Need Cheap Flights For Thanksgiving And Christmas 2016? Here’s When You Should Book

The holidays may be a joyous time, but they can also be really expensive, especially for families who may be traveling during the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons. If you plan accordingly, however, traveling during the holidays doesn’t necessarily have to be so costly.

Airline prices have a tendency to rise the longer a traveler waits to purchase a plane ticket, and people who search for flights well in advance often luck out on finding tickets for much lower than travelers who wait to buy until the last minute. But if you buy too soon, you might also lose out on savings.

For Thanksgiving travel, it's best to book in late October or about two to four weeks before Thanksgiving, according to various travel sites.

For folks planning to hit the sky during the Christmas holiday, Skycanner said the best week to purchase plane tickets is the week of Nov. 21, with as much as 6.41 percent discounts on flights. During the week of Nov. 28, travelers may see up to 2.17 percent off flights. However, discounts may go up again during the week of Dec. 5, with some airline offering flights 4.93 percent off.

Although discounts for New Year’s flights start the week of Nov. 21 with discounts up to 4.14 percent, the week of Dec. 5 has the most potential for savings with discounted plane tickets up to 10.57 percent. During the weeks of Dec. 19 and Dec. 26, travelers can find flight deals ranging from 6.67 to 6.72 percent.

Some of the best departing prices are listed on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday with best returning flight deals on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, according to Orbitz. The travel site – which said travelers can save up to $500 on trips if they book package deals featuring hotels and rental car options – also noted that travelers can find better deals on Monday to Monday trips.