Spring Break 2019 Index

Compared to the same time last year, flight prices are down 2.4% and down 5.2% compared to two years ago. Don’t let the savings stop there though.

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Liana Corwin - Thu Feb 14 2019

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You may be stuck in the coldest, snowiest part of winter, but the good news is that spring break is headed your way. Even better news? Compared to the same time last year, flight prices are down 2.4% and down 5.2% compared to two years ago. Don’t let the savings stop there though.

Hopper collects 25 to 30 billion airfare price quotes every day and has built a huge historical archive of trillions of prices from over the past several years. Our team analyzed our historical flight pricing data in order to identify tips that can save you when booking your upcoming spring break.

When starting to plan, it’s helpful to know what is a good deal price. This year, domestic spring break getaways are currently averaging about $335 roundtrip. International spring break getaways are currently averaging about $448 roundtrip.

When to Buy

While spring break can be expensive, there are other ways to bring down the cost of your trip such as booking at the right time.

Plan ahead: Begin monitoring prices using a tool like Hopper now since prices do fluctuate throughout the day. As a rule of thumb, avoid booking too last minute. Booking less than two weeks before departure will cost you 10% (an average of $33 domestically and $44 internationally).

It’s definitely not a good time to book a spontaneous getaway because booking last minute will cost you up to 38% more (an average of $127 domestically and $170 internationally). Since spring break is quickly approaching, our recommendation is to start watching your trip on Hopper so you know exactly when to book your specific trip.

When to Fly

One of the easiest ways to save on your spring getaway is to adjust your departure date. The best day of the week to fly can vary though depending on whether you’re flying domestically or abroad.

Traveling in the US?

Depart on Tuesday: Your departure date can have a big impact on the cost of your trip if you’re traveling domestically (see Figure 1). You can save the most money by departing on a Tuesday with savings of 19% ($63 on average). The next cheapest option is to depart on a Wednesday with savings of 17% (~$57 on average).

Avoid Departing on Friday: You’ll pay a 19% premium for departing on a Friday. If you need to leave over the weekend, try to depart on a Saturday as it is 7% less expensive than Friday.

Traveling internationally?

Depart on Wednesday: For international trips, the day you depart doesn’t have as significant an impact on the cost of your trip as it does domestically. Wednesday is the least expensive day of the week to travel internationally with an average savings of 8% ($35 on average). Tuesday and Thursday come in a close second and third, both within 2% of Wednesday average prices.

Do not depart over the weekend (Friday-Sunday): Leaving on Friday will cost you approximately 8% more than leaving on Wednesday. Saturday and Sunday aren’t much better than Friday ($1 and $13 savings, respectively).

Try to be flexible on dates: Prices spike for spring break dates by about 16%. Avoiding peak spring break dates could save you a lot of money (Figure 2). Prices rise significantly for trip dates in the end of March. Even shifting one week before or after can save you up to $50.

Where To Go

Which popular destinations are likely to drop in price? To find out, we calculated which destinations Hopper’s 30M+ users are tracking for dates this spring. Hopper users typically set their trip watches up to 90 days in advance of when they would typically search for flights on the web. This early intent data gives us signal on which destinations will be trending.

We then analyzed the pricing volatility for each destination to determine how much you can save if you begin tracking prices now for spring dates. Many of these trending destinations offer significant savings if you begin tracking prices now by setting a trip watch on Hopper.

Methodology

Hopper predicts future flight prices with 95% accuracy up to one year in advance of departure. We collect 25 to 30 billion airfare price quotes every day, and have built a historical archive of several trillion prices over the past several years. By combining current prices with historical trends, Hopper can predict how prices are likely to change in the future.

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