Average airfare for domestic holiday trips this year is running 15 percent higher than last year, and international tickets are up 20 percent, according to Expedia’s newly released 2026 Holiday Travel Outlook.
The booking platform says the increases are pushing more travelers to lock in flights earlier and lean on bundled packages to manage the cost of Thanksgiving and December travel.
What the data shows
Expedia’s 2026 Holiday Travel Outlook identifies when to book, which travel dates may offer better fares, and how travelers can find more value this holiday season.
The report comes after average ticket prices rose 15% for domestic trips and 20% for international trips year-over-year. It also points to lower-cost alternatives still available to budget-conscious travelers.
The outlook highlights domestic holiday packages available for under $1,000 per person and international packages available for under $2,000 per person.
The jump in holiday airfare comes as many households are already trimming other discretionary purchases. A separate Pew Research Center survey found that seventy percent of US adults say they have cut back on spending for extras such as eating out, streaming services or other entertainment in the past year , according to a GCN report on the findings.
That backdrop makes holiday travel costs more noticeable for family budgets planning end-of-year trips.
Booking windows still matter
Separate from the holiday pricing jump, Expedia’s broader 2026 Air Hacks Report has tracked how the calculus around booking timing has shifted throughout the year.
U.S. travelers get the lowest average domestic airfares when they book 15, 30 days before departure and fly on a Tuesday instead of a Sunday, with January standing out as the cheapest month for domestic flights.
The most affordable booking window is 15, 30 days out, delivering an average savings of $130 compared with fares booked six months or more in advance.
That pattern breaks from older conventional wisdom that booking as early as possible guarantees the lowest price.
For international economy flights, Expedia’s U.S. data shows the most affordable time to book is 8, 15 days out, the most expensive is 180+ days out, a $225 difference, while booking 31, 45 days out can still save $190 compared with booking six months out.
Why fares swing by the day and season
Day-of-week choice can also move the price for an identical seat. Tuesday departures average 14% less than Sunday departures on US domestic routes , while for international trips, Expedia’s data points to Thursday as the cheapest day to fly.
That volatility echoes a wider pattern GCN has reported, where a single domestic flight can carry dozens of separate prices for the same seat depending on when it goes on sale and when it is purchased.
Shoulder-season timing outside the holidays offers additional room to save. A year of data from Expedia’s Flight Deals reveals that July, October and November are the travel months with the most deals available.
The tool scans millions of flights daily to find quality flights from a chosen airport that are at least 20% lower than typically predicted prices for that route. The report also found that U.S. domestic travelers can save 14% by flying on Tuesday instead of Sunday.
What it means for holiday planners
For travelers weighing Thanksgiving or December trips this year, the data suggests the usual rules of thumb, like booking far in advance or picking traditional travel days, carry less certainty than they once did.
With holiday fares already elevated, Expedia’s guidance points toward earlier action within a defined window, flexible travel days, and bundled packages as the clearest levers left for controlling cost.
The shift in travel economics also lines up with other recent findings on American spending habits, including survey data showing rising costs have pushed the US vacation rate to its lowest point in six years, a trend that could extend into how families approach the coming holiday travel season.
