When is the best time to reserve airline reservations for the cheapest fares?

[fairytalelover]

I heard tuesdays have the cheapest fares. Is this true? Does it matter what time of day?

 

[sam_gordon]

I'll tell you EXACTLY when to get the cheapest airfare. In exchange, you tell me the winning powerball numbers for tonight. Deal?

There are plenty of "guidelines" that might help you get the lowest price, but there are no "rules". The guidelines have enough exceptions they may or may not work for you. The best thing to do is start watching prices. Check multiple times a day. Once you find a price you're willing to pay, grab it. If you're on an airline that charges for changes (anything other than SW and maybe Alaska), DON'T LOOK AGAIN.

 

[Donna M]

For us, flying out of Boston or Manchester, NH to Orlando on SW or JetBlue, the fares have always been the cheapest right when they release them, especially SW. When I look now, our fares are hundreds of dollars higher. When we travel, we have to book the day they open.

 

[fairytalelover]

So making reservations on tuesdays is a myth?

 

[goofy4tink]

I have yet to find any way to get the cheapest fares other than to book as soon as they open a window. I know that some say it's cheaper on Tuesdays but that hasn't been my experience. Some say that waiting until 60 or 30 days out is good....hasn't worked for me. You just have to know the fare you'll be happy with. When you see it, book it. Airfares are very fluid...they can change in 15 mins!!!

 

[LBIJim]

So making reservations on tuesdays is a myth?

These days, yes, it's a myth that Tuesdays are the best days to snag the cheapest fare. You MIGHT find a cheap fare on Tuesdays, but you're just as likely to find it any other day as well. Keep looking until you find a fare you're comfortable with, buy it, then look no more.

 

[ibob52]

So making reservations on tuesdays is a myth?

No not exactly there was a time in the past [IIRC ... prior to 3 or 4 years ago]

SWA would occasionally release lower airfares on a Tuesday.

Unfortunately those days have gone the way of the Dodo Bird.

There are several factors that have driven airfares up.

YMMV

 

[macraven]

when SW released the flights for october, i didn't book as they were higher than what i could book united out of ohare.

thursday night, i saw SW lowered their price for MKE to MCO on my dates.
friday night, still low, about $30 less than on the release date
i booked last night and changed a flight this morning for a non stop while the fares were still at $126 a way.

i'm good with the price i paid for this SW flight.


4 years back, i would have never considered Saturdays to be the best day of the week to book flights.
now, i see changes different days of the week.

 

[fairytalelover]

well I guess Im just gonna grab whatever price I find on the day I am looking.

 

[Flynnismine]

With SW, no harm in booking at 6am on release day since you can change free of charge if your flight drops in price. Better to secure the flight, especially non-stop, in case the flight sells out. I booked non-stop one way flights for October as soon as SW opened the schedule and they both quickly sold out.

 

[richmo]

It seems airfare sales are sometimes released during the day on Tuesdays...not necessarily early. But that's by no means a rule and sometimes airlines will have a little airfare skirmish that goes unadvertised and can be very limited in nature and duration. I was all set on Southwest for a return flight and on a Sunday I saw my rate drop from $119 to $50. Now I've got a nice credit to use. Sometimes you just need to be looking at the right time.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

So making reservations on tuesdays is a myth?

The "Tuesday" rule comes from the time before computers. On Monday, the airline management would look at air sales for the last week vs. seats/flights and decide if they needed to raise or lower prices. The would publish these on Monday evening meaning they were available Tuesday.

now this is all done by very special models and it's easy to raise and lower prices at any time.

 

[rwdavis2]

Airlines have software that change the price of flights on a continuous basis based on how many seats are sold and estimated future demand.

 

[ton80]

We booked from BOS on JB on a Sunday for our upcoming trip 6/19-6/26.. After keeping an eye on AF it finally came down... BOS>>MCO $133 MCO>BOS $120 pp...
Both segments are non stop.. Great deal after looking at prices for the past month going up, up, up ...