Do flights get dearer closer to date?

A

ardman

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We're hoping to fly to Malaga in mid-August for 9-10 days. We haven't booked accommodation until we get flights. Our dates are flexible to within a couple of days. As the time gets closer, flights with Aer Lingus and Ryanair seem to heading upwards.Is this the norm? I was hoping prices would go the other way if flights were not full.
 
i fly a fair bit to texas and i use skyscanner, sometimes the flights days before takeoff are cheaper depending on airline and demand. check them out as i find this site brilliant
 
I generally thought this. However, last year we flew Ryanair to Malta. We booked flights in April for August. Ryanair lowered the fares in July, fares were about €40 cheaper each than what we paid. I was surprised to say the least.
 

Mid August = High Season ... so they're probably not going to get any cheaper closer to the time .. I imagine that strategy is more likely to work in the off season .. no hard and fast rule of course, but generally speaking as it gets closer to the time if a flight is empty the airline will be keen to get rid of the seats as after the plane has left they're useless - however this is countered by the fact that people who book at short notice tend to be less price sensitive (business travel, people who have no choice) so the airline won't always want to sell seats cheaply nearer the time
 
Now that you mention it I've heard of skyscanner before. I'll check it out. Good point about business travel. I've looked at map of plane and available seating and there seems to be a lot of vacancies. Would it be possible that the airlines would be expecting to fill these via travel agents/package deals? I've heard that flights are advertisd more cheaply early in the week or late at night. I have not seen it anyway. Any thoughts on that?
 
FWIW I had to fly from Stanstead to Dublin in July 2006 and Ryanair cost me 550EU one way for myself and my daughter, booked on the day.
So it would appear that they are prepared to leave seats empty rather than sell them off cheaply on the day.
 
ardman said:
I've looked at map of plane and available seating and there seems to be a lot of vacancies.
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Just because there are seats available for selection doesn't mean there are that many tickets left to buy - with Aer Lingus you have to pay to advance-book a seat whereas you can select a seat for free when you check in - so most people don't select and pay for seats. A flight could show 50 seats available for selection but there might only be one (expensive...) ticket left to buy - and 49 people happy to take what seats are available for free at check-in.
FWIW, it has rarely been my experience that seats get cheaper closer to the time, particularly this close. If you book months in advance, you might see cheaper seats when there's still a couple of months to go to the flight - but as others have said, it's better business for the airlines to fleece desperate/'indifferent to cost' punters who are booking last minute.
 
cashier said:
I often wonder if they deliberately hold a few seats back for emergencies, I have often heard it say that Michael O'Leary makes his money out of people returning to ireland for funerals
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And that is exactly the reason I had to return.
 
Good point Orka about advance booking fees. Seems obvious now that you pointed it out.
Thanks for replies
 
I booked seats to malaga for oct way back in january and even then july and aug were dear enough, i have seen very few cheap flight to any destination in spain or portugal this year, i think capacity is way down (spanair gone wallop) so the airlines are holding out for last minute bookers.
 
Ryanair flights are probably at their cheapest 6 weeks before a flight. Aer Lingus don't tend to drop their prices nearer the flight time.
 
I have often heard it say that Michael O'Leary makes his money out of people returning to ireland for funerals
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In the 80's when I was in London, this chestnut was been said as well except replace MOL with AL or Virgin. It's not exclusive to Ryanair, it's (excuse the pun) life.
 
The flights I have booked for mid August are €125 per ticket more expensive than when I booked them in January.(Ryanair)
 
One of the problems which I have encountered with booking flights well in advance is that Aer Lingus (not sure about other airlines), have a habit of changing the flight times. this is a bit annoying, but if you were using AL to get a connecting flight it could cause big problems.
 
Slightly off track here, but harry31's point has happened to me recently. Does one have any recourse when the scheduled flight times are changed without notice?
 
Runner: I've had that happen a couple of times when I've booked well in advance. Nothing can be done as far as I know - I did contact Aer Lingus - with no joy I'm afraid. Was only offered refund & the alternative flights were much more expensive.
 
On flight time changes:

I believe if the change is made within 2 weeks of your departure then you may be entitled to some compensation ( depending on how large the time change is)

If the change is made more than 2 weeks before your departure then they only need to offer you the right to cancel without penalty
 
Thanks, you have both confirmed my suspicions that nothing really can be done except cancel, which I wont do as it would cost me even more that way. I suppose its the peril of eary booking to get good prices. Its with Ryanair anyway which makes it less lively that anything can be done..cheers all for help!
 
don't worry dear

Well you should not be worried Runner. have a safe journey and enjoy a lot.
 
Had not thought of doing the obvious in relation to my original question but I've just done it now. I looked up AL flights leaving in the next couple of days. Prices up in the moon. Bang goes my original plan of getting flights cheaper closer to departure date.
 
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