When to book December airfare?

[Cinderumbrella]

OK travel veterans- help me out!

I have never planned a WDW vacation (or any vacation for that matter) almost a year in advance. Since December airfare was just released by most airlines the prices are still pretty high. Some days they seem to change hour by hour and it's drving me insane!!

When is the best time to book? Our ideal dates are Sun Dec 10-Sun to Dec 17 but since the 17th is so close to Christmas we are getting nailed for the return flight. We are going Chicago OHare (Midway is not an option for us as it is over 2 hours away and Milwaukee isn't much better- so there goes Southwest, Airtran and Midwest(?))

TIA!!!!!

 

[miche61]

My understanding is you should keep your eyes out, set a price for what you would be willing to pay, and GRAB it as soon as you see it.
I am also watching for Dec., and that is my plan of action. I figure we've got a few months to wait before we see what we want to pay.
Good Luck!

 

[fun & fancy free]

We went this past December. The reason we ended up going is because I was surfing the airlines. There it was R/T from BDL(CT) to MCO non-stop $103 w/tax. Well my Dh said what are you waiting for. Book it!!

I would keep an eye out and set up fare alert on different sites. I never book through the travel sites. I always go straight to the airline site that is showing low fare. Good luck.

 

[robinb]

When is the best time to book? Our ideal dates are Sun Dec 10-Sun to Dec 17 but since the 17th is so close to Christmas we are getting nailed for the return flight. We are going Chicago OHare (Midway is not an option for us as it is over 2 hours away and Milwaukee isn't much better- so there goes Southwest, Airtran and Midwest(?))

TIA!!!!!

You should still consider MDW. I don't know where you live in the Chicago area where ORD would be OK, but MDW would not. Even if you have to stay in a hotel (park n fly, or use Priceline) at MDW you may save tons of $$ by flying Southwest. We flew Southwest over Christmas/New Years (the busiest time of year!) to MCO for about $150 each RT. I could have had it cheaper, but my DH had originally wanted to fly into Tampa and out of MCO and we had to change one of our legs later. My return segment was $39 one way!

BTW, we drove from Madison Wisconsin and stayed at the Hinton Garden Inn the night before for about $40 on Priceline.

 

[Aneille]

We went this past December. The reason we ended up going is because I was surfing the airlines. There it was R/T from BDL(CT) to MCO non-stop $103 w/tax. Well my Dh said what are you waiting for. Book it!!

I would keep an eye out and set up fare alert on different sites. I never book through the travel sites. I always go straight to the airline site that is showing low fare. Good luck.

Where do you go to set up fare alerts? I am also looking for some Dec. flights.

 

[goofy4tink]

I'm waiting to book two trips...one in Oct and another one in Dec. Yesterday when I went to Delta's site, I could have gotten r/t non-stop from Logan to MCO for about $170 pp at perfect times. Of course they would have changed before then, but it was a good price. So, today those flights aren't even listed.
Why did I not book them yesterday? Because I'm really nervous about flying in Oct on Delta/Song. I have had great experiences with them in the past but I'm flying with another mom and her dd and don't want there to be any surprises once I book the flight. So, I'm waiting for JetBlue to open their window for next fall/winter. Then I'll book. But, up to now, I've usually booked as soon as I could...at the 331 day window.

 

[Aneille]

I'm waiting to book two trips...one in Oct and another one in Dec. Yesterday when I went to Delta's site, I could have gotten r/t non-stop from Logan to MCO for about $170 pp at perfect times. Of course they would have changed before then, but it was a good price. So, today those flights aren't even listed.
Why did I not book them yesterday? Because I'm really nervous about flying in Oct on Delta/Song. I have had great experiences with them in the past but I'm flying with another mom and her dd and don't want there to be any surprises once I book the flight. So, I'm waiting for JetBlue to open their window for next fall/winter. Then I'll book. But, up to now, I've usually booked as soon as I could...at the 331 day window.

Try American Airlines. I was surprised to see that for a trip in May that I was looking for I found AA to be the cheapest out of Song/Delta, and Jetblue.

They don't have as many direct flights but they did have 2. Not the greatest departure out of Logan but for the fare difference I was about to book it until I saw a ding out of Providence today that was much much cheaper.

 

[fun & fancy free]

Aneille, any of the travel sites have it (travelocity, expedia) you type in you home airport and fav destinations. They then ask for a $ amount. I always put when it drops by $25 alert me. After that they send an email any time the fare goes down.

 

[erikthewise]

We have gone in Dec the last 5 years. My experience is that there are good sales somewhere between late August and mid September, so I'd recommend not buying before Aug 15 unless you see an offer you can't refuse. But if you're flying Southwest you should listen to people who have experience with that airline.

 

[jadejazzkayla]

We went this past December. The reason we ended up going is because I was surfing the airlines. There it was R/T from BDL(CT) to MCO non-stop $103 w/tax. Well my Dh said what are you waiting for. Book it!!

I would keep an eye out and set up fare alert on different sites. I never book through the travel sites. I always go straight to the airline site that is showing low fare. Good luck.

when was it that you found this rate and what airline was it? thanks.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

Thanks to everyone! Midway is not an option for us because we live in the far northwest suburbs. O Hare is about an hour in no traffic, Midway would be closer to 2 hours and we always take an early flight. Plus DH will not fly SW

At this point United, specifically Ted, has the best flight times for us. Earlier this week I had a 3 hour window to book for $84 each way but not for our "dream dates". Since we are going with 2 other families it seems next to impossible to co-ordinate this price with this date etc. before the change in fares.

As for the other poster who told us to hold out for August don't have the stomach to wait that long! I really want to have this nailed down in the next month or so...

 

[Rootskate]

We went this past December. The reason we ended up going is because I was surfing the airlines. There it was R/T from BDL(CT) to MCO non-stop $103 w/tax. Well my Dh said what are you waiting for. Book it!!


Wow, that was a good price! Which airline?

 

[DAPford]

I'm also looking for Dec 19th -30th from PHL to ORL for 3 my 330 day window is Feb 1 any reccommendations on airlines that guarentee seats I worry @ southwest no seat assignments together guarented

 

[Cinderumbrella]

OK, I am trying not to be obsessive but every time I check those prices keep inching higher and higher....

 

[jbhaupt]

In the past, we have booked our flights 11 months in advance...around that 331 day window. However, this yr the prices out of BDL are crazy..even the flights out of LGA on Delta are what I want to pay out of BDL. This year I have decided to wait and see, I check everyday and I am just waiting for that price I want to pay..otherwise we may be going Southwest and I can't stand the cattle call lines..but $$$ is $$$ and if I have more to spend on dinners and fun when we are there that will make it OK.

Bonnie