Last-Minute Labor Day Airfare Is Crazy Cheap This Year

Looking for a last-minute Labor Day getaway? This is a good year for it, according to fare search

data from Hopper

. Average airfares for Labor Day weekend are lower this year than they have been in four years, but probably only if you buy your tickets before August 17.

Through August 17, fares will increase about $3 a day, but after that date, fares will increase $10 to $15 a day. Hopper’s findings are based on thousands of actual airfare searches. Overall, Labor Day fares this year are the lowest they've been since 2015—even despite the fact that fuel costs are up substantially.



Related: 10 Affordable Labor Day Weekend Getaways for 2018



The best Labor Day airfare bargain destinations are concentrated in the Southeast, including Fort Lauderdale ($178), Orlando ($183), Atlantic City ($186), Myrtle Beach ($189), Atlanta ($206), and Tampa ($215). Chicago ($218), Trenton (New Jersey, $220), Denver ($225), and Detroit ($239) are close.

Here are the best dates for those deals on Labor Day airfare:

• The best days to start a weekend trip are on August 28 and 29 and September 1.
• The best days to return home are September 4, 5, and 6.
• The most expensive days in both directions are August 31 and September 1.
  
  
  
  But if your travel dates aren't fully flexible, fares outside the two highest days aren't different enough to make most of you need to shift travel plans. Keep in mind that the Hopper data covers
  
  average
  
  fares: On any individual route, this year's fares could well be higher than last year's. It’ll also depend which airports you use—but there’s reason to believe you can still look for a last-minute Labor Day airfare deal.
  
  
  
  Related: The Best Days to Fly for the 2018 Holiday Season: A First Look
  
  
  
  The overall good news is that current airfares are remarkably steady, a situation that can't go on forever, given the recent increases in fuel prices.