Purchase Airfare Soon or Wait it Out??

[mommyrom]

We are a family of five going to WDW and DCL Cruise in early December...I have been watching flight prices climbing and am undecided as to if I should snag the airfare soon? Or, wait a bit longer?

We are flying out of either Providence or Hartford and would love to get non-stop again (used Song and SWA in the past). However, I am not reading too much reliable information about Delta/Song these days (ie: cancelled flights!) and no one else offers non-stop service other than SWA...No rates out yet for them...But, even their pricing is climbing as well! Cruise and resorts are booked...Now, we just need some reasonable airfare!

 

[PlutosFriend]

We are a family of five going to WDW and DCL Cruise in early December...I have been watching flight prices climbing and am undecided as to if I should snag the airfare soon? Or, wait a bit longer?

We are flying out of either Providence or Hartford and would love to get non-stop again (used Song and SWA in the past). However, I am not reading too much reliable information about Delta/Song these days (ie: cancelled flights!) and no one else offers non-stop service other than SWA...No rates out yet for them...But, even their pricing is climbing as well! Cruise and resorts are booked...Now, we just need some reasonable airfare!

I would think you have plenty of time to wait. If it were me, I would not book yet.

 

[maddhatir]

I know how you feel- we are going in sept. i kept checking cheapair.com- signed up for the DING etc- i was thinking i HAVE to wait because the cheapest air i could find was about 220.00 pp (out of philly) i thought that was high-- i didnt think SWA would be good for me (the DING prices anyway) because i had my dates for our trip- and our travel dates were NOT flexible, not only that we were flying out on a sat and returning on a sunday--i wated to be able to fly out very early and return home later in the evening (BOY I AM DEFINATLEY NOT FLEXIBLE!)- i heard it would probably be hard to get a good SWA deal on these types of flights......AND SWA had not released their sept dates yet. I really had my heart set on airtran- i used them in the past and their prices are pretty good and i am a A+ member......well.......

i finally booked our sept flgihts with airtran just yesterday and we still have 6 months to go. they were 177.00 pp roundtrip which i thought was not too bad (ok- compared to some of the DINGS its bad, but not for a weekend flight)

so...what am i trying to say after all of this.....ummmm

OH- you still have 9 months- i think you should probably wait a bit. but just thought you might like to hear my story because i am a freak about getting my air ahead of time also...and it all worked out.

be patient, sure thats easy for me to say!

 

[msdis]

OMG I just looked at our dates for June and about died. Even airports 2-4 hours away. They have all gone up so much. Yikes, we may cancel. I would wait unless you can find a good deal then you better snag it.

 

[eyeoreismyhero]

I also just booked for Sept last night. The airfares even 6 months out have gone nowhere but up. It is a 3 1/2 drive to the nearest SW airport and I could have 1/2 to WDW by then in the car so no thanks. I booked out of Charlotte, NC direct to MCO for $215.00 on USAir.

I waited for my last Sept flights and they never came down so we had to just buck up and pay up.

 

[beachgrl001]

Im in s.jersey too, also going in sept. I was thinking of using airtran also,(MIL used them last year,she got a really good deal). I saw it for $177. today and I think Im gonna buy the tix because Im just too impaitient to wait for a better deal

 

[maddhatir]

Im in s.jersey too, also going in sept. I was thinking of using airtran also,(MIL used them last year,she got a really good deal). I saw it for $177. today and I think Im gonna buy the tix because Im just too impaitient to wait for a better deal

we are going sept 16/24th

you better book now! i was just checking airtran prices for aug and all the good fares are GONE! so you better get the 177.00 while you can!

most people i s/w say anything under 200.00 pp is a pretty good deal.

i went directly on airtrans site and got the "web-special" @ 70.00 ea way pp. BUT OH NO --- i -just- checked and those fares for the AM non stop flights are gone!!!!

good luck!

 

[pumpkinboy]

For early december, I think I'd wait it out at least until the SouthWest flights come out for those dates. If it were Xmas or Thxgiving, I'd buy right away (as I have for our Thxgiving trip) since popular times are only going to rise in all probability. For early December, the airlines are looking to offload those seats, and as the day gets closer and stuff is still open, they'll drop.

As for airline choice, SWA or Delta will be fine. For every airline that's out there, someone has a horror story. We have flown Delta/Song 6 times in the past two years and had only one incident that inconvenienced us: that was when the Radar at Boston's Logan airport went down over Columbus day, and the FAA cancelled every other flight, including ours (so not Delta's fault); Delta dealt honorably with us as it was out of their hands, and in the end we came up with a very acceptible solution with Delta's help.

If you find a good direct flight at a price you can live with, by all means buy it. But it seems a bit early to be worrying about your early-December airfare. I expect you can wait at least until the summer (or when SWA comes out with fares) to nab your airfares.

 

[mommyrom]

Many thanks to all of you for your advice and comments ..Just as DH has been telling me, we have plenty of time and not to worry...I am just the worrier in our family So be it....Patience, Patience I guess!!!!!

 

[Cinderumbrella]

We are in the same boat! I too am the worrier in the family
We are flying out the Sunday after Thanksgiving and DH does not believe me that the flight price is going to come down. We are at $262 NS from ORD (this is the lowest it has been since I started checking in January and I look every day ) He just doesn't get it that we are trying to go on the heaviest travel day of the year therefore the airlines don't need to reduce the fare because people will fly no matter what. We went last October for $165 pp and thinks we can get that price again (nevermind that we went on a Tuesday and not flying at a popular time of year)
Sigh.... just wanted to know that you are not the only one out there with this headache...