Christmas in Canada 2019

In an effort to help Canadian consumers book the most wallet-friendly trips this winter, the data science team behind Hopper analyzed historic and current flight prices to determine the optimal time to fly and buy for this holiday season.

Summary

• Book by Thanksgiving - October 14th. Christmas travelers should book now before prices rise in mid to late October. If not ready to book, track your flight prices with Hopper and be flexible for the best deals. Hopper users who watched holiday flights last year saved an average of $97 on domestic round trip flights for Christmas.

• Lowest Prices In 3 Years. Domestic flight prices are at their lowest in 3 years, -5.6% at $607 round trip on average. International prices, however, are higher than last year, averaging around $1,355 round trip.

• When To Fly. The cheapest day to fly will be Christmas Day with discounts over 20% available. The next best days to depart are Christmas Eve or Monday, December 23rd.

• When To Buy. The best deals for the holidays are available now, before prices begin to rise in mid-October. If you're not ready to buy, prices will drop again in November for 2-3 weeks.

• Where To Go For Less. Looking to getaway this holiday season? Sunny destinations like Miami, Mexico City, and Jamaica are some of our good deal destinations.

• Trending Destinations. The most watched domestic destination this year is Toronto, and internationally it's Cancun, Mexico.

Current Prices

Travelers headed home for the holidays can expect to pay around $607 on average this year for a domestic round trip ticket, the lowest price in the last 3 years! For international trips, travelers can expect to pay an average of around $1,335 for a round trip ticket. Though prices for international destinations are higher on average this year, the growth of these prices has slowed compared to 2018 and 2017.

Note, all prices are in CAD.

When to Fly

Prices will fall as the Christmas holiday approaches, with discounts over 20% available for travelers willing to fly on Christmas Day compared to peak prices. If flying on the holiday isn’t possible, the next best days to depart will be Christmas Eve or Monday, December 23rd. International travelers should plan to depart on Christmas Day if plans are flexible to save 26% off peak prices.

Note, all prices are in CAD.

When to Buy

Prices for travel home for the Christmas holidays have been relatively stable this year, averaging just over $600 for domestic round trip tickets. Best deals for flights home for the holidays are available now, but prices will begin to rise during October. Not ready to book today? No problem, prices will drop again in November for 2-3 weeks, for those travelers who don’t book right now. Buyer be warned- booking at the last minute might mean travelers will need to be flexible on times and dates to get the best deals. 

Note, all prices are in CAD.

Good Deal Destinations

The holiday season is a great time to get away, as most offices slow down and kids have time off from school.  International destinations around the world are seeing lower prices this year compared to the same time in 2018.

Note, all prices are in CAD.

Most Watched Destinations from Canada for Christmas

These destinations are the most watched in the Hopper app, meaning a user has signed up to receive notifications for price alerts to travel to these destinations over the holiday period.

Note, all prices are in CAD.

Methodology

The data utilized for this study comes from Hopper's real-time "shadow traffic" containing the results of consumer airfare searches. Hopper collects, from several Global Distribution System partners, 25 to 30 billion airfare price quotes every day from searches happening all across the web. Demand is represented as the number of queries not actual ticket purchases. Good deal prices are represented by the 10th percentile prices which represents what a leisure traveler should expect to pay for a good deal on an economy class ticket.