October Is Best Time To Book Holiday Flights, AAA Says

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Wondering when to book your holiday flight? AAA experts took a look at the last three years of flight booking data and found the best pricing and times for holiday travel.

According to experts, you can get the best bang for your buck if you book your holiday vacation during the month of October. In some cases, you can even get a better deal than booking in the summer.

If you're planning on traveling for Thanksgiving, you should be booking flights one to two months prior. Experts say the best time to look for a flight is Sept. 25 through Oct. 27.

For Christmas flights, the best time to book is from Oct.  26 through Nov. 27.

"The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are the busiest long-distance travel periods of the year and now is the optimal time to look for the best flights and prices," says Debby Calvert, managing director of leisure travel for AAA Mid-Atlantic. "Demand for holiday flights and seats on airlines increase with each passing day. A word to the wise, when you find a good fare, be ready to purchase it."

AAA says about 58,000 Philadelphia-area residents took to the skies for Thanksgiving vacation last year. That's a 5.5% increase from 2017.