When is it cheaper to fly?

[whynotcruise]

Hi! Our cruise doesn't start until Sun. We plan to fly in a day early. But I'm just wondering if it'll be cheaper to fly on a Fri or Sat? Anyone know? Thanks :)

[chipster]

I THINK the cheapest days to fly are Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday but I could be wrong.

[jcanino]

Hi! Our cruise doesn't start until Sun. We plan to fly in a day early. But I'm just wondering if it'll be cheaper to fly on a Fri or Sat? Anyone know? Thanks :)

 

That is not a question that has an easy answer. First of all, it depends where you are flying from and to. Then it depends on the airlines rules of the day. Today, the low fare class of service may be Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Tomorrow, the same low fare class of service could be Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Those days may also be limited to flights from 12:00 noon to 6:00 pm and only certain flight numbers.

 

Now, If Friday and Saturday have the same fare basis structures, there may be more availability on one or the other days which will make it cheaper. Now, if you are comparing one airline to another, you may find slightly higher fares on either based on the airports that they are flying you through.

 

Seriously, when I pull up air fares for a pair of cities on a certain date, I can get a hundred different fares all with different rules. When I look at the rules for each fare, it can be 20 pages long.

 

A travel agent can be worth their weight in gold.

[parody]

First of all, it depends where you are flying from and to.

 

For example, if you are flying within the 48 states, there may not be much of a difference between a Friday and a Saturday. However, you'll likely note a big difference if you are flying to and from San Juan. Saturdays and Sundays are a very popular days for cruises and the airlines know this. In particular, you may find a really big difference by flying back on a Monday rather than a Sunday. To explore whether it is cost effective, use a site like ITASoftware.com and do a month-long search for a duration that lasts 6-8 days. You'll then get a clearer picture of what the airfares are by different days of the week and then can do a tradeoff between flying in a day early and/or staying a day later.

[Ellya]

You can also search on Orbitz.com. They have several options for searching for periods up to a month in length. You will only get the major airlines, but once you figure out the best dates, you can also search elsewhere for the discount lines.

[DanJ]

One thing you can almost be sure of is the flights that are most convenient to what you want to do are the most expensive. If there are 4 flights leaving from your debarkation city, the ones at 12 and 1pm will be more than the ones at 10am and 6pm LOL.