Best time to buy airline tickets?

[grenouille]

We're looking to fly into FLL on Dec 29th, for our Dec 30th cruise. (returning home on Jan 6th)

 

I've never booked flights over the holidays- can anyone recommend a good time to buy the tickets?

 

Should I buy now (prices are insanely high, almost double what I paid for a flight in April) or chance it and wait, hoping prices come down?

 

Thanks!

[Keith1010]

No one can know for sure but the prices will likely remain high during this period bacause it is a peak time for flying.

 

Keith

[grenouille]

Yeah, I'd figured as much, Keith.

 

I was just hoping to find out if the prices would be going from insanely expensive to just the usual expensive as we get closer to the holidays. :p

 

(or will they get worse as we get closer?) :eek:

[BobT172]

You didn't mention which airline you are considering. Prices will be high no matter what because of the holiday season.

 

Sometimes the prices go down but you can't plan on it. In many cases, prices go up as the cheaper seats are bought up.

 

However, Southwest has a big preseence in FLL. When you buy a ticket on SWA you can check and see if the price later goes down. If it does, you can then reticket for the same flight (at no charge) and the savings will go into your account as a credit for a future flight...it is not refunded but no other airline even does than for you... and bags are free.

 

Edit: Oops!! I see you are in Canada..SWA does not serve Canada..sorry..

[RuthlessBunny]

I know that Wednesday's are the days that the special fares go into effect. I usually check early Wednesday morning. The tickets are restricted, but I usually get really good deals. For the holidays, earlier is better. Don't wait for a last minute bargain, there won't be one and you many not get the flights you want.

 

Were I you, if the cruise line has a cruise/fly program, price them out. If there's not too much of a difference, book it all together. If your flight is cancelled, or if there's an issue, it's the cruise line's problem, not yours.

 

Also, buy the insurance. That way you're covered all the way around.

 

Another thing to note is that you can choose a multitude of airports, MIA, FLL and WPB. Naturally I'd recommend FLL of the three, but depending on the fare, I'd use another airport. MIA is an American Hub, and they may have better ticket prices. MCO (Orlando) is another option, depending on the savings, if it's hundreds of dollars, it might be worth it.

 

You could also drive. It's about 24 hours, but once you get to the US, it's a straight shot down 75/Florida's Turnpike. If you're talking about a lot of money, I'd drive in a heartbeat! Come down a couple days early, explore the area.

[SensFan11]

I would agree with the folks here and book the sooner the better for that peak period.

 

One option would be to fly from Syracuse (a 3 1/2 hr drive from Ottawa). Airport fees / air travel fees are so much cheaper in the USA. I would also look at flights out of Montreal: both AC and Westjet have nonstops to FLL, and American Airlines has a nonstop YUL>MIA.

 

For our trip in November, crusing out of Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, and ended up booking the return flight yesterday out of Orlando. It was $175 cheaper for the two of us, and Westjet has a nonstop from Orlando to Ottawa, which means we actually arrive home earlier, even though we have to drive up to Orlando!

 

I'm seriously considering the Syracuse option for our February cruise. For our family of four, fares lately have been running around $2500 from Ottawa (roundtrip for 4, taxes included)...flights from Syracuse for our dates are only $1200, saving us over $1000!

[Music City]

We're looking to fly into FLL on Dec 29th, for our Dec 30th cruise. (returning home on Jan 6th)

 

I've never booked flights over the holidays- can anyone recommend a good time to buy the tickets?

 

Should I buy now (prices are insanely high, almost double what I paid for a flight in April) or chance it and wait, hoping prices come down?

 

Thanks!

 

Your departure dates fall in between the peak of Christmas and New Year's Day, but that is still a heavily traveled time. Your return is after the peak and you should be able to get some decent fares, but book early when it comes to holiday flights. I suggest Southwest Airlines if possible because you can always cancel and use the funds later or easily rebook if you see a better fare.

 

Airline fares fluctuate wildly on a daily basis. If one airline reduces fares all other will follow suit. Sometimes fares will drop on just a couple of seats and then go back up and you will never know it happened. That's why I use yapta to track non-Southwest airlines. I can go to their site, put in as many flight itineraries and airlines as I want and their site will check those fares several times each day. If the fare drops I will automatically get an email.

 

http://www.yapta.com/

 

Use Southwest's Low Fare Calendar to watch their fares...

 

http://www.southwest.com/cgi-bin/lowFareFinderEntry?int=GSUBNAV-AIR-SHORTCUT&disc=&ss=0

[Music City]

You didn't mention which airline you are considering. Prices will be high no matter what because of the holiday season.

 

Sometimes the prices go down but you can't plan on it. In many cases, prices go up as the cheaper seats are bought up.

 

However, Southwest has a big preseence in FLL. When you buy a ticket on SWA you can check and see if the price later goes down. If it does, you can then reticket for the same flight (at no charge) and the savings will go into your account as a credit for a future flight...it is not refunded but no other airline even does than for you... and bags are free.

