Memorial Day is the official kick-off to the busy summer travel season. However, surging gas prices don’t paint a pretty picture for families looking to hit the highway or take to the air to visit grandma while school is out.
Fortunately, there are ways to save if you plan on making travel a top priority this summer. According to experts at Travelocity, despite insanely high fuel prices you can still find a decent deal on domestic flights if you book early. And by early experts mean now.
The online agency claims that you can score reduced rates on airline fares if you snag a seat four to six weeks out from your departure date. For example, if you want to hit the beach on Memorial Day weekend, you need to book your flight today or tomorrow in order to take advantage of the six-week advance sale price. However, if you wait until next week or the week after to book you can still qualify for the four-week advance price, but the savings are bigger the earlier you strike.
For those on a tight budget, Travelocity experts say you may have to kiss your trip goodbye if you wait too long to reserve your seat. This year, the popular travel site is showing an average Memorial Day fare retailing at about $300 if you book two weeks in advance; however, the price spikes to more than $350 if you try to snag the same seat less than a week ahead.
If you are looking to make the leap to London or other European locales this summer, your cheap ship may have already sailed. Travelocity, as well as Expedia and Kayak, show sky-high summer airfares to European destinations. In fact, Kayak.com claims that fares have climbed about 11% on average over last summer. Of course, this is not surprising as many travelers have already booked their flights to attend the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, which take place in London from July 27th to August 12th. According to experts, finding a good deal on flights to England after Memorial Day will likely be impossible.
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