Best days of the week to fly in March/April: Tuesdays, Wednesdays.
Most expensive days of the week to fly in March/April: Fridays, Sundays.
People Also Ask
For domestic spring break trips around March or April, booking your domestic flight was cheapest 38 days before departure. In general, prices are lower between 23 and 59 days prior. July and August summer vacation travel is best booked 14 to 44 days ahead, with prices generally bottoming out around 21 days.
There's no sugarcoating it: Airfare is expensive. And while waiting until the last minute might sound like a good idea, it typically is cheaper to book your flights in advance. We are seeing fewer last-minute deals than in years past, especially when it comes to flights, a Kayak spokesperson tells Travel + Leisure.
The late fall and winter months—from mid to late October through mid-to-late March—are often the cheapest time to fly to Europe (though fares can spike in December).
It's often cheaper to fly to Europe mid-week, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, in particular.
Early to midweek tends to be cheaper on off-peak days, and as a rule of thumb, the busier the weekend, the more the flight is going to cost. “I've found that it is generally cheaper to fly on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays,” adds Dengler.
Tuesday Around Midnight is the Cheapest Time to Book
In general, flights were slightly cheaper at midnight earlier in the week (Monday through Wednesday). However, this is only applicable to about 1.6% of U.S. markets, meaning that it's not likely you'll find the same savings on your specific route.
According to Google, fares are less expensive if you fly in the middle of the week, rather than on the weekend. Over the past five years, flights that took off Monday to Wednesday were, on average, 12% to 20% cheaper than weekend flights. Sundays are a particularly expensive day to depart, Google said.
Another good rule of thumb for travelers figuring out how to get cheap last-minute flights: There is no secret time to score the perfect deal. But generally, the best prices tend to drop off once the flight is less than three weeks away.
In the early days of online flight booking, airlines used to manually post their updated prices at a certain time of day each week. This led to the rise of the myth that the cheapest time to book a flight was on Tuesday (and specifically at 3am, many claimed).
In the early days of online flight booking, airlines used to manually post their updated prices at a certain time of day each week. This led to the rise of the myth that the cheapest time to book a flight was on Tuesday (and specifically at 3am, many claimed).
Average domestic airfare price by dayThe cheapest days to depart if you're flying within the U.S. are midweek — generally Tuesday or Wednesday. For economy tickets, Tuesdays are about 24% lower than peak prices on Sundays, which translates to savings of about $85 per ticket.
As we've shown, the price of ticket on any one flight will change – and can even change multiple times a day. You simply do not have the time to mull things over and to shop around the Internet indefinitely to “make sure” you're getting the best deal.
Cost and convenience. When it comes down to it, booking directly through the airline is almost always more convenient. If the price changes after you buy your ticket, many airlines will get you the difference back.
While the cheapest day to actually pay for airfare can vary from one week to the next, Expedia data shows consumers who book airfare on Sundays instead of Fridays tend to save approximately 5 percent on domestic flights and 15 percent on international airfare.
If you're flying internationally, Wednesday and Thursday are the cheapest days to fly. Wednesday is, once again, in the number one spot! But Thursday can offer great savings if a Wednesday flight isn't available.