International air fares....

[goofy4tink]

Question...how often do fares go down as you get closer to travel dates when flying internationally? My friend is flying to Italy, from Boston, in early May. She got terrific airfare months ago. Well, I'm now thinking about going with her....but airfare doubled!!! Just curious if it ever goes down...any advice?

 

[Alesia]

Question...how often do fares go down as you get closer to travel dates when flying internationally? My friend is flying to Italy, from Boston, in early May. She got terrific airfare months ago. Well, I'm now thinking about going with her....but airfare doubled!!! Just curious if it ever goes down...any advice?

The best time to book international flights is as soon as they're released. They tend to shoot up pretty quickly and don't generally come down .

 

[goofy4tink]

crap

 

[bcarey2k]

The caveat I've seen is IF (big if), you can hold out til the 11th hour, they will lower prices to fill the plane.

But generally the same as most airline tickets ... avoid buying on weekends, holidays, etc ....

Brian

 

[SSRFred]

I suspect your friend booked the airfare a few months ago when there were some crazy deals. They only lasted a couple of days. I booked 4 international tickets for less than 1/2 the price they usually are. If you want to join her, you may have to just bite the bullet because the fares may not go down.

 

[sam_gordon]

I booked RT to Barcelona for $450 per person around Thanksgiving, for a trip in April. The prices lasted about 36 hours then jumped back to $1300.

Just keep stalking.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

The caveat I've seen is IF (big if), you can hold out til the 11th hour, they will lower prices to fill the plane.

.......

Brian

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Airline fares just go up closer to departure date, especially international fares.

 

[goofy4tink]

When I traveled to London, years ago, the flights did go down shortly before travel dates, but then rose even higher. Just didn't want to bank on that happening again.
Even yesterday, when I was looking to book, the fares changed twice!!! And it was cheaper booking through Alitalia vs Delta. But, the day before, it was cheaper booking through Delta. I figure $300 is $300...better in my pocket than the airline's!!! All booked, at a price that was at the top of my comfort zone, but it's booked.