ARLINGTON, Va. (7News) — The Tuesday after Thanksgiving is known as Travel Tuesday, and it’s when you can often find deals on flights, hotels and cruises.
This year it falls on Dec. 3, and you can expect to see more deals on travel than any other day of the year. The sale starts at midnight and continues for 24 hours.
More than half of Americans (58%) said they prefer to spend their money on travel instead of shopping, according to the 2024 Winter Travel Survey from the personal finance company WalletHub.
“I was a big skeptic of Travel Tuesday. It’s basically a marketing gimmick that they ginned up to increase sales, sort of like Cyber Monday and Black Friday. But there’s actually sometimes some good deals,” said Clint Henderson, managing editor of the travel website “The Points Guy”.
The deals range from 10 to 15% off hotels, airfare, and cruises, but occasionally you can find even better deals.
“Like 60% off base fares and things like that,” Henderson said. “The problem is there’s a lot of blackout dates. It’s usually an airline you might necessarily not want to fly.”
But to jump on the deals, you need a strategy. Experts said don’t wait for Travel Tuesday to book Christmas flights, because generally, those are blackout dates that are not included in any sales.
Next, experts said to set price alerts.
“Set a Google Flight alert. They will email you when fares drop or they rise spectacularly…” Henderson said. “The other function that Google has, which nobody knows about, is Google Flights explore. Google will show you the cheapest deals both near and far from your house, no matter what time of year you want to go.”
Another strategy is to bundle your deals.
“If you book a flight in a hotel and car rental, even altogether, you’re going to save up to 40% no matter what time of year,” Henderson said.
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays are the cheapest days to fly and when there are fewer business travelers. But travelers should also consider traveling in the spring and fall, known as the shoulder season, for the best prices.
If you’re undecided about a destination, you may want to avoid Asian countries right now as prices there are high. Instead, Henderson said to consider Europe or Hawaii where prices are easing a bit.
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