Flight prices prove early holiday bookings are cheaper

New research has revealed the best time to book a flight for your villas in Portugal holiday is exactly eight weeks before departure.

Economist Makoto Watanabe has created a formula which calculates the optimum time to book. His findings suggest that airline tickets are cheaper when purchased in the afternoons, rather than the mornings. He proposes that airlines assume business travellers are more likely to book in the morning, and leisure travellers, in the afternoon or evening. The research also analysed the pricing of tickets which reflect the need for airlines to make consumers take their chances by booking early. To encourage early bookings the ticket prices increase as the travel date approaches.

A 2001 study of flight tickets for 12 different US routes showed that postponing a ticket purchase by just one day raised the price by around 0.1% of the average fare. Meanwhile, a 2004 study of flights from Nice airport showed that the average price rose by 12.7% in the last 22 days before departure.

Many customers believe that booking late is the best way to get a bargain, and although some acommodation may be reduced, actually what they save on Vale do Lobo villas they end up paying out on more expensive flights.

Posted by: Kat Hayter

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