The best way to get a good deal on airfares is to purchase your ticket up to five months in advance for peak season travel (two week periods around major international holidays), four months in advance for high season travel (June-August) and three months in advance for shoulder season travel (April-May, September-October). Book one to two months in advance for low season travel (all other periods).

During high and peak season travel you may possibly get the best deal if waiting with your purchase up to one week before departure, however, you are also risking paying an astronomical amount in case seats are sold out. Use this option only if you are not required to travel and can postpone your trip in case no good deals turn up.

Airlines generally discount fares once they can measure airplane loads during certain travel periods, and they determine that their planes are not as full as they should be in order to maximize profit on a given flight. Therefore buying tickets too far in advance may result in getting a suboptimal deal, while buying too late may also result in a poor deal when airlines have sold out all discount seats.

Airlines structure their fares in two general categories: permanent fares and specials. The permanent fares do not change much from year to year and they are valid for purchase many months in advance of travel. These are the fares that airlines ideally like to sell, because they make the most profit on them. The specials category is used by airlines to quickly fill empty seats when people are not buying enough of permanent fares. Airlines do not offer specials for purchases far in advance of travel, because they try to wait until the very last possible moment before discounting seats.

Heavily discounted fares are generally non-refundable and non changeable, while permanent fares incur cancellation/change penalties of approximately 100-400 USD. You should read all fare rules before deciding which fare best suits your travel needs.

We suggest you use these guidelines in order to secure the best deal. Please note that there is no way for anyone to predict when fares will actually go up or down, because airplane load factors are a tightly held airline secret that determines an airline’s profitability.

Best Travel Store cannot offer refunds in case fares drop after a purchase, because all fares are subject to airline restrictions over which we have no control. Note that competitive airline Fare Guarantees are only valid within 24 hours from ticketing, when airlines can void the already issued ticket free of charge. You can imagine that the chances of a fare dropping on the day of your purchase are slim to none. Fare Guarantees will likely never extend beyond the current 24 hour period, because this would be the surest way to ruin airlines’ profitability. Remember that the lowest fares often barely cover the cost of fuel and aircraft maintenance, excluding all other major costs: When you win airlines loose.