Jeff got into the points and miles game in 2010 and since then has visited over 35 countries, flying mostly in first and business class. He’s a contributor to Traveling Dad and has spoken at the Chica...
Edited by: Kellie Jez
Kellie’s professional experience has led her to a deep passion for compliance, data reporting, and process improvement. Kellie’s learned the ins and outs of the points and miles world and leads UP’s c...
7 comments
Charles Hughes
March 22, 2018
Thanks for the info!
Quentin
March 22, 2018
Useful article!
One interesting anecdote: a couple of years ago I spent weeks checking daily for two BA First Class award seats from SFO to London in late summer. Then suddenly an idea came: fly the night before Labor Day. Sure enough, we got two seats, because businesspeople would have Labor Day off!
I don’t know how repeatable this is, but worth a try.
DaninMCI
March 23, 2018
Our rule of thumb is to always head where other people aren’t. Cruise during hurricane season. Fly to Europe in February or September etc. Good tips and accurate. Oh and take advantage of morning flights on weekends out of South Florida. The cruise ship passengers can’t make those 6am flights home so it leaves holes in pricing and awards on Saturdays and Sundays.
Alex Miller
March 23, 2018
Love the cruise ship tips there, thank you!
Rebecca Avery
March 23, 2018
Big business locations, like Atlanta, Houston, Chicago, etc., tend to be cheaper on Sat. as most business travelers fly home on Friday afternoons. If you’re wanting to visit a beach location and can fly on the weekend, check the rates of a large city airport that may be just a few miles further than the closest airport to vacation spots. Also be flexible and check out all airports in the area. For example if you want to fly into Raleigh, NC, check the price to fly into Fayetteville, NC, an hour away, and you’ll often save. If you can fly Southwest, pull down their calendar and check their “Gotta get away” fares. They have great deals and flying into Dallas Lovefield is so much easier than flying into DFW.
Margot
September 07, 2018
Question: when possible, would you recommend booking weeks/months prior to travel or wait and watch, possibly getting within days?
Christine Krzyszton
September 11, 2018
Thanks for the question, Margot. Others may have different views but I don’t think there is a single rule as to how far in advance you should book travel. For instance, you might want to book award tickets as far in advance as possible to find space available but seats can also open up last minute. You might find a super deal on a flight next week, next month, or next year. If the price and schedule are right, I go ahead and book it. You can certainly check Google.com/flights and use the calendar to view fare prices far in advance and this can help with your decision. Also, some airlines do refund some of the difference if a fare drops down low enough, after you purchase it, that it exceeds the change fee.
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