Low Airfares Predicted For 2017, Plus Tips On How to Land Them

Travelers may get two of their vacation wishes granted in 2017. Lower airline prices and more flying options are predicted for the coming year, according to a study commissioned by Expedia and the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC).

“For today’s traveler, this confluence of circumstances — more planes, lower prices, more destinations – is exceptional,” said Greg Schulze, senior vice president commercial strategy and services, Expedia, Inc. “It means that the barriers to booking a dream trip are lowered. It also means that everyday travel – flights to see the family, work trips – are likely to be easier to book at a lower price.”

New Heights for Air Travel, the jointly commissioned study, reports that economy round-trip and one-way tickets continued to drop throughout 2016, reaching their lowest point since 2013. The report analyzed worldwide air travel data from January 1, 2016 through October 24, 2016.

“Overall ticket prices continue their multi-year decline and we see nothing in the near-term data to suggest a change in this trend, especially with the increase in airline seat capacity,” says Chuck Thackston, ARC’s managing director of enterprise information.

Related: 5 Tips to Help You Cash in on Summer Travel Savings, Which Travel Booking Site is Best

Travel Tips Based on the Air Travel Study

Book airfare on Sundays. Friday is the worst day to book airfare. Book on a Sunday for travel within the U.S. and pocket an average savings of 11 percent over the same ticket purchased on a Friday. For flights from the U.S. to Europe, booking on a Sunday versus on a Friday rewards flyers with an average savings of 16 percent. For travelers flying within Europe, reserving tickets on a Sunday results in 30 percent savings.

Purchase tickets 21+ days in advance. For flights departing the U.S., booking a ticket more than 21 days in advance versus booking within 20 days of departure can result in a savings of 30 percent on flights to Europe and 17 percent on domestic flights.

Reserve flights and hotels at the same time. When online travel agencies “bundle,” or package, flights and lodging together, the agencies can reduce their pricing, resulting in significant savings to the consumer.

Stay over on Saturday night. For many, but not all destinations, staying over a Saturday night results in better deals, so compare prices before booking airfare and hotels. For Southern Europe, remaining over a Saturday night results in fares of 57 percent less than without the Saturday overnight. However, in China and Asia, Saturday stays often result in more expensive airfare.