YIKES. It's Going To Be a LOT More Expensive To Fly During the Holidays This Year

If you’re planning a trip to Disney World or anywhere else, you’ve probably seen just how high airfare prices seem to be right now. Now, airlines have a good excuse for raising prices because the cost of fuel has gone up by a lot, but even if fuel prices go down, it looks like travelers might still be stuck with higher airfares.

Flying just keeps getting more expensive

Well, that’s going to be even more true going into the holiday season. According to CBS News, holiday airfares this year will be the highest they’ve been in 10 years. Ouch.

The average round-trip ticket price for a domestic flight during Thanksgiving week is $402, which is an increase of $95 from the same time last year. Meanwhile, round-trip domestic flights around Christmas are now averaging $452, which is $85 more than last year. That’s a pretty significant increase.

American Airlines Plane

Right now, tickets for domestic round-trip flights are up 31% compared to last year, mostly due to higher jet fuel costs. Months of these higher jet fuel costs due to the conflict in Iran are why Thanksgiving and Christmas airfares are reaching the highest they’ve been in a decade. The cost of jet fuel is usually around 30% of an airline’s operating costs. This is in addition to higher checked bag fees that airlines put into place earlier this year.

Flying

Before the Iran war began in February, jet fuel was around $99 per barrel, but since then, it has peaked at $209 in April and $195 per barrel in September. It was pretty much inevitable that airlines increased their airfare prices to compensate for the greater expense.

Flying is getting pricier

However, not all hope is lost because there are ways to save a little on holiday airfare. First, being flexible with your destination could save you quite a bit of money. You’ll also want to book your holiday airfare before Halloween because fares aren’t expected to drop and may increase.

©Southwest Airlines

Also, consider traveling on off-peak days: for example, you may save money by flying on a Monday or Tuesday before Thanksgiving and returning on any other day than the Sunday after the holiday. If you’re traveling for Christmas, avoid traveling on December 18th, 19th, 20th, and 27th. Aim for other days to save some on your airfare.

MCO Airport Security

We’ll keep you updated on more travel news, so stay tuned to DFB for more.

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