These Are the Cheapest Months to Travel to Popular Destinations Around the World

You can visit the Maldives for 85 percent off if you pick the right months.

Let’s be blunt: travel is expensive. According to a 2023 study by Bankrate, the average cost for a one-week vacation in the U.S. for one person is $1,984. That same vacation for two people jumps all the way to $3,969. However, travel is also a worthwhile investment in ourselves, with study after study showing that travel can improve our overall health. And luckily, there are ways to get out and see the world without overspending.

In late 2023, Bounce, a luggage storage company, revealed the results of its study looking into the cheapest times to visit some of the world’s most popular travel destinations. To find the exact dates, Bounce began with a seed list of 70 popular tourist destinations. It then used Kayak to find the average daily hotel cost by month of the year and day of the week (correct as of Nov. 16, 2023). Then, it used that data to calculate the difference in average price between a nightly stay at a 3-star hotel in the cheapest and most expensive months of the year.

After digging into the data, Bounce found that there are “clear seasonal trends when it comes to travel costs,” noting that “January is the cheapest month in 15 different cities.” That includes popular spots like London, Amsterdam, and Berlin.

According to Bounce, off-season travel in February is close behind, as it’s the cheapest time to travel to 12 different cities, including New York, Paris, and Milan.

Then there are notoriously expensive destinations like the Maldives. Travelers who opt to go to Malé, the capital of the archipelago, can save up to 85 percent if they visit from January to August.

As for which days are the cheapest to travel on, Bounce found a bit of a surprise. It noted that “contrary to popular belief, the data shows that Saturday is the cheapest day to stay in 17 cities,” including visiting places like Las Vegas, Dublin, and Milan. “This could be due to various factors, including lower demand for weekend business travel. This was also the most common cheapest day when we analyzed 2022.”

Sunday, Friday, and Monday all tied for second place as the cheapest days to travel for 10 different cities, including major destinations like Prague, Barcelona, Rome, Singapore, and Miami.

On the flip side, Bounce found that winter and autumn travel tend to come with the most expensive pricing for many destinations, including Asian cities like Chaing Mai and Phuket in Thailand, which see the highest rates in December. Spots like Athens, Lisbon, and Barcelona hit their peak pricing in September.

Sometimes, however, you can’t pick which time of the year you want to vacation. And that’s OK because there are still ways to save. Check out the best budget travel tips Travel + Leisure compiled from the pros to help you save a few bucks on your next getaway.

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