How far out do you book your plane ticket?

[disneyseniors]

I set my alerts, im just happy its easy to use

I'm going to give it a try too! Thanks to 3Kmom

 

[kes601]

For flying to MCO we wait until a couple of months out unless booking Southwest as we tend to book refundable fares so if it goes down we can get a credit back to our card. Moving forward we will also be looking at Breeze as they just started service between ORF and MCO (looks like expanding to 4 times a week in the spring). For them I will book once I think the rates are not going to get any lower.

If flying anywhere that requires a connection we tend to book as early as we can on Delta. We look for the least expensive option we are comfortable with. There has never been a time when booking several months out where the flight doesn't change and we can switch to any flight we want at no charge (sometimes the change could be as simple as a flight number change).

I think the earliest we have ever booked is for a flight to Iceland next year. That was done at 11+ months out.

 

[KPeterso]

The subject line sums it up, but im wondering how far out everyone buys their plane tickets before a trip? Im about 5 months out and without a ticket, but with my favorite airline having all these travel by deadlines now, im more hesitant to pull the plug until later.

Do you find that last minute deals are better or booking months ahead for a busy season?

We're still waiting for my wife's work vacation approval to post, which adds another layer of complexity to having to book these trips so far in advance.

Like you, I am in SoCal. I typically fly LAX to MCO so I can take direct flights. My preference is Delta and then United and then the others. I start looking for my flights about 6-8 months in advance. I monitor the prices and check regularly. Around 3-4 months out, i start checking flight prices daily. When the price drops to a price I am comfortable paying, I book the flights. I know approximately what I want to pay and in monitoring the prices regularly, I know where the prices are starting. I have had times I rebook to lower the price slightly, but I have also missed the lowest price too, so be ready when you see a price you are happy with. I am thrilled under $350 and very happy under $400 and ok at $450.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

I'm a nervous Type A, and we fly exclusively JetBlue, which I love that they post airfare at 11 months out, too, and book ASAP. JetBlue is also great about canceling the airfare and then rebooking at the cheaper price and the difference goes in your travel bank for the next trip.

I like to have my ducks in a row, everything extraneous (tickets, airfare, GCs) all prepaid and ready to go so I can just get excited about planning ADRs or new things to try, etc.

I tried Hopper and Google Flights, but unless I'm doing something wrong, they only show the cheapest airfare with no bags and not picking your seats. By the time you add in carryon luggage and seat selection, the information seemed irrelevant.

 

[Girlstar30]

Like you, I am in SoCal. I typically fly LAX to MCO so I can take direct flights. My preference is Delta and then United and then the others. I start looking for my flights about 6-8 months in advance. I monitor the prices and check regularly. Around 3-4 months out, i start checking flight prices daily. When the price drops to a price I am comfortable paying, I book the flights. I know approximately what I want to pay and in monitoring the prices regularly, I know where the prices are starting. I have had times I rebook to lower the price slightly, but I have also missed the lowest price too, so be ready when you see a price you are happy with. I am thrilled under $350 and very happy under $400 and ok at $450.

They're pretty high right now on SW. My wife refuses to fly from LAX and I get it but a direct flight would be nice. It does give me anxiety to wait too long but now I have anxiety to book too soon

 

[Girlstar30]

I'm a nervous Type A, and we fly exclusively JetBlue, which I love that they post airfare at 11 months out, too, and book ASAP. JetBlue is also great about canceling the airfare and then rebooking at the cheaper price and the difference goes in your travel bank for the next trip.

I like to have my ducks in a row, everything extraneous (tickets, airfare, GCs) all prepaid and ready to go so I can just get excited about planning ADRs or new things to try, etc.

I tried Hopper and Google Flights, but unless I'm doing something wrong, they only show the cheapest airfare with no bags and not picking your seats. By the time you add in carryon luggage and seat selection, the information seemed irrelevant.

Im like this too, I just want to book and get it done with and then buy gift cards thoughout the months for the trip! Going on vacation every 6 months is new to me

I noticed the cheapest fare on SW now doesnt include seat assignment until you get there. That makes me super nervous, I dont want to risk a middle seat away from my wife.

