When to book flights?

I am flying from Boston in Jan 2019 to Orlando. The first time I looked one way flights down were about $120pp. I figured I had plenty of time and didn’t book. Well now the same flight is $290pp one way. I would like to stick JetBlue because I have some points saved up to help with the expense. But that price is crazy.

So the question - has anyone found a sweet spot for booking flights? 3 months ahead? 6 weeks?

I heard a report on news radio several years ago that said mid-october is the best time to buy airfare, as it tends to be cheapest then. They did not give a reason, but I have checked periodically since then and prices do seem to be decent at that time. I can’t stay if this is a definite across the board, but it may be worth keeping an eye on.

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Not specific to Boston or January but I have read that about 60 days out is a decent time. I always find it hard to wait. Holidays and busy times can be an exception where you want to book as soon as possible.

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About 50-55 days in advance of travel. But when I’m shopping airfare I check daily. $120 one way is a very competitive fare from the Boston area. I’m generally pretty happy if I can get one way for $140/pp. You can do a bit better many times by taking a short drive to Providence. Even I, living 2 miles from MHT, will make that trip for substantial savings especially on longer trips.

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For me, it’s a mix of prices and flexibility. For example, there are very few direct LAX-Montreal and they often sell out. If I see that it is a reasonable price and is exactly the time I want I would rather pay a little more but get the flight I want.

If am flexible on the schedule, I might wait longer. Hopper, Google Flights and kayak are good at tracking prices, but also telling what price you should expect to pay. The other day, Montreal-LAX direct dropped to $200 a person, which is the cheapest I have seen in a while (especially around holidays), so I booked it. It can become cheaper, but I would not risk it (especially that it often goes up to $500 at holodays).

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I realize op asked about JetBlue specifically, but anyone know about SW? Ive read its cheapest to buy on release day (which is about 6.5 months out) but what about the click and save rates, are those cheaper for MCO at any particular time?

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I fly SW almost strictly and I would stand by what I said above. It changes hourly sometimes, so even once booked I check whenever I’ve got a moment of down time. So easy on the app. Makes waiting in a line, riding on an elevator, etc a bit productive, and I’ve wound up with lots of refunds - either points back in my coffer or $ set aside as travel funds for future use.

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Thanks. Good to hear that 50-55 days is a good time to book and to remember to check periodically for lower fares after purchase (I have not done this in the past). Also, if you fly SW a bunch, you pretty much know the average price and the best ever deal for your airport so it’s pretty easy to judge.

I often fly AA b/c they fly out locally, but if all 6 of us are going, the SW savings from the airport that is almost 3 hours away is worth it just for the luggage alone!

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Dumb question regarding SW…if you see your flight for cheaper, how is the best way to get the new rate? Do you simply modify your existing reservation via the app?

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Modify

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On JetBlue you really need to keep watching. They seem to periodically drop prices and then bump them right back up. For a trip I am taking in a couple weeks, I bought on a dip in prices approximately a month before departure. I had been watching for the prior 10 days and had a sense of how low prices could go.

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If you were ever be assigned a new title, I think it would have to be “Modify!”

FP+, SW flights… is there anything you don’t advocate Modify for?? :joy:

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Definitely modify! My one caution is if you purchase early bird check in, just make sure that it stayed when you modified the reservation. It usually carries over no problem, but twice I’ve had it dropped and had to call to have it re-added. They don’t give me any problems, but I do lose my ‘spot’ in line. Early bird check in gives priority based upon when it was purchased. So if they re-add it after the fact, you essentially get bumped back in line.

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Thanks everyone! I am going to wait it out - it’s still early. I have google alerts set up to tell me when the prices change. It’s hard to wait though - I like the feeling of knowing everything is all booked :neutral_face: