Scripps News Life

Actions

Google reveals where Americans are looking to travel for the holidays

Normally, it's best to book flights around 38 days before departing for domestic trips, but data shows a different timeline when booking around the holidays.
1700074126_XRTYu0.jpg
Posted

With the summer travel season now over, many Americans may be turning their attention toward planning a trip around the Thanksgiving or Christmas holidays. New data from Google reveals where exactly Americans want to go.

Among the top-searched destinations for the week of Thanksgiving, Orlando ranks No. 1, ahead of Cancun, New York and Tokyo.

For the two-week period around Christmas, Tokyo ranks No. 1, ahead of Orlando, Cancun and Miami.

RELATED STORY | US government orders big US airlines to explain their frequent-flyer programs

The data incorporates Google Flights searches for trips departing U.S. airports. More broadly, Google notes that people are more likely to travel overseas around Christmas and New Year's than around Thanksgiving.

Here is a look at Google Flights' top 10 destinations for Nov. 24 through Dec. 1 for flights departing U.S. airports:

  1. Orlando
  2. Cancun
  3. New York
  4. Tokyo
  5. London
  6. Miami
  7. Paris
  8. Los Angeles
  9. Las Vegas
  10. Honolulu

Here is a look at Google Flights' top 10 destinations for Dec. 22 through Jan. 5 for flights departing U.S. airports:

  1. Tokyo
  2. Orlando
  3. Cancun
  4. Miami
  5. New York
  6. London
  7. San Juan
  8. Honolulu
  9. Paris
  10. Las Vegas

When's the best time to book a flight?

Generally, the lowest price to book flights comes around 38 days before departure for domestic flights and 101 days before departure for international trips.

For domestic trips, the lowest price can pop up anytime between 21 and 52 days between takeoff. Generally, prices for international flights start to rise within 50 days of departure.

RELATED STORY | Budget airlines versus the big 3: Do discounters really save much?

But holiday travel might require you to book more in advance to get the best price. Normally, the best time to buy Thanksgiving flights comes around 45 days before departure, which would be in early October.

You might also want to consider booking Christmas flights in October. Typically, the lowest price for domestic Christmas flights comes 58 days ahead of time, which would come in late December.

The cheapest days of the week to fly are generally Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, Google says. Domestics flights on these days are usually 13% cheaper than on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. The savings for booking on these days for international flights is about 20%, Google says.