Current:Home > FinanceA flight expert's hot take on holiday travel: 'Don't do it'-LoTradeCoin
A flight expert's hot take on holiday travel: 'Don't do it'
View Date:2024-12-23 18:58:05
It's stressful to fly around the holidays. Airports are packed, tickets are expensive and bad weather can cause significant flight delays and cancellations.
So, if you have to travel, is there an optimal time to do so? Scott Keyes, founder of the travel site Going.com (formerly known as Scott's Cheap Flights), shares his recommendations, including days to avoid and the best time of day to fly.
Don't travel around Thanksgiving and Christmas
"It's one of the worst times to travel," he says, due to flight disruptions, crowds at the airport and ticket prices. "My secret, best advice for travel over the holidays is: if at all possible, just don't do it."
If you have to fly for the holidays, do it on the day itself
"You just see far fewer people traveling then," says Keyes. "And with fewer people, you can see lower fares and fewer disruptions," including delays and cancellations. So think about booking tickets to depart or arrive on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve or New Year's Day.
Avoid peak travel days
For a lot of folks, the whole point of traveling during this time of year is to be with family on the actual holiday, says Keyes. "So the busiest and most crowded times [to travel] are going to be in the few days leading up to the holiday. Think Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and December 21st, 22nd and 23rd around Christmas."
A travel delay that stretches out over a few days, like a snowstorm, can quickly ruin a trip, he adds. "That's when you're going to have the most competition with other travelers" for a limited amount of seats if you're trying to rebook a flight.
To avoid this situation, Keyes recommends flying a few days before or after these peak travel times. So instead of flying on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, you might consider traveling a few days earlier.
Travel in January — the 8th, to be precise
If you can wait, travel in January, says Keyes. You will probably have a much better flight experience.
Keyes even has a preferred date for that month: Jan. 8, he adds. "It's my favorite date of the entire year. I circle that date on the calendar because whereas flight prices really get inflated over the Christmas-New Year period, around Jan. 8, they just fall off a cliff from the most expensive time of the entire year to the absolute cheapest."
Ticket prices, while "extremely volatile," can drop 75-80%, he says. For example, a nonstop, roundtrip ticket from Los Angeles to Tokyo from Dec. 22-29 costs $1,996, according to Google Flights. But if you took that trip from Jan. 10-17, the fare dips to $427 — a nearly 80% discount. And while a nonstop, roundtrip ticket from New York City to Miami from Dec. 24-Jan. 1 costs $608, it's only $138 from Jan. 9-16 — a 77% discount.
Take an early and direct flight
"There are two types of flights that have the highest odds of getting you to where you're going on time or at least without a major delay: early morning flights and nonstop flights," says Keyes.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Air Travel Consumer Report for October, flights between 6-7 a.m. had a nearly 90% on-time departure rate, versus 64% for flights between 5-11 p.m.
With morning flights, "your plane [has been] at the airport overnight. It's sitting there and ready to go when you get there in the morning," he says. Afternoon flights, on the other hand, depend on planes that are flying in from somewhere else and may be subject to delays.
Direct flights have the advantage of not having layovers. "If you take a connecting flight that gets delayed an hour and a half but you only had a one-hour layover, all of a sudden you've missed your connecting flight and you have to get rebooked" — not an easy feat during the holiday season.
Prepare yourself for potential flight disruptions that may keep you at the airport. Keyes likes to pack "noise-canceling headphones and a little snack box, because frankly, airport food is not very memorable," he says. And he likes to download a few books and movies to his iPad — "just in case I'm having to hang out at the airport longer than expected."
The audio was produced by Clare Marie Schneider. The digital story was edited by Malaka Gharib. The visual producer is Kaz Fantone.
Want more Life Kit? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get expert advice on topics like money, relationships, health and more. Click here to subscribe now.
veryGood! (5733)
Related
- Just Eat Takeaway sells Grubhub for $650 million, just 3 years after buying the app for $7.3 billion
- NYC journalist who documented pro-Palestinian vandalism arrested on felony hate crime charges
- Lucille Ball's daughter shares rare photo with brother Desi Arnaz Jr.
- Dolce & Gabbana introduces fragrance mist for dogs: 'Crafted for a playful beauty routine'
- Pistons' Tim Hardaway Jr. leaves in wheelchair after banging head on court
- The Latest: Harris and Walz kick off their 2024 election campaign
- Judge keeps alive Vermont lawsuit that accuses police of force, discrimination against Black teen
- Disney returns to profit in third quarter as streaming business starts making money for first time
- Tua Tagovailoa playing with confidence as Miami Dolphins hope MNF win can spark run
- Wall Street hammered amid plunging global markets | The Excerpt
Ranking
- Wildfires burn on both coasts. Is climate change to blame?
- How to prepare for a leadership role to replace a retiring employee: Ask HR
- Kristen Faulkner leads U.S. women team pursuit in quest for gold medal
- Dozens of sea lions in California sick with domoic acid poisoning: Are humans at risk?
- What Just Happened to the Idea of Progress?
- Dolce & Gabbana introduces fragrance mist for dogs: 'Crafted for a playful beauty routine'
- In Louisiana’s Cancer Alley, company cancels plans for grain export facility in historic Black town
- U.S. women's water polo grinds out win for a spot in semifinals vs. Australia
Recommendation
-
Kentucky woman seeking abortion files lawsuit over state bans
-
As the Paris Olympics wind down, Los Angeles swings into planning for 2028
-
New York dad learns his 2 teenage daughters died after tracking phones to crash site
-
Tropical Storm Debby swirls over Atlantic, expected to again douse the Carolinas before moving north
-
Ready-to-eat meat, poultry recalled over listeria risk: See list of affected products
-
Judge dismisses most claims in federal lawsuit filed by Black Texas student punished over hairstyle
-
2024 Olympics: Michael Phelps Pretty Disappointed in Team USA Men's Swimming Results
-
Wall Street hammered amid plunging global markets | The Excerpt