 

Edit: Oops!! I see you are in Canada..SWA does not serve Canada..sorry..

 

Even though the OP is in Canada they might actually save money if they could get some inexpensive flights to a Southwest gateway. Perhaps they would like to spend a day or two pre-cruise in Cleveland...uh...well, maybe Buffalo, New York City, Boston, Baltimore, Providence, etc., then fly on to FLL.

[Music City]

I have no idea how much the air fare is from Ottawa to Baltimore is but right now the fare on Southwest to FLL on 12/29 is $169 plus taxes and fees while the return is $82 plus.

 

From Boston it's $224 plus and $104 plus. From Pittsburgh the fare is $178 plus and $82 plus. To and from Detroit it's $212 plus and $107 plus.

[CathyCruises]

We are cruising from Miami on 1/15. Tried to book Southwest but they are not showing any dates beyond 1/7--is this normal?

 

Also as all of you know but I didn't, they only fly into FLL--it's been years since I've been there, is that a reasonable option for a cruise from Miami? Can't remember the distance.

 

Any advice much appreciated.

 

thanks,

Cathy

[eandj]

We're looking to fly into FLL on Dec 29th, for our Dec 30th cruise. (returning home on Jan 6th)

 

I've never booked flights over the holidays- can anyone recommend a good time to buy the tickets?

 

Should I buy now (prices are insanely high, almost double what I paid for a flight in April) or chance it and wait, hoping prices come down?

 

Thanks!

 

The rates WOULD be lower in April as the spring break peak was over with. Personally I would not wait much longer than the end of this month. Even when the economy isn't too great, people WILL fly over that week to visit family. So rates will be generally higher. We've flown to Canada more than a handful of times and the rates always seem high to us. :rolleyes: Just have to figure out what feels reasonable, book it and then don't look back.

We use Yapta to follow the rate trends when thinking of travel further out. But generally I just hunt around every day till something pops up. Sometimes a deal will showup and be gone within hours. So when in a pinch, I'd rather be the watch dog.

 

You might want to head over to the cruise air board too and you can get some help from those "experts" as they indeed are familiar with the trends, airlines, codes etc.

 

Good luck!

[SensFan11]

A good thought, but I doubt flying to a Southwest gateway and then picking up a Southwest flight would save much money. Our flights to Florida are actually quite cheap...if looking just at the airfare (e.g. not the fees and taxes), it's often cheaper for me to fly to Florida than it is to fly to Toronto or New York City! Our airlines here in Canada, along with the US carriers that serve major cities, provide plenty of competition, especially to Florida!

 

I've flown/reserved two trips to Florida this year with one-way fares ranging from $81-129 before taxes...

 

The problem is that flights in Canada in general, but especially international flights, have all sorts of extra fees!

 

Here's an example:

 

Air Canada's cheapest flight on Dec. 29 from Ottawa>Fort Lauderdale is $183 (a very good price for this time of year IMHO); however, the taxes, fees and surcharges on this flight add an extra $84.59! The total price is $267.59 Yes, that's the equivalent of 46%...but a lot of these are air navigation and airport charges, not just government taxes.

 

The cheapest airfare on this date with JetBlue from Syracuse>Fort Lauderdale is actually more expensive...it's $228; however, the taxes are just $21.40 for a total of $249.40.

 

So, in this example, while the flight out of Syracuse is slightly cheaper, it certainly isn't worth the drive and hassle, but each date and destination is different. As suggested above, if you're a bit flexible on both ends, you can try all sorts of combinations (e.g. Ottawa, Montreal and Syracuse for departure; Fort Lauderdale, Miami, West Palm Beach and even Orlando for arrival)...but at the end of the day, I'd be surprised if you find much better than that Air Canada fare I cited above.

[BobT172]

We are cruising from Miami on 1/15. Tried to book Southwest but they are not showing any dates beyond 1/7--is this normal?

 

Also as all of you know but I didn't, they only fly into FLL--it's been years since I've been there, is that a reasonable option for a cruise from Miami? Can't remember the distance.

 

Any advice much appreciated.

 

thanks,

Cathy

 

Southwest hasn't published their schedule pasy 1/7/11 yet. They will soon..keep checking.

 

Flying into FLL on SWA usually means alot cheaper fares than flying into MIA...and bags fly free too. Just give yourself alot of time on the return flight.

 

A taxi from FLL to the Port of Miami could run almost $100...its about 25 miles. Try a shuttle service... folks on these boards recommend SAS alot.

 

http://www.ridesas.com/

[eandj]

We are cruising from Miami on 1/15. Tried to book Southwest but they are not showing any dates beyond 1/7--is this normal?

 

Also as all of you know but I didn't, they only fly into FLL--it's been years since I've been there, is that a reasonable option for a cruise from Miami? Can't remember the distance.

 

Any advice much appreciated.

 

thanks,

Cathy

 

It's only maybe a 30-35 min drive between the two citites. Lots here interchange them. There is a popular shuttle service SAS that works between the cities. Look at ridesas.com for more info.

