Best time to book airfare for.....
 

a trip to Italy in September. Sadly I don't follow price trends as closely as I should so I could use some advice from the Fodor's community. I know prices fluctuate seemingly daily, but does anyone have any insight on how far in advance is the best timeframe to take the plunge? Thanks everyone for their input.

Lufty

Just wanted to be more specific, we are going to be flying into and out of Rome. Thanks again.


Lufty

Hi L,

Sept is shoulder season.

I have found that airfare after Labor Day is much lower than before it.

I would look at www.kayak.com and www.mobissimo.com and get tickets no later than June.

However, there could be specials as late as July.

From whence are you departing?

((I))

Actually, September isn't really shoulder season anymore. It's starting to creep into the high-season rates for both hotels and airfares. I think what you're going to find is that airfares to anywhere in Europe will be higher this year than last. Start looking for an airfare now and book as soon as you find something you can live with. There is no "best time". Airlines may have fare sales for September, but they haven't been announced yet.

Hi Ira,
Thanks for your thoughts. We will be departing from Albany, NY. Thanks again.

If it helps at all, I just read an article suggesting that the best time to book a flight during the week is late Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning.

Also, I highly recommend checking Farecompare.com, which will help you track dates and prices for your route on most of the major airlines.

Weadles - I had read the same thing. However, when looking for flights to Rome in October, a Thursday departure date was significantly cheaper (around $200-300 rt) than booking on Wednesday. Go figure.

Weadles meant you should get up during the night each Tuesday (or is it Wed?) and look at fares... when airlines release unsold seats at revised prices, just after midnight (based on their home base time zone)

Travelnut - my mistake. I didn't read carefully enough. How far ahead do airlines start reducing the fares?

BarbaraJ,

My understanding ( and I could be wrong!)is that the airlines don't release less costly airfares until very late Tuesday night into the early hours of Wednesday morning ( I think it was 12 AM-2 AM). Good luck!

Has anyone ever bid/purchased an airline ticket on skyauction?
I have not, but it's tempting....would like to hear other's experience..

Hi Lufty. . .I am in Albany too. Just recently booked to and from Venice 9/19-9/30. Of course we had to pay extra for flying to and from Albany, but after enough years of driving to Boston and then a having to drive home after a trip, we decided the $400 extra was worth it. I agree with Doug, once you find a price you can live with - book it. It does fluctuate. I watched US Airways every day for a few weeks and then when it got to price I was willing to pay, I just went for it. Was it more than I wanted to pay at $850 (each) - yes, but I could live with it and knew it was probably reasonable - again flying to and from Albany with one stopover in Philly.

September-October are no more shoulder season except for beach locations. Most cities held conventions, fairs and a lot of business events on that dates...so it can be even more expensive than the actual high season...

Hi Job,
Thanks for your help. We are still looking, haven't found a price as good as yours but I continue to look. I'd love to get a flight for under $900, but no luck yet. Thanks again and have a great trip.

Dear lufty, We got tickets JFK to Heathrow for 598 recently. Then I went on "which budget" and got discount airlines that fly to Italy, and it was still more reasonable, if you don't mind a stopover.
Be prepared though for the prices in Rome. They are really astronomical! Good luck, Pat and Julie

We live in New Hampshire and are going to Rome in July. I booked last Aug/September. I started checking the rates every day to become familiar with them. They were typically in the 1200 range from Manchester NH (much closer to Albany than Boston I would imagine) I saw them hit 850 one day and booked and haven't regretted it. While I didn't want to book with USAirways, we have a flight from MHT to PHL to Rome, home through Milan. Flying Friday was the cheapest date for us.

Good Luck.

Thanks, Grantham, for your input. Our dates are set as we have booked apartments, so now it's just finding a price I can live with for the airfare. The flight itineraries really have some long layovers and/or total trio times. For instance, AA has one itinerary that has a total trip time of better than 24 hours. EGADS!! I do think I am narrowing it down though and I appreciate all the help and insight from Fodorites such as yourself and the others who were kind enough to reply in this thread. Thanks to everyone!!

Chuck

I had a long conversation about this with a Delta agent. September is one of the most popular months for Italy travel and is not by any means a shoulder month. There are fewer and fewer of these lately, espcially due to the business and convention travelers.
Hotel wise in major European cities, it is often more difficult to book in September/October than it is in July/August. Tickets were running about $800 for last January, so I would jump when you can...

My rule of thumb is to book as soon as you know you are taking the trip. Yes, you might see fares drop a bit later, but they are more likely to increase. Over time, I think you come out ahead by being a habitual "early booker".

The thing I do constantly is check alternate airports and alternate dates. For a Rome trip, does it make sense for me to fly in/out of Milan to save money? For a savings of $150 per ticket, probably not. For a savings of $400 per ticket, probably so.

It then becomes a judgement call.

Our travels are taking us to Lake Como for some genealogy research, that is why we're flying home from Milan.....

I can't wait!