You may have heard that Tuesday is the magical day of the week when airfare is at its lowest. While this may have been true in the early days of online airfare sales, it's no longer a rule to live by. Nowadays, there are different ways to find the best airfare prices, like being flexible in your travel dates and monitoring price changes over time—even after booking flights.
KEEP CHECKING
With change fees waived by the major airlines, you can book confidently, knowing that if a lower price is available, you can take advantage of it. After you book a flight, set a Google Flight Alert for that route. If you receive a notice that the price has dropped, contact your airline for an adjustment or cancel and rebook your ticket online. If it's within 24 hours after booking, you'll get a cash refund. If later, you'll get a travel voucher that can be used to book future trips.
ANYTIME IS THE RIGHT TIME
If your travel dates and destination are flexible, sign up to receive emails from your favorite airlines so you are the first to hear about fare sales. Consider signing up for third-party services that send out such notices, such as with going.com.
As soon as you see a deal you're interested in, book it. You can always make changes later, especially if waived change fees are an option.
USE DATA TO PICK YOUR TRIP DATES
If your destination isn't flexible, there are still tools to help you decide when to fly. Google Flights offers a price graph and a date grid, two great tools for helping you see how airfare prices change over time.
The price graph will help you find the cheapest airfare for your trip length across several months, while the date grid will help you see if moving your departure or return date by one or two days will save you any money.
USE DATA TO KNOW WHEN TO BOOK
If you want to forget about your flight after you've booked it, instead of continuing to monitor for better prices, or if you're flying an airline like Spirit or Frontier where change fees are still alive and well, Google Flights has one more tool to help you save money.
When searching for flights, look for the traffic light bar, which indicates if prices are currently low, typical, or high. Google Flights will also show when prices are typically lowest, such as one to three months before departure. Finally, Google Flights will indicate the potential savings if you wait to book, so you can decide if delaying your trip is worth it.
THE BEST TIME TO BOOK A FLIGHT
While there isn't any magic about the best time to book a flight, there are time frames that are better than others. According to Thrifty Traveler, "Avoid booking within 30 – 45 days before your flight." Best practices include booking flights at least 45 days to 60 days before a domestic trip and at least two to six months before international travel.
