I read somewhere that the best fares are 45 days out, but I can't find where. I really wonder if that short a time is accurate. I've been on the forum a while, but really haven't seen anything about fares except for Milage runs. A friend is joining us on vacation in Orlando in April and want us to get them their tickets, so we can have the points. It doesn't matter what airline they use. Any thoughts on the best time to buy?
Eileen

Many in the current crop of fares expire in Feb - Mar 2008. Have patience. I am waiting too.

"..so we can have the points."
That's the CC points - not flight miles, right ?

You didn't mention your originating city, but farecompare tracks price history, which may give you a lead.
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The best fare for a particular route for travel on a given day can occur at any time. The talk about 45 days out, or purchasing Wednesday just after midnight, or never buy tickets on the weekend are all myths. I've seen the best fares offered at 331 days out in some cases and 30 days in advance in others. The best way to secure a good fare is to start looking 331 days in advance of your travel date and check everyday (several times a day, if possible). Knowing what the "standard" rates are for a route allows you to jump on a good fare when it appears.

If you are booking closer in and unfamiliar with prices on a route, it is more difficult to ascertain a good fare from an ordinary one. One trick is to check what the fare would be if you booked travel for 331 days out. Forget for the moment that it is not when you want to travel. It will give you a good idea of what the "standard" fare is. If the fare for your travel date is the same as the 331 day fare, it's very likely that you should wait. If the fare for your travel date is higher, you probably already missed the good fares.

Right. We've already put 25k on our airline cc and gotten a 10k rollover into EQM's. Won't make another 25k on the other airline card, so we switched to our hotel AMEX card for the rest of the year. We do a lot of timesharing, and getting a room on either or both ends for nothing makes it easier to get decent airfare.
Thanks for the info on farecompare. We'll check it out.
Eileen

MileKing,
Your analysis and suggestion make a lot of sense. Thanks. Might not help for this one, but will on the next time we book!
Thanks,
Eileen