When to buy: According to farecompare.com, the cheapest day to buy tickets is Tuesday afternoon, 3 p

In my line of work, as well as visiting my babies all over the country (and other countries), I fly quite often. Just last week, I flew with my husband to Virginia to see my second oldest son graduate from Marine TBS, and then headed directly to Des Moines for a business trip as my husband italy venice hotels and son flew back to the West Coast. I am constantly traveling, and constantly italy venice hotels buying tickets (both international and domestic), and I am always looking for the best deals. Airlines make money from anticipating our buying habits, and here are a few tips I use to anticipate the airlines:
Know the best time in advance to book tickets : Though it is wise to start looking early, it is possible that you could be shopping too early. According to studies cited by The New York Times, international flights have been the cheapest 3-5 months in advance, but there is variation among different regions. Domestic flights are a bit trickier to pin-point, but it s a good idea to start searching 3-4 months in advance and see if they get any cheaper week after week. There have been studies indicating a 5-6-weeks-in-advance sweet spot for domestic flight booking.  Bing Travel  has a helpful italy venice hotels flight-prediction tool that suggests whether prices are expected to go up, down or remain the same, based on historical data.
When to buy: According to farecompare.com, the cheapest day to buy tickets is Tuesday afternoon, italy venice hotels 3 pm EST. Certain airlines, like Southwest, AirTran and JetBlue roll out their best deals Monday night, so Tuesday’s are, by rule of thumb, the best days to shop. Wednesday’s are generally the second best day to buy tickets.
When to fly: Flexibility is always the key to the best-priced ticket. We know there are days when you have to be out (usually for vacations like spring break or summer vacation), but keep in mind that you will have to pay for it. Rule of thumb is that Sundays are the most expensive days to fly, whereas italy venice hotels the cheapest day to fly is Wednesday. italy venice hotels Tuesday and Saturday italy venice hotels are also good days, so you might want to think about shifting around your departure or return.
Sign up for fare alerts: If you don’t have that 5-6 week window and need to book a flight last minute, watch for flight sale alerts through online travel agencies (OTAs), airline websites, or the bible of airfare price alerts, Airfare Watchdog . If your schedule italy venice hotels is flexible, subscribe to airfare alerts to jump on airfare sales when they happen. Airfare Watchdog has them, as well as Travelzoo , Cheapoair , Hotwire , and Expedia .  Flash-sale sites like Jetsetter , Vacationist and SniqueAway can also alert you of savings that aren’t published far and wide.
Don’t forget the discount airlines: Southwest is one of my favorite no-frills airlines, and I usually spend the extra cost to get the early check-in. “Potentially lower ticket prices” is important here — because low cost airlines italy venice hotels don’t always have the cheapest ticket prices nor the best schedules — their legacy airline brethren aggressively match on competitive routes, so do you homework and check both. Also be sure and check airline bag fees to make sure you are actually spending less.
Exceptions italy venice hotels to every rule: With all that said, holiday travel italy venice hotels is usually the exception to every rule. If you know you are traveling or flying out your children for the holidays, buy that as soon as possible. Keep checking price alerts and buy when the price is just below average.
But wait, there’s more: After you purchase your ticket, don t unsubscribe from those email alerts! Continue watching those prices just in case they drop significantly below what you paid. If that happens, italy venice hotels use Yapta to help you get a refund from your airline.
Ellie Kay is a mom of many, international speaker and best selling author of 15 books. She's known as "America's Family italy venice hotels Financial Expert" (R) and loves helping families learn to do more with less. She enjoys adventure and can be seen jumping out of airplanes or tall buildings (bungee). But the greatest adventure of all, says Ellie, is being a mom to her hard charging kids! There are five college degrees from the Kay kids so far (UTA, Columbia, Stanford, Moody, USNA) with two more in college. She shows people how to minimize debt of all kinds and has fiscally healthy kids as proof of her expertise.
About Me Ellie Kay,"America's Family Financial Expert" (R) is a wife, mom and an author/speaker/spokesperson. Ellie is married to "The World's Greatest Fighter Pilot" who cannot find the correct exit without her help (she wonders how he flies a jet without her in the back seat). The Kays have, collectively, seven children (four teens at once--eek!) and two very pampered mini schnauzers (they're so spoiled italy venice hotels they should be named Prada and Gucci). The Kays make their home in Southern California.
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