Originally Posted by
OskiBear
Thanksgiving week is great for international travel. If you take the weekend on both ends, it's about 10 days with only 3 PTO days used. Europe is generally free of American tourists but you get cool weather and Christmas markets. Business as usual everywhere else. Great flight availability.
Christmas day is also a very empty day to fly, but isn't as great in Europe where everything is shut down, including public transportation in places.
Asia, however, is festive for Christmas but it's just a regular business day in most places.
Great times to travel and avoid nightmarish family gatherings.
Don't give away the secret!
Their domestic schedules also end early on a bunch of holiday days (and the lounges close early so those folks can spend time with families). Same thing on Oct 31st (not a Federal Holiday), I needed to fly in the evening, absolutely nothing on AA departing after 4pm that's usable, so I booked OA since I didn't have to fly first thing the following morning.