• About Anne
  • Newsletter
  • work
  • podcast

Hip Travel Mama

  • Travel tips
  • Stay
  • Explore
  • family

Hip Tips: 5 ways To Save on Holiday Airfares for Families

Travel Tips

28 Sep

Photo: iStockphoto.com

The 2010 holiday airfare forecasts are out, and the news is not great, but a little planning could make it bearable. Families can expect to pay as much, or more this year for airfare as last year. Most of the expense will likely be from added “peak holiday travel surcharges” and fees for all the little extras that make flying bearable with kids. As a family traveler, you know baggage, food and other misc. fees can add up when you travel with your kids. As during any holiday or peak travel season, it pays to do some homework before you book.

If you are shopping for Thanksgiving or Christmas airfare for your family – don’t wait to book. Here are HipTravelMama’s top 5 tips for families to help you save money on holiday airfares, aggregated from the airfare experts and customized for your family travel needs:

Hip Tip #1: Take the kids out of school and fly the Saturday before Thanksgiving: Most airfare experts recommend ‘staying flexible’ when you travel to avoid peak fares. But families have the least amount of flexibility than most other travelers, due to school schedules and extracurricular commitments.  To save money on airfare for your family, consider flying the Saturday before Thanksgiving and return the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. If you can’t take the kids out of school, flying on Thanksgiving can be the cheapest day to travel, so have grandma keep the turkey warm, plan your dinner later that day, or extend your holiday celebration into the weekend.

Hip Tip #2: Watch early October for holiday price drops on Christmas itineraries: According to Bing Travel’s 2010 Holiday Travel Forecast, since 2006, most Christmas itineraries saw price drops in the first two weeks of October. You can also save money on Christmas airfare by shifting your outbound travel date. Avoiding the popular Wednesday or Thursday before Christmas can save approximately $15 to $70 per ticket according to Bing Travel. Note of caution here: Most experts agree that you should not wait to book this season, so if you find a good deal on flights, book it.

Hip Tip #3: Know the cheapest days and times to fly: According to Farecompare’s Rick Seaney, the cheapest days to fly are typically Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Cheapest times of the day to fly are early in the day, in the evening ,or an overnight “redeye” flight.

Hip Tip #4: Don’t assume that discount airlines will have the cheapest fares: The big surprise this year is that discount airlines such as JetBlue, and Virgin America have jacked up prices on the most popular itineraries and may not offer the lowest fares. Airlines are expecting bookings to be strong, so they are keeping fares high hoping you will pay up. According to the Wall Street Journal, who looked at more than 20 markets for Nov. 24-Nov. 28 Thanksgiving trips and Dec. 23-Dec. 30 “Christmas trips, in all but a few cases, discount airlines had higher prices than competitors, with some at eye-popping levels.” Read full article here.

Hip Tip #5: Pack light and ship gifts: You shopped and found good prices on airfare for your family. Then you get to the airport and load your family’s luggage onto the scale and end up paying an additional $50-100 for your overweight baggage in addition to standard baggage fees. Know before you go. A bag is generally considered overweight when it weighs more than 50 lbs, but this varies from airline to airline. Farecompare has a great chart of domestic airline baggage fees so you can plan ahead and save some extra cash.

What are some of your little tricks for saving money on holiday airfares? Leave us a comment and tell us about it!

Previous Post: « 5 Reasons why your husband wants you to go to Mama'cation
Next Post: Family Food: Cookbooks for Adventurous Families »

Primary Sidebar

Hello, I’m Anne. I’m a wife and mom of two, marketing executive, author, avid explorer. In 2009, I launched this blog to inspire families to connect through the shared experience of travel and was one of the first family travel bloggers. Today, I’m on a mission to help mamas and their families create space to do what they love and find adventure in every journey.

 

 

Say yes to smart travel

Let’s Connect

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Disclosure
  • Terms of Use
  • Hip Travel Mama Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 · Refined Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
SAVE & ACCEPT