Originally Posted by washbrol
I've heard that fares are essentially "rack-rates" until 90 days before and that there's no benefit (besides an unexpected massive hit of demand) to booking ahead of 90 days before the departure date (ie 120 days vs 90 days).
Although this may generally be true, my own experience suggests that the best (and sometimes the only) way to get the lowest fares is to check your dates/routing everyday starting the day tickets go on sale (typically 331 days in advance).
There are certain leisure trips Mrs. MileKing and I make annually for which we start looking for tickets the first day tickets go on sale. In many cases, good fares pop-up for a day or two many months out and then are gone. In fact, most of my advance purchases are in the 4-10 month out range. I continue checking prices after I buy tickets and in numerous cases the prices simply do not come down. Know the regular "rack" fares on a route, check everyday, and when you see a great price, jump on it.