Originally Posted by
arlflyer
We will never have the full data set of course, but I have always heard it generally presented that travel vendors typically will hold pretty firm on price or increase close-in even if the demand is not there, with the logic being that if they build a collective presumption in the consumer base that prices will drop close to the date of service, many consumers will hold out, creating undesirable and unpredictable cash flows. I generally see this to be the case with airlines, and quite often with hotels. To be honest it is rare that I see the close-in hotel rate dropping phenomenon upon which this thread is predicated.
Airlines indeed operate like this (though fares can still drop several months or weeks out if you booked even earlier). Hotels less so in my experience, at least these days, I've had way too many price drops this year for that to be the case. Although it may of course vary by the market, my stays are almost exclusively in Europe, it can be different elsewhere.