Written by Menswear Style in Travel on the 11th February 2020

Booking airplane tickets has long been considered an art. Taking into account many variables, based on your personal plans, and then trying to find out what the best deal is. Opodo has been trying to turn this art into science, utilising vast amounts of data to study ticket prices. Although this study focuses on prices from the UK, it provides insight into what the prices are based on.

Location, location and… location 

The first important point to note is: location. When you travel you should consider your own location and the place where you want to travel to. If you travel from the UK to mainland Europe, the best time differs from an inter-continental flight to the US or Asia. Opodo’s research shows that you can best book a flight within Europe at around 71 to 80 days in advance. For Asia, this is around 26 to 30 days, and to Africa it is recommended to book 70 days in advance. Your own location is also relevant. Traveling from a nearby country can be more interesting than it is to travel from a nearby airport. This especially holds true for the European continent. For example, if you live in the Netherlands, it can be more attractive to fly from Dusseldorf (Germany) or Brussels (Belgium). These airports and airlines want to attract foreign travelers and offer a competitive fee that could be worth the additional travel time.

Different rules when it comes to last minutes 

Opodo’s research for the best time to book also shows that there are different rules when it comes to last minutes. As the algorithms used by the airlines are sophisticated, many variables can be considered. Opodo tried to generalise this and it resulted in the following best time to book a last-minute flight guideline: 

Last minute America: Opodo shows that the best time to book a last minute flight to America is around a month in advance. Doing this could save you over £250. That is worth the wait! Take this into account when you next want to plan your trip to American in advance.

Traveling to Australia or New Zealand: These are the most expensive airplane tickets you can get. When you book in advance, you can easily spend over £1200 for a return ticket. What does Opodo’s data show? Booking just two to three weeks before take-off is most favourable. The average price of a ticket is close to £900, meaning you can save up to £300. You do need to be flexible in days to try this out.

Want to learn more about the best time to book? Read it on Opodo’s website: www.opodo.co.uk/best-time-to-book-flights/

We discuss Cheap Airplane Tickets and The Best Travel Deals in this travel blog post about The Best Time to Book Flights According to Opodo.