for planning.

FYI - it won't show SWA prices but may give you a link to check.

 

[bobbiwoz]

One problem with buying so early is that the flights tend to change, at least on Delta. We were just informed that we'll be leaving WDW 2 hours earlier than we planned. However, we had Delta vouchers and wanted to use them, so we booked quite a while ago.

Bobbi

 

[luna99]

May I ask where you are flying from?

doh! We are flying from Syracuse (Hancock airport) and flying Jet Blue! Another reason we bought this flight instead of shopping around is they are both direct flights! No transferring to a second plane!

 

[luna99]

By the way, you may want to check Air Tran. Their flights seemed to be much cheaper than the other airlines.

just wanted to talk about airtran here for a second.. we tend to either fly airtran or jet blue. Airtran is usually the cheapest flight you are going to find.. but for us, we have to drive an hour away to do so because they don't leave from our airport. In my opinion, it's a decent, bare bones sort of flight... the seats are small.. I think you may get a drink and some peanuts to eat and that's it. It gets you where you want to go. I used to fly airtran A LOT between 2000-2002 and twice the lost my luggage. They found it later that day and returned it to me and I also got two free flight vouchers for the headache of the situation which I thought was nice.

Jet blue I think is much nicer with bigger seats, I think they are pleather, it's more comfy and I think you get better snacks.. plus everyone has their own individual tv's and radios... which is great to distract you while flying.

ok, that's my 2 cents!

 

[beccasmom]

I would keep looking and jump when an attractive rate appears. I do not think fares are going to decrease at the rates we previously saw them do so. So, I think you will pay more this year than you would have last December. Also, the dates of travel really make a difference. In cities with competing airlines, you may see them trying to beat each other on price....in PHL, that is mostly USAirways and SWA.