Airfare timing

I%26#39;m trying to plan our honeymoon and get the best rate on airfare. We%26#39;re planning on going in early September to Paris. How long should I wait to get the best airfare? We%26#39;re probably either flying out of DC or New York so it%26#39;s a heavilly trafficked route....

|||

well i may be wrong, but i%26#39;ve always thought you get the best airfare the earlier in advance you book it. and i would think that is especially true for popular routes that always fill up. thats just my guess.

|||

Begin checking airfares NOW. Determine what the high end of the PRICE RANGE will be for the routes at that time of the year. As a general rule of thumb, you can probably use $500 as the rock-bottom end of the range. Then begin playing %26#39;..airfare roulette..%26#39; by REGULARLY checking with as many different airline, on-line travel services and consolidators as possible. Register with any airline or other on-line travel service for any e-mail airfare alert programs (which notify you of changes in fares for your itinerary(s) available--US AIR, TRAVELOCITY, HOTWIRE, CHEAP TICKETS, ORBITZ, etc. Once you have the range, keep checking and when you find a fare that you can live with (not necessarily the absolute lowest fare the MAY--or may not--come along), GRAB IT.

|||

Isn%26#39;t it all a function of demand??? We went to Paris last June and paid $1000+ each for our tickets, booking them 5 months out. We are going tomorrrow and paying $320 each, booked 10 days ago... I would think September might be somewhat pricy %26#39;cause it is a warm/nice time to go.

|||

I found my great deal from travelzoo.com

They let me know all the deals as they come out. Sometimes if you want the best rate you have to be ready to pay within 24 hours and pack %26amp; go in a month or so. I got our tickets for $250 each from LAX. If you can wait it out and hope for the best, I%26#39;d go for it. Honeymoon is important though. It may be best to be prepared and pay a bit more. You don%26#39;t want to have to explain that one to the inlaws.

|||

Wow! Sterling, it sounds like you got a GREAT deal, I%26#39;ve never seen it so cheap ($250) from LAX and I do belong to Travel Zoo. Did you get it from the Top 20 or did you just check the site? What a coup!

|||

For our trip in early March I started looking well before Xmas at specific airline websites for itineraries and prices. I prefer going with a specific airline rather than the discount sites because I actually fear flying and prefer to know exactly how I%26#39;m going and getting there quickly (nonstop). The lowest I found then was $540 non-stop and that was arriving Paris from JFK and coming back via Italy. By the time I booked just before Xmas it had gone up to $580. Right after Xmas it went up to over $1000 (exact itinerary). Since then I have periodically looked at the same airline site pulling up a query for the exact same itinerary and the price has gone up and down from day to day to as low as $550 and then back up to over $1000. Go figure! Basically, as someone else suggested, decide on what you can pay painlessly and watch the changes.

|||

midorigal,

I believe it was the top 20. Air Tahiti Nui offered a deal 2 people fly to paris direct for $495. (and of course limited fly dates.) With tax it bumped up to $800. Lots of winter specials at many hotels in Paris too. Just keep your eyes open.