These are the Best Days to Book Your Thanksgiving and Christmas Flights This Year

Summer is still in full swing, but it’s not too early to start thinking about booking flights for the holidays if you want to save.

CheapAir has released its 2018 Holiday Flights Report, tracking some 11,000 itineraries from the most popular markets to show you, in real-time, the average fare you can expect to pay for flights this Thanskgiving, Christmas, and New Year.

Besides showing daily airfare rates, the report breaks down expected monthly flight price fluctuations for each holiday and the days to book the best deals.

For Thanksgiving, flights booked in August and September can yield some of the biggest savings, with fare averages of $406 in August and $393 in September. Flights start to rise in October, with an average of $430, while November has the highest prices at an average of $500 per ticket.

Booking flights on the Monday of Thanksgiving week can save an average of $40 compared to flights booked the day before the holiday, while flying on the morning of Thanksgiving can also offer more affordable options if you have to wait until the last minute. Booking a return flight for the Tuesday after Thanksgiving can save you around $209 per ticket instead of on the Sunday after, which is the busiest and priciest day to fly.

Christmas and New Year flights average $450 in August, $411 in September, $416 in October, $465 in November, and $529 in December.

For those who can take a longer vacation, flying from Dec. 18 through Dec. 28 is the cheapest time, while flying on Christmas Eve instead of on Dec. 22 can also save you an average of $76 per ticket.

Similarly, flying on New Year’s Eve is the cheapest day if you're looking to ring in 2019 away from home, while waiting until Jan. 3 as opposed to Jan. 2 to fly back can mean saving $60 on average per ticket.

If you do see an affordable ticket that works for you, book it quickly as there may be only a few seats with these rates, and they tend to go fast.