The next fare up includes changes so booking now wouldnt harm me unless ofc I have to cancel and cant use it for over a year out I have to use SW this time because I have a ton of gift cards from before the changes unfortunately

 

[aka Charles]

I am a planner and like to get things locked in early.
I normally fly Delta, and the sooner the better works for me.
Especially when using Skymiles and/or Companion Certificates.
Best routes, schedule, and seats available.
With my Delta status, I can usually get upgraded from Main to Comfort, and sometimes to First.
.

 

[VGCgroupie]

They're pretty high right now on SW. My wife refuses to fly from LAX and I get it but a direct flight would be nice. It does give me anxiety to wait too long but now I have anxiety to book too soon

What airport do you fly out of ?

 

[Girlstar30]

What airport do you fly out of ?

Long Beach

 

[VGCgroupie]

Long Beach

Try SNA a few more airlines fly out of there to MCO. Breeze is a budget airline but we like them and you can fly cheap.

 

[Girlstar30]

Try SNA a few more airlines fly out of there to MCO. Breeze is a budget airline but we like them and you can fly cheap.

Checking right now and putting an alert thanks. We will fly out of anywhere in socal, but lax

 

[KPeterso]

They're pretty high right now on SW. My wife refuses to fly from LAX and I get it but a direct flight would be nice. It does give me anxiety to wait too long but now I have anxiety to book too soon

Checking right now and putting an alert thanks. We will fly out of anywhere in socal, but lax

LAX is really not that bad. There was a time I would have said No to it too, but I have no issues there. The parking options are good (I use either the Marriott (I use this if I have my parents with me as there is assistance to load/unload the car and I can drop them and the bags at the pickup spot before parking the car. The higher price is worth the extra assistance when traveling with the elderly parents) or LAX Economy parking (I use this when solo. It is $15 per day if you prebook and there are a ton of promo codes available if you sign up with them (https://parking.flylax.com/lax-economy.html)) or you can easily Uber there (not as easy when going home though). I also have precheck which has always made security a breeze - something to consider if traveling a lot.

I actually live very close to SNA and I still go to LAX. The option for Breeze is ok, but they only fly the SNA-MCO route like twice a week with one flight per day so if you get stuck, you may be stuck for awhile. I looked into them when they were first starting up and almost immediately crossed them off my list. Whereas Delta and United (American too, but I don't like them) both have multiple nonstops per day from LAX-MCO (and back) so you have a better chance of being reaccommodated. We got stuck in 2021 due to Hurricane Ian (supposed to go home Thursday but airport closed), but got out on the first Delta flight after the airport reopened Friday afternoon. Smaller airlines you may not be so lucky.

 

[Girlstar30]

LAX is really not that bad. There was a time I would have said No to it too, but I have no issues there. The parking options are good (I use either the Marriott (I use this if I have my parents with me as there is assistance to load/unload the car and I can drop them and the bags at the pickup spot before parking the car. The higher price is worth the extra assistance when traveling with the elderly parents) or LAX Economy parking (I use this when solo. It is $15 per day if you prebook and there are a ton of promo codes available if you sign up with them (https://parking.flylax.com/lax-economy.html)) or you can easily Uber there (not as easy when going home though). I also have precheck which has always made security a breeze - something to consider if traveling a lot.

I actually live very close to SNA and I still go to LAX. The option for Breeze is ok, but they only fly the SNA-MCO route like twice a week with one flight per day so if you get stuck, you may be stuck for awhile. I looked into them when they were first starting up and almost immediately crossed them off my list. Whereas Delta and United (American too, but I don't like them) both have multiple nonstops per day from LAX-MCO (and back) so you have a better chance of being reaccommodated. We got stuck in 2021 due to Hurricane Ian (supposed to go home Thursday but airport closed), but got out on the first Delta flight after the airport reopened Friday afternoon. Smaller airlines you may not be so lucky.

Its just the whole driving there, the uber pickup is far, there's way more people etc than LB where we just zip in and out of and uber is much more expensive for us it makes the cheaper flight not even worth it on top of all that.

Shady people posing as uber drivers asking us to take a ride with them, I am just not an LA fan. I try not to go to the whole city unless I have to or there's something I really, really want to do.

 

[KPeterso]

Its just the whole driving there, the uber pickup is far, there's way more people etc than LB where we just zip in and out of and uber is much more expensive for us it makes the cheaper flight not even worth it on top of all that.

Shady people posing as uber drivers asking us to take a ride with them, I am just not an LA fan. I try not to go to the whole city unless I have to or there's something I really, really want to do.

