rule of thumb would be the sooner the cheaper, but how many weeks or months in advance?

For my particular flight there are only three companies and it seems flights are cheaper between Tuesdays and Thursdays. However, if you want to book a flight 2 months from now, it’s considerably cheaper.

Have you found the sweet spot?

  • Brkdncr@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    I can’t source it, but a while ago i read that 3 weeks was the best time to get the lowest price.

  • dingus@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    People keep saying 3 weeks which is odd to me. When I book a flight that close, I feel like I tend to end up paying more and/or having a very undesirable flight time or number of stops. Several months out is what I try to do for the cheapest flight at the most desirable time/number of stops.

  • GissaMittJobb@lemmy.ml
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    4 months ago

    I don’t think it’s going to be possible to give an absolute timeframe here as the answer is probably that it depends.

    I lean toward booking early as that generally seems to be a better idea than the alternative.

  • livus@kbin.social
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    4 months ago

    International flights from NZ, 3 to 6 months. Local flights about 3 or 4 weeks.

  • neidu2@feddit.nl
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    4 months ago

    I book a lot of flights at my employers expense, and the general guideline is to TRY to book two to three weeks in advance. I don’t check the price myself, so I can’t verify if it holds true, but the thinking is that it’s on average cheaper - After the “we can’t be bothered planning this flightuntil we know it’s going to be profitable”-phase, but before the plane is almost full so they can start squeezing the passenger wallets.

  • eezeebee@lemmy.ca
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    4 months ago

    Can’t say timing-wise, but I did notice once that the prices were higher when browsing on my phone than on a desktop PC.

  • bluGill@kbin.social
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    4 months ago

    depends on many variables so there can never be a simple rule. Airlines want their planes full of paying customers is the real rule. They change prices based on how full each plane is. Sometimes a nearby city can be orth heading to for a much better deal.

    • Baron Von J@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      And some airports are cheaper than others. My last international flight was 2x the cost to fly out of Houston (IAH) vs out of Austin. Even for the flight that went from Austin to Houston and then to the destination.

    • ryathal@sh.itjust.works
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      4 months ago

      The different city part is especially important for large events. Airlines will increase prices for sporting events, concerts, and conventions.