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With Labor Day fading in the rearview mirror, it's officially time to worry about holiday travel, and experts are predicting an expensive season. The first such prognostication comes from Farecast, which, according to the AP, is expecting a 31 percent increase for Thanksgiving fares compared to last year, and a 30 percent increase for Christmas.
Given that 2008 has been dominated by fare hikes, new fees, and capacity cuts, it should surprise no one that travel around the holidays—the busiest time of the year to fly domestically—will be pricey. Travelers who need to fly home should stick to the conventional holiday-travel wisdom of flying on off-peak days (for example, traveling home on Thanksgiving Day and returning the Monday or Tuesday after). Farecast also notes that Christmas fares often drop during the first few weeks of October, so keep an eye out around that time.
Have you booked your flight home yet? Are you looking at fares, and can't believe your eyes? Leave a comment below and share your experience and any tips you have.
Having moved to Florida for a new job two years ago, leaving very youg grandchildren back in Wisconsin, I have tried to go back to visit for Christmas and at least one other time each year. With the increasing cost of airfare and limited amount of vacation time I get, that plan is becoming increasingly more difficult. Add to it the fact that I would like to have time off should they be able to visit me, the holidays are the best way to maximize my time with them and save vacation for other times of the year. I have decided that this year, I will stay in Florida at Christmas and instead spend the $500 on my youngest daughter and her family, hoping it will allow them the ability to visit me when prices are down. If they time it right, they may get three tickets for the price of mine and my 1 year old granddaughter can still fly for free.