What is the cheapest time to book a flight?

Booking a flight is often one of the most expensive elements of your
travel, especially when you fly inter-continental. To limit costs, it can be
attractive to take into account price fluctuations and look for the best day
and time to book. Unfortunately, you do not have a crystal ball and intuition
will not get you that far… How will you determine what the cheapest time is to
book a flight? Luckily, Opodo conducted research on it websites over a period
of a year to see when you can purchase your ticket cost-effectively.

Best day to book a flight

It is hard to tell the best day to book a flight without specifying
the departure and airport destination. Generally speaking, the research found
out that Sunday is the best day to book your ticket. This goes against popular
belief that tickets are more expensive during the weekends as people have their
time off to do research.

Three flavours of cheap airplane tickets

If we want to dig deeper and look into the best month, it is best to
split up the destinations in three. Heading off with domestic flights, the
cheapest time to book a flight is in September. This has an average difference
of 30 GBP with July, which is the most expensive month. Do you want to fly to
Europe? Make sure you book your tickets during the cold months of January and
February. During these months you have the highest chance of scoring a bargain
ticket to the Mediterranean sun.

Prices tend to increase the further you go. When you book
effectively, you could end up in the US for the same price as a ticket to
Europe. For example, an airplane ticket to the United States can be as less as
500GBP when you book the ticket in September.

Want to travel to the Far East to enjoy some delicious sushi and
other foods? Flights to Asia are best booked in January and September,
depending on the day you’ll fly. Doing some analysis can save you quite some
money. Make sure you book your ticket on a Sunday for the optimum price.

What if I just don’t know

It could well be that you do not know the desired location of your
holiday yet. What if you are open to everything, what is the cheapest day of the
week to book flights? Opodo offers insight in the days you should book in
advance to book with an attractive air fare. Planning for Asia? Make sure you
book 26 to 30 days before you go. This is similar to the 31 to 36 days for
flights to America. If you want to stay closer to home, you should also book
further advance. Domestic and intra-European flights are best booked between 61
and 70 days before you go.