What is the sweet spot to buy an international Air ticket?
As I promised earlier;
I think I must now forcefully conclude the findings for this research, which otherwise, will be ever going years after years and with each passing day new static are derived and then there are often exceptions and sub-theories that come in play depending upon season, geography, political and world economical factors, etc. Well literally, I've not been observing this for years – it's been a few months – but I see most of the forces in action and principles that govern ‘When to book a flight?' are juiced up and need not be studied any further until a new worldwide political scenario or economical structure arises. Must admit though, compiling this (rather) theory is most tedious of all as it changes every day slightly. Like I said, there are a few exceptions that are also seen acting time-and-then within a firm theory who would try to derail the mainstream theory.
Ok, enough of disclaimer and bnllsh!t !
The planning to book a flight begins as soon as one have his/her stamped PP in hands or ‘Your medical report have been received.' flashing on eCAS (for few ppl are always in hurry for the next-to-next step – well, that's not bad at all !). However, in the excitement of the visa and in a zest to jump into the new country right away one might end up paying 10 - 30% higher the fair prices. For some it might not be a big concern, but for some it might be like “every 60 saved here is 1 earned there.”
In this world, that 1 if bigger than 60 !!
Nevertheless, I'll start with the findings of the experts and posted many a times on various blogs. It won't be important to understand how Airlines fix prices for various international routes but when and how often they change them – upwards and downwards.
I'm talking this out in context of Canada and since I would also need to fly between New Delhi to Toronto. But this ‘theory' applies to most and anywhere in the world (with some exceptions).
What you might end up paying to an Airliner depends upon;
- How far or close to the travel date you book a flight.
- Which day you make a booking (surprisingly !!)
- Which day you travel.
- Which season of the year you travel
If I have to summarize my observations and what experts have found, now and here in my words, I would say something like this - “Book a flight on a Tuesday or a Wednesday, for a travel day Tuesday or a Wednesday, 6-8 weeks before the travel date.” (of course, excluding the last point which is season since most of us do not have that choice).
But if there were a choice for season as well, I'll rephrase as “Book a flight on a Tuesday or a Wednesday, for a travel day Tuesday or a Wednesday, 6-8 weeks before the travel date in between December and February.” This will ensure you get the fairest of fair fare. However, you might come across one odd Friday or Sunday when the fare is equally low as a Tuesday or Wednesday. That's what I meant with the word ‘exception' and it totally comes from the airliner and not the word trend. This exception also comes from specific holiday seasons such as Christmas and New Year where the ‘Theory' tends to cease.
Back to the experts' findings and some web quotes;
To win the enemy, know the enemy!! To know when the fares are changed and set, know how Airliners' automated servers work!!
The prices are usually higher from Friday to Monday midnight because of week-end and Monday being the business day of the week. Monday midnight the servers slashes the fares which follows through Thursday midnight when servers again pop up in action and raises the fares since weekend is following.
Read few of the supporting web quotes for yourself below;
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303649504577492544124379250?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702303649504577492544124379250.html
http://lifehacker.com/the-best-time-and-time-of-day-to-book-airline-tickets-1507704370
http://www.ibtimes.com/when-best-time-book-flight-1028160
You might also wanna read this;
http://qz.com/169299/how-to-avoid-every-common-mistake-when-booking-a-flight/
I will be travelling DEL-YYZ 11-Apr and YYZ-DEL 25-Apr with BA (I could also travel on a Tuesday or Wednesday with the same fare but my reason on preferring a Friday is a different subject). Here's one fare comparison. (Not considering Aeroflot since it is always the lowest and most of us would not prefer this non-refundable flight.)(Currency INR)
DEL-YYZ-Del, 11-Apr to 25-Apr via BA, 1 Pax
Checked on Monday, the 24-Feb – 77K
Checked on Friday, the 28-Feb – 71K
Checked on Saturday, the 1-Mar – 78K
You see, I'm about 6 to 8 weeks away from my travel date and I can get a to-n-fro for 71K. But if I book a similar flight in mid/end march which is only 2 to 4 weeks away from now, I'm not getting any flight lower than 74K on a Tuesday/Wednesday (forget about the weekend which is 76K and 80K)
You can try this yourself on various flights or your airline of preference and see for yourself how the fares are changing. But to the most, the theory holds good and consistent.
I have found my sweet spot. Have you?
