Whenever a new year rolls around, we’re always thinking about the future—about what we’d like to do in the coming year, or in our case, where we’d like to go. But it of course gets difficult to dream when we also need to think about the budget, right? Today, we’re going to let you in on our #1 money-saving travel tip, and it’s probably not what you think.
Book early. Like, 6-12 months early.
Yes, really.
We know that you’ve probably heard of getting good “last-minute” deals on hotels or cruise lines, and while those aren’t unheard of, the best pricing for many vacations is actually available right when dates are first released.
Pricing for cruises, all-inclusive resorts, tours, and hotels can change over time, and as itineraries or rooms sell out, the pricing of the remaining inventory goes up. This means that someone booking the same cruise or tour as soon as it became available will typically pay less for the exact same vacation than someone who booked 4-5 months later.
This is especially true for cruise itineraries, which often release 2-3 years in advance, and have their lowest pricing when they first become available. In fact, these early prices are usually still lower than any later last-minute “deals” are—plus, you don’t have to worry about whether a deal will pop up last-minute or not.
There are some caveats to this. For instance, booking flights as early as possible isn’t always the best option, as some airlines don’t have their schedules out that far ahead, and airline pricing is so dynamic that there can be lower prices available 3-6 months beforehand. For high-demand international travel, though, it’s often best to book much earlier to guarantee availability (or better yet, contact us about occasional free airfare offers for destinations like Europe!)
Ready to plan ahead to make your new year vacation dreams come true? Contact one of our Travel Pros!
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