Between your money-saving smarts and passion for flying, you should be able to travel anywhere anytime you want. If you’re wondering what is the cheapest month to fly and how far you can go, think outside the holiday box, and forget about the weather. With online flight bookings available 24/7, you can purchase a discounted ticket to somewhere sensational every month of the year.
Winterize Your Flying Dollars
Picture an American airport terminal two days after Thanksgiving. Imagine that deserted scene from the perspective of major carriers, and you can hear airfare rates crashing through the tarmac. The best month to buy airline tickets for domestic flights is actually squeezed into the last weeks of November and the first weeks of December, and prices plummet again after New Year. Save on a mid-January flight to the Big Apple, and spend your extra jingle raiding Fifth Avenue post-holiday sales. This is a perfect time of year to head across the pond, too. Sure, it’s cold in Ireland, but discounted February airfares get you there with enough green left over to fill a closet with kilts.
Spring Away From the Break
If you’re relaxing on a beach in the States that doesn’t explode during spring break, you’re probably catching the tropical rays that make Hawaii a permanent paradise. Stampeding spring breakers don’t swim across the Pacific, and the island’s winter snow birds have all flown back home. Your choice of the cheapest month to fly into the Aloha State depends on whether you prefer to wear grass skirts in March or April. Save enough on discount tickets, and you can afford to catch March madness Italian style or enjoy Barcelona before it blossoms. Early spring means it’s still chilly in Europe, and that holds down international flight fares.
Island Hop to Cheap Summer Paradise
Whoever says that there isn’t a best month to book flights for summer vacay doesn’t understand hurricane season down in the Caribbean. This wild weather phenomenon fires up in June and holds down tropical airfares all summer. If you’re willing to roll the dice, chances are very good that you’ll enjoy an island stay uninterrupted by anything more than an occasional cloud in the turquoise sky. This annual drop in tourist traffic even has a name. Locals call it the “low season,” and it’s your ticket to cheap paradise from San Juan to Trinidad. Just, you know, be careful and read the weather report a few days before your flight. Stateside, leave the skis at home, and save on budget airfare to Vermont and New Hampshire. Folks in New England love summer company.
Fall In After Everyone Goes Home
It doesn’t take a college degree to know that the cheapest month to travel also marks the beginning of school all across the country. Big and little kids head back to the classroom and leave autumn skies wide open for your traveling pleasure. For instance, this is your chance to spend quality alone-time with the Big Mouse down in Orlando, or make your way to Bourbon Street and Sin City, as they are mere shells of their summer selves. Our American low season seeps south of the border too with budget flights to Mexico and South America through September and October. Cheap fall travel has one rule: If people love a destination during the summer, it’s all yours now in fall.
The joys of flying off-season quickly become a stack of gifts that just keep on giving. You’re liberated from frantic crowds and crowded airports. Hotels lower peak-season rates, restaurants put away tourist-priced menus, and every sight to be seen has plenty of selfie room. Pick a month, decide on a destination, and stretch your travel dollars around cheap online ticket deals all year-long.
