Experts say now is the time to book your holiday flights

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - The clock is ticking if you’re hoping to score a good deal on your holiday travel plans.

Experts predict the prices for holiday flights will soar in the coming days.

If you haven’t already booked your flights, you’ll want to do it soon. In fact, the travel experts at Hopper recommend doing it this week.

They said this week is the “sweet spot” for getting the best deals for Thanksgiving and Christmas airfare.

Travel experts said airfare prices have cooled in recent weeks leading them to believe this could be the last time you’ll get a good deal before prices go up.

Some analysts predict this could be the most expensive travel season in years.

Lindsay Schwimer with Hopper said there are a few factors driving up airfare prices for the holidays.

“First is really the strong demand that we’re seeing heading into the holiday season. More than half of Americans are planning to travel for one or both of the holidays so that’s really playing a big role in airfare prices as well as lower capacity. So, airlines are still operating at lower capacity compared to 2019. And lastly yes, jet fuel prices are up more than double than what they were last year,” Schwimer said.

Schwimer said airfare prices are expected to go up by at least $10 everyday between now and Thanksgiving Day.

But she said some booking sites offer a price freeze option that allows you to lock in the price of the flights you like for a few days.

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