When's the cheapest time to BUY flights? (not to actually fly)

inigopete

Hi, I've searched for more information on this but can't find any: for a given flight at some point in the future, is it true that airline websites will charge you more if you buy that flight at the weekend than during the week?

I _don't_ mean "are weekend flights more expensive" - of course they are - what I mean is, do all the prices on an airline's website go up if you're viewing that website at the weekend? In other words, is it cheaper if you try on a Tuesday to log on and buy a flight than if you log on on a Saturday? And will the price for that same flight go back down on their website the following Tuesday?

I hope this make sense... any advice appreciated.

alanrowell

Modern ticketing is a matter of supply and demand - so if demand is high the price goes up, if the demand is low then the price drops.

There isn't a simple answer to the question as it depends on airline / route / flight times / whether someone in marketing decides to have a sale / size of group....

richardw

If I found flights that I wanted that are unlikely to fall in price, I'd book them on Thursday and not wait until Saturday.

Takecareofthepennies

alanrowell wrote: »

Modern ticketing is a matter of supply and demand - so if demand is high the price goes up, if the demand is low then the price drops.

There is, of course, a little more to it than that. Yield management (i.e. trying to sell the maximum number of seats at the highest possible overall revenue) involves sophisticated forecasting tools that go a little beyond mere supply and demand. As your shoe size and the phase of the moon definitely come into it, why not the day of the week as well?

Wouldn't logic suggest, though, that booking at weekends ought to be cheaper since the higher-yielding business travellers are more likely to make their bookings Mon - Fri 9 - 5?

Seriously, I don't think there is a straightforward, black-and-white answer.

ncollier1

The airlines have bands of seats called booking classes. A hypothetical long haul example might be

Booking Class A - First Class Flexible - £3,000
Booking Class B - Business Class Flexible - £2,000
Booking Class C - Business Class non changeable - £1,500
Booking Class D - Economy Flexible/ changeable - £1,400
Booking Class E - Economy standard - £900
Booking Class F - Exonomy Apex - No changes/ No refunds - £500

The seats are broken down into these bands and sold on a first come first served basis. The cheaper seats sell first therefore the closer you get to the departure date the more you have to pay. As one band sells out, the price goes up because you move onto the next. This is an over simplification because there can actually be tens or perhaps even over 100 bands.

There are some exceptions, but this is the general rule and the same principle applies to budget airlines.

Takecareofthepennies

ncollier1 wrote: »

The seats are broken down into these bands and sold on a first come first served basis. The cheaper seats sell first therefore the closer you get to the departure date the more you have to pay.

This is incorrect as you have over-generalized. Yield management is much more complex than just "selling the cheapest seats first". The airline may well release more cheap seats as departure gets closer if they have a low number of bookings. This is why prices fluctuate.

inigopete

richardw, that's my point - I've seen prices fall sometimes too, and this makes me wonder if sometimes they're one price on Saturday and then a lower price the next Tuesday, when web traffic will be lower.

Takecareofthepennies, I see what you mean, but business travellers are less likely to buy the economy seats. I'd guess that economy seats sell mostly at evenings and weekends. Which is why I wondered if airline websites put up their prices at those times...

dmg24

inigopete wrote: »

richardw, that's my point - I've seen prices fall sometimes too, and this makes me wonder if sometimes they're one price on Saturday and then a lower price the next Tuesday, when web traffic will be lower.

Takecareofthepennies, I see what you mean, but business travellers are less likely to buy the economy seats. I'd guess that economy seats sell mostly at evenings and weekends. Which is why I wondered if airline websites put up their prices at those times...

Many organisations now insist that all but their top management fly in economy, or at best premium economy/ WTP.

richardw

At weekends more flights are held for a short period to allow prospective travellers to make up their mind if they want to travel, and some of these go back on sale on Mondays.