When to buy airline tickets

When beginning to plan your vacation, it's easy to spend hours scouring the internet and travel sites for the best flight deals. Then you buy your airline tickets, hop on your flight, chat to the passenger next to you... and find out they got an even better deal. It's frustrating, to say the least.

The below information on the best days to buy airline tickets and the least expensive days to fly will help you find the best deals out there – and it will minimize the time you spend staring at your computer screen.

Best days to buy

There really is a best day to buy airline tickets, and also a best time: Tuesdays at 3 p.m. Eastern. However, it's also believed that Wednesdays between 12:00 a.m. and 2 a.m. are also a great time to buy, since that's when many reservation systems are updated.

Least expensive day to fly

According to research, the least expensive day to fly domestically is Wednesday. Naturally, if you need to fly later in the week or on the weekend, you'll pay a premium price. If possible, choose a day closest to the middle of the week.

Traveling internationally is a different story. Flying overseas actually tends to be cheaper on Saturdays than on any other day.

Airline specials

Airlines typically open up their "cheap seats" for reservations about 3-4 months before departure for domestic travel and 4-5 months before departure for international. To make sure you snag the best deal, don't shop too early - and definitely don't leave buying your tickets till the last minute.

Peak travel times - the airline moneymaker

There are certain times of the year when airlines will charge you more. Once upon a time, these charges were hidden in the cost of your ticket. These days, airlines can't get away with raising ticket prices arbitrarily, so they've resorted to tacking on surcharges for those that want to travel during busier seasons. The surcharge will appear as a miscellaneous charge – it's not charged at the airport like baggage fees, so watch for it.

Peak travel times - U.S. & Canada

From the end of May through to the end of August on domestic flights, you'll be charged an additional $10-$30 per passenger each way, depending on the airline you choose. And, naturally, travel during the holiday season will cost a little more. Mid-late November over the Thanksgiving holiday and mid-December to just after New Year's Day rack up extra bucks for each person traveling.

Don't pay for peak

To avoid peak travel surcharges, choose lower-cost airlines who currently don't add peak surcharges. Some of the larger airlines match the "no surcharge" rule of the lower-cost airlines on overlapping routes.

You can also minimize your surcharges by traveling on lower-cost days like Tuesday and Wednesday. Avoid traveling on Sundays altogether if possible. To avoid the peak travel surcharges completely, your best bet is to book travel in the off-peak seasons like winter, early spring or late summer.

Be the first to know

Many web services offer email notifications when a deal comes up, so you could be one of the first to know about a cheap seat that'll take you exactly where you were planning to go. Sign up for free, and you just might save a bundle.