Purchasing Your Airfare-A Good Reminder Lesson

[WDWCrazyKaren]

My DH was watching the news a few weeks ago, and there was a snip about purchasing airfare. I'd heard it before, but had put it out of my mind. So, here's just a reminder for folks who are getting ready to purchase their plane tickets.

Airfare is the most expensive to purchase Friday-Tuesday mornings. At 2:00PM on Tuesdays, you will see a significant decrease in some airfares (that will last until Thursday nights). We had been watching prices for a few months and getting ready to buy soon. I checked prices last Saturday, and they were $338 per person. DH reminded me not to buy until Tuesday afternoon. I checked airfares up until Tuesday at 12:30PM. Still $338 per person. At 2:15 on Tuesday, $198 per person. That is a substantial savings (at least in my eyes)!

So, just a reminder when you are ready to purchase, wait until Tuesday afternoons. By the way, this is Central Time Zone, so those on the east coast, 3:00PM and west coast, 12:00 noon-or figure out the time change from where you are!

[MagicalGuest]

Thanks so much for posting that info. Really interesting and useful!

[disneymom15]

Thanks for the info.

[VWL Mom]

Great tip! I knew Jet Blue did this but didn't know it was across the board. Our return flight was $399 and I refused to book it, checked last Tuesday and it was $244.

[andypooh]

Is this generally true for all airlines?

[brownie]

It also starts getting more expensive if you get within two weeks of when you want to fly.

[cer]

Thanks for sharing! :thumbsup:

[BigRedDad]

Is this generally true for all airlines?

This is a general rule for legacy carriers. The reason is 80+% of their revenue comes from business travelers that fly and book at the beginning and end of a week.

[DisneyDINK]

It also starts getting more expensive if you get within two weeks of when you want to fly.

Quote made me nostalgic. I worked at Amtrak for 12 years and we called this concept "Yield Management". You divide your inventory into catagories or "buckets" and provide discounts based how many seats you've sold for a particular train (flight, etc.) and the number of days a seat is booked prior to departure. You sell so many seats at one price then that fare is no longer available, or you get 2 weeks out from the travel date and that fare is no longer available. Fun stuff, eh! I'm thinking a discussion on Game Theory might be a bit on the heavy side for the Intercot boards.

OK, nostalgia over.