If you are coming in a day in advance or two, you could stay in FLL and shuttle over to the port in the morning of the cruise. Some prefer getting to Miami the night before so they don't have to shuttle the distance to the port in the morning.

 

S.West is really accurate when counting how many days ahead they show rates. You are probably a week before the published flights come out. I forget what their cut off is.

[Bobed1927]

Look at farecast.com. They try to forcast air fare trends. I'm always leery about flying Southwest during winter months because I believe that most of their flights go through cities where there's a danger of weather problems (delays/cansellations).

[grenouille]

Thanks for all the suggestions.

 

I had briefly looked at flying (or driving) to a US city, and then flying a cheaper airline, such as Jetblue, but the savings for my dates were minimal last I checked.

(and with limited vacation time and available babysitters for the kiddies (ie-grandma and grandpa), driving down isn't really an option)

 

I also looked at flying into MIA or MCO, but flights were the same or more expensive. :(

 

The other issue with leaving from a different city is that the driving can be an issue, given that it will be december, and most likely snowy up this way. (because, as most of you know, we get snow for 10 out of 12 months up here, right? :p ) We'd prefer to leave from Ottawa, and only have to worry about driving to the airport.

 

I've signed up for the price drops website (yapta) -thanks! I didn't know about that site. I think I'll keep an eye out for the next week or so, and then jump on the next "deal".

 

Thanks all! :)

[megr1125]

.

 

>SNIP<

 

 

Were I you, if the cruise line has a cruise/fly program, price them out. If there's not too much of a difference, book it all together. If your flight is cancelled, or if there's an issue, it's the cruise line's problem, not yours.

 

.

 

THAT is NOT true....Cruise air is booked as a convenience for the traveler. The tickets are in the lowest fare bucket with the most restrictions.....the cruise line will be of no assistance in getting you there.....it IS the problem of the traveler, the cruise line will be of little, if any, use....

 

May I direct the OP to the thread on the cruise air board which discusses cruise air at length...............

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=530322

 

And for the person who asked about WN (correct abbreviation for Southwest) there is a sticky on the cruise air board that will tell you when and how to locate info on the date when Southwest will open more dates for booking....

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1217350

[BobT172]

I'm always leery about flying Southwest during winter months because I believe that most of their flights go through cities where there's a danger of weather problems (delays/cansellations).

 

We initially avoided SWA also but find that the airports they use are not the ones that get congested on weather days...instead of Chicago Ohare they use Chicago Midway...instead of Washington Dulles, they use Baltimore Washington.. instead of Boston, they use Manchester....we have never been delayed using them thru these airports.

 

Besides that, SWA has more direct flights than anyone else... we (in Albany NY) can fly direct to Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Las Vegas and more... avoiding the worry of missing a connection.

[megr1125]

OP:

 

You should come up with a price that you are comfortable with and if the airfare is close to that then snag it.

 

There is a really good chance that all the good fares are gone!

 

how many tickets are you booking??? You can (if booking say more than 3) try booking them individually provided that there are enough seats on the flight....

 

For instance, if you need 3 tickets but only 1 is available at the lowest price, you will be bounced up into the next highest price 'bucket'. If you try booking 2 and then 1 or even 1, 1, 1 you may get a lower average fare....hope that makes sense......

 

If you wait for Southwest or JetBlue to open, you will most likely pay a higher rate than is available now. Meaning by the time fares are available for when you need to travel, the legacy carriers will have already sold out their cheapest fares, thus the discount carriers really have no reason to price their fares lower than what is already offered in the market........

 

i asked the MODS to scoot this to the cruise air board as well......

[CathyCruises]

It's only maybe a 30-35 min drive between the two citites. Lots here interchange them. There is a popular shuttle service SAS that works between the cities. Look at ridesas.com for more info.

If you are coming in a day in advance or two, you could stay in FLL and shuttle over to the port in the morning of the cruise. Some prefer getting to Miami the night before so they don't have to shuttle the distance to the port in the morning.

 

S.West is really accurate when counting how many days ahead they show rates. You are probably a week before the published flights come out. I forget what their cut off is.

 

Thanks for the responses. I happened to check Virgin America and they have a nonstop from San Francisco to FLL--Southwest plane changes seem to be in Denver which we would want to avoid at that time of year. But Virgin's prices were excellent I thought, $760 r/t for the two of us all the way from California. So once I actually commit to this cruise I will probably check Virgin first. It was $100+ cheaper than the cruise air options, which had multiple connections and lousy times, arriving in MIA at 10PM, etc.

 

We will probably fly in two days early, so maybe one night in FLL and one in Miami--DH has never seen either.

 

Thanks again for all the good info.

 

Cathy

[cowetamom]

We are cruising the week of Christmas and I was watching Yapta for our rates. We purchased in March thank goodness, because the rates have continued to climb.

 

Good luck with getting your tickets!!