What is the Best Day to Buy Airline Tickets

Click, click, click...and more clicks! It was past midnight and my husband who was working on a computer still showed no signs of hitting the bed. 'What are you doing? For God's sake, it's past midnight, sleep now!' I yelled fighting back my sleep. 'Tchh! You don't understand, I am buying airline tickets for our holiday. It's Tuesday night, best time to buy airline tickets!' He replied with an undercurrent of anticipation. Oh yes! How could I forget that. This thing has been going around for quite some time now! We had been checking airline fares morning, afternoon, evening and midnight until someone told us that the best day to buy airline tickets was Tuesday and the time - 1 hour past midnight! I delved into the matter for more information and here is what I found out about the best day to buy airline tickets.

What is the Best Day to Buy Airline Tickets and Why

Most of us will agree that weekends are the most expensive days for buying airline tickets. Most airlines are booked to their capacity on weekends, thereby leading to increased fares. Although there is almost no doubt that Fridays and Sundays are the most expensive days for flying, there is quite a lot of ambiguity when it comes to the cheapest day to buy airline tickets. Some say Saturdays, while some vouch for Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In fact, if you want to know when is the best time to buy airline tickets, then Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning could be your answer. Why? Simply because a 'not so fair' fare war starts on Fridays and dies down by Tuesday afternoon or evening, making Tuesday night the best time to clinch a deal. Here is how the whole thing works.

Most larger airlines announce a rise in airline ticket fare around Friday. In a bid to attract airline travelers, a fare war is mostly initiated by the smallest airline or the weakest competitor. By Monday, quite a number of airline companies join the fare war and announce their revised lower fares. Around Tuesday afternoon, almost all the companies enter the fare war, thereby resulting in drastic reduction in ticket rates. This is exactly when you should keep a watch on all the airline rates for your route. An hour or two past midnight (at the home base of the airline) is the best time to actually buy your tickets. Why? There is an explanation to this as well.

Most airlines upload new data into their computers at midnight everyday. They release all the reserved but unpurchased tickets for the flight. You have to buy a ticket within 24 hours after reserving it, to avail the discount rates. The airline only makes an exception in the case of corporate or Government travelers who can hold tickets until last minute for the negotiated routes.

Tips to Purchase Airline Tickets

The Tuesday night deal may not be fruitful in every case. Although, it is an observed trend, there is no assurance that it will work in your case. Hence, follow these sure shot tips to purchase airline tickets at cheap rates.

• Buy your tickets at least 3 to 4 months in advance if your holiday or personal plan is in place. This is exactly when you get the best deals!
• Do not wait until the last minute to buy your tickets, unless you are a business traveler.
• Book the tickets for one passenger first and then for the rest, while booking for a group.
• Book early morning or late night flights (fondly known as red-eye flights) to get cheaper deals.
• Book cheap airline tickets for a stop-over flight if it suits you. Non-stop flights are more expensive.
• Last but not the least, always be on your toes and book as quick as you can.

Even after announcing new low fares, an airline is only required to sell a minimum of 10% of their total seats at this revised rate. Hence, act as fast as you can to avail this limited offer.