Thanksgiving and Christmas tend to be the busiest travel days of the year, but other holidays like Memorial Day, July Fourth, and Labor Day also see some of the highest volumes of air passengers.
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.
Generally, the best day of the week to fly is Tuesday or Wednesday. They're the cheapest and the least busy, making them ideal days to fly standby also. Thursday airfares typically remain more affordable than Mondays, Fridays, or Sundays, but travelers may choose Thursdays for their long-weekend escapes.
But, many don't realize the busiest travel period of the year is the week between Christmas and New Years. AAA estimates about 55 million Americans travel over 50 miles from home for the Thanksgiving holiday compared to nearly 120 million traveling during Christmas and New Year's Day.
resulting in lower prices and the cheapest day of the week to fly. So, you guessed it, that means the most expensive days to book flights are those days when most travelers are heading out – or coming home. That means flying Thursdays, Fridays, Sundays, and Mondays will typically be more expensive.
John Edward Long, Jr. (1915–July 18, 1999) was an American pilot who is in the Guinness Book of Records for the most flight time by a pilot: over 65,000 hours (more than seven years and four months) at the time of his death.
Just like us after a night of good sleep, airline circulation is freshest in the morning. If your flight departs in the morning, you are less likely to be affected by delays that stack up during the day and push back or cancel departure times.
As a general rule, flying in quiet months between holidays is your best bet to get a cheap, less crowded flight. You should definitely try the second half of January, the first days of February, early May, or the most part of September and October.
Are flights busy at 6AM? The probability for a delay is at its lowest (20% or below) from 6am – 11am. Early morning flights have less runway traffic, planes ready to take off from the night before, and fewer planes already in the air. Days of the week can impact the ticket price, along with delays.
The general rule is that for domestic flights, travelers should start searching for flight tickets one to three months in advance. For international flights, the best prices are typically available from two to eight months in advance. Prices can also vary widely among airlines.