I have looked at the fares from all different angles and I find for a nice direct flight from LAX and adding in parking is comparable or less than dealing with SNA. I mean I get it - I live less than 10 minutes from SNA and have to drive past both SNA and LGB to go to LAX. But I still do it every time. The last time I flew into SNA from MCO was in 2012 and had a nightmare of a time ---- first flight cancelled and rebooked to later in the day, then massive delays due to American having a system wide outage, got to Dallas and despite the airline saying all flights were being held, the SNA one was gone (and there were probably 5-6 others from my flight trying to get on it), got a spend a night in Dallas, and only got on the first flight the next day because I had bought a seat with extra legroom and that was all available. Yeah, it all sucked and I know it is an outlier, but if I had done the LAX direct flight, I would have gotten home that night as expected.

I have never had anyone try to pose as a Uber driver to me at LAX --- did at MCO though. And I am a single woman so a prime type target. The Uber drop off at LAX is not bad, but I will agree that the pick up does stink. I hate that offsite pick up place. It is part of why I drive to LAX and pay to park now. I believe some of the higher end uber types can still pick up in the horseshoe (like Uber Black) so may be worth using for a pick up at the end of a stay.

I guess I am just saying I would not eliminate it straight away as an option. Especially if you can get the direct nonstop flights for a decent deal.

 

[Girlstar30]

I have looked at the fares from all different angles and I find for a nice direct flight from LAX and adding in parking is comparable or less than dealing with SNA. I mean I get it - I live less than 10 minutes from SNA and have to drive past both SNA and LGB to go to LAX. But I still do it every time. The last time I flew into SNA from MCO was in 2012 and had a nightmare of a time ---- first flight cancelled and rebooked to later in the day, then massive delays due to American having a system wide outage, got to Dallas and despite the airline saying all flights were being held, the SNA one was gone (and there were probably 5-6 others from my flight trying to get on it), got a spend a night in Dallas, and only got on the first flight the next day because I had bought a seat with extra legroom and that was all available. Yeah, it all sucked and I know it is an outlier, but if I had done the LAX direct flight, I would have gotten home that night as expected.

I have never had anyone try to pose as a Uber driver to me at LAX --- did at MCO though. And I am a single woman so a prime type target. The Uber drop off at LAX is not bad, but I will agree that the pick up does stink. I hate that offsite pick up place. It is part of why I drive to LAX and pay to park now. I believe some of the higher end uber types can still pick up in the horseshoe (like Uber Black) so may be worth using for a pick up at the end of a stay.

I guess I am just saying I would not eliminate it straight away as an option. Especially if you can get the direct nonstop flights for a decent deal.

I agree with you that direct is nice but my wife ain't having it i saw a $99 one way on our last trip which was like $100 cheaper than our flight per person and she said no

 

[Genie+]

I love jetblue but theyre almost 2x the cost of SW for me so I always pass i do like them a lot better tho

When we started going to WDW every year, we signed up for the JetBlue Plus card. Using the card on flights gets 6x points, but even better is free checked luggage for cardholder plus 3 others traveling with you. When you use points to book the flights that includes free carryon luggage as well, plus no ‘change fees’ so no cost to changing flight if you find lower prices.

Currently the sign-up is $100 for the card and you get 60k points after spending $1000 over 3 months. Sometimes they do 80k SUB.

You can also pool points as a family. Both of our kids got the cards during college, so we’ve had a nice stash of points among us lol. A bonus is when they travel outside the US, that card has no foreign transaction fees.

It may not be the best earning card out there. We just use them enough to churn the advantages. So far it has worked well for direct flights NYC/MCO.

 

[Girlstar30]

When we started going to WDW every year, we signed up for the JetBlue Plus card. Using the card on flights gets 6x points, but even better is free checked luggage for cardholder plus 3 others traveling with you. When you use points to book the flights that includes free carryon luggage as well, plus no ‘change fees’ so no cost to changing flight if you find lower prices.

Currently the sign-up is $100 for the card and you get 60k points after spending $1000 over 3 months. Sometimes they do 80k SUB.

You can also pool points as a family. Both of our kids got the cards during college, so we’ve had a nice stash of points among us lol. A bonus is when they travel outside the US, that card has no foreign transaction fees.

It may not be the best earning card out there. We just use them enough to churn the advantages. So far it has worked well for direct flights NYC/MCO.

I need to get an airline card stat, i need free luggage