United lowered its 2022 growth forecast, saying it would fly less this year than it did three years ago, scrapping its plan to increase capacity by 5% from pre-pandemic levels. Costs for the first quarter would be up by as much as 15%, excluding fuel, and capacity down by 16% to 18% from three years earlier.

United's shares were off more than 2% in after-hours trading.

The airline said that bookings for spring and summer are strong, however.

"The United team has been fighting through unprecedented obstacles to, once again, overcome the new and daunting challenges that COVID-19 is bringing to aviation, and I am grateful to each one of them for their commitment to taking care of our customers," United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said in an earnings release. "Omicron is impacting near term demand, we remain optimistic about the spring and excited about the summer and beyond."

Currently, at around $649 roundtrip, international airfares are lower than they've ever been in January while at $234 roundtrip, domestic airline ticket prices are near historic lows as well.

However, even though it's not unusual for flight prices to dip after the holidays, Hopper is expecting ticket prices to rise much faster than usual at an average of 7% a month through June when customers can expect to pay around $315 roundtrip domestically. The hike in fare prices may be due to the omicron variant subsiding and as spring break travel is on the horizon.

In fact, the steepest single-month increase — around 11% — is expected in March, just in time for spring break.

As for those looking to leave the states, Hopper expects international flight prices to rise at a slower rate when compared to domestic airfares but still faster than usual at a 5% a month increase through June with peak fares estimated at approximately $830 round trip.

"Prices have been especially volatile between the delta and omicron variant waves, swinging nearly $200/round-trip twice over four months," Hopper said in its report, noting that airfare prices typically rise around 2% a month going into the summer months.

Fortunately, average airline ticket prices are expected to catch up to pre-pandemic levels around April, the company found.

When it comes to the destinations themselves, domestic search trends among Hopper users included flights to Orlando, Las Vegas, and Miami while those looking to fly international were searching for flights to London, Cancun, and Paris.