jpokigo

Since Sunday, I have watched fares go up over $55 dollars for the same flights on different airlines, websites, etc. I have spent countless hours searching for the lowest.

Is there any best time of day and day of week when fares are at their lowest or perhaps change? I recall learning some time ago that Wed/Thurs fares change.

Literally, I have checked Sunday night, Monday morning, Monday night, and this morning and night and fares have continued to increase. I am not going away until May. Should I wait? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Orion

I don't think I have ever found a really good fare on a Sunday night. I suspect that on Sunday night folks who don't travel much finalize their plans. Then their leader calls the airline and they pay the price.

party_boy

Per farecompare, 3 times a day, M-F, Once a day on weekends. I'd say check the farecompare historical charts to get you an idea of wheh a good time is to buy.

Bostom

...most of the time, nowadays, as pretty much everything sells. Lower fares tend to be offered by the airlines to those willing to decide early and (and here's the beauty part) to give them money ahead of time. Way ahead of time.

But then there are times when - like eggs approaching their sell-by date - fares are lowered closer and closer to the date of departure. Which might not do you a damn bit of good unless there's also a lot of unsold inventory for your return.

My very limited experience is that the greatest number of fare variations, for whatever reason and with prices going up as well as down, take place mid-week. Why? No idea. Boredom? Financials? Reporting? That's when the squirrels in the cages want to run real fast? I'm clueless.

But I can suggest you focus on a destination or two that interests you - though not one you really want to go to as this is simply an exercise - and watch the fare rise or fall and when. You will need to be obsessive here, checking frequently, and a simple "$299 today, $199 tomorrow" is meaningless unless seats in that fare class are offered on flights you'd want to fly, on an airline you want to fly, with the number of connections you want to make, etc. as opposed to just being out there, somewhere; shown at that price but in reality either unavailable or offered on such unattractive terms that its availability is irrelevant to you. Someone might wish to fly from Portland, Maine to Eau Claire, Wisconsin via Grand Forks and El Paso on days with the letter "L" in them but would that someone be you, assuming of course that was your test route?

Or, unlike so many of us here, you could just buy the damn ticket, at a price you were then willing to pay to get where you wanted to go at roughly the time and in the manner you wished to travel, and be done with it. That way you could use the hours otherwise spent here at something more renumerative than getting $55 off.

jpokigo

Thank you EVERYONE for the input so far! Time got away from me and I am all for a bargain. The reason why I didn't book right away was because the fare I was looking at was still more than I have paid ever for the same trip. We go away the same week every year so my stubborness took over. Now I think I will pay the price.

rar indeed

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows 98; PalmSource/hspr-H102; Blazer/4.0) 16;320x320)

With UA you can get travel vouchers back if the price decreases between booking and flying.

Bikeguy

I'd look at farecompare.com and see what people have been paying recently. The site will give you prices paid for the last year.

Also, some airlines will give you a credit if the fare drops. In Northwest's case, if it drops more than $25, you get the difference. So, no harm in locking in early and seeing if it drops significantly, if flying NW or someone else with a policy like that.

GrizShel

I believe that has now changed to a $50 fee to refare your ticket on NW. (another exciting enhancement on NW - they just keep coming!)

as219

This is true, but keep in mind that UA can be shifty about this. I've booked flights thinking just this, that I can refare later, only to find that while certain fares have come down, they're not available on my particular flights. That's not to say booking early is necessarily a bad idea -- especially when you know it will be a high-traffic day/time -- but it's worth keeping in mind that the refaring is not a foolproof way to get the cheapest fares.

SchmutzigMSP

You're probably not thinking of the same thing.

If you buy a ticket and later find that the price changed (lower) for the same flights on the same day you're originally ticketed for, NW will issue you the difference in fares (-$25 administrative fee) in the form of an electronic voucher.

skimelance

2 sites that you need to check out

http://www.farecast.com/ predicts when fares will go up/down etc

and

www.sidestep.com goes out and looks at multiple sites for best fares

dmfriedman

Reminder: If you can't help the OP with constructive input that addresses their original question, don't post. I've just deleted several posts that offered nothing to assist the OP. Remember that such posts are considered off topic, and thus constitute a violation of the TOS.

Dave, a.k.a. dmfriedman
Moderator, Mileage Run

nor4

My experience with UA is that refaring must be on the exact same itin and the exact same fare class. But it's always worth a try. You can also use the call again and again tactic to get someone to give you what you deserve. Often agents don't know the rules, which can be good or bad for you of course.

jpokigo

Does anyone know if Airtran has a refare policy?

civicmon

Check daily. Fares change more often than the weather in Dallas during a day.