How far out are you booking airline tickets?

I also booked ~7 months out. I probably didn't get the best deal (lowest fares) but I got the connections and seats I wanted. I needed 3 seats together in economy comfort on the transatlantic legs so I purchased them when they became available and the travel schedule was finalized. My philosophy, if you have to shave every last penny you probably can't afford to go...

According to an Expedia study someone posted here awhile back, 6 months ahead is just right for international flights.

About six months.

Used the last of my United miles, so we booked 11 months out when tickets opened up. No price difference so no reason to wait.

I booked mine in March for my September to October Italy trip, too. About six months out is my usual time.

I just booked mine for September Open jaw into Viena and home from Paris -- the cost has been remarkably high and remarkably the same for the last year so we finally went ahead. I used to book for price and knew when to snap and could get tickets on the down bounce, but this past year I am not seeing the same volatility -- just steady fairly high prices.

I normally book 6-12 weeks before the trip, except Hawaii and xmas. That requires a 6 month booking for high season, I have found the prices can be a bit cheaper at night on a Saturday. Kayak and trip advisor. I do check pretty frequently, and have had great success with this method. I take at least 7 trips a year.

I usually buy when tickets are available, 330 days before the last day of travel, but I take long trips so it's about 8 months out.

I generally buy six months in advance, September's trip to Ireland included. The prices have rarely dropped, and when they have it was a negligable amount. It also spreads out the trip expenses.

The only down side is that there are so many places I want to go, I inevitably suffer from buyer's remorse after I commit. But then it passes, and I get excited for my destination again.

We booked our September EU flights in May. I think they were slightly cheaper the month before. However, I've only seen them go up since.

Oh, and once I buy them, I stop looking at the prices.

It depends on the airfares. If they're relatively expensive across the board, I'll wait until 90 days out--looking for a deal. If I find a decent fare, it's great. If I don't find a good fare, I'll book a trip to the other end of the U.S.--or in Canada.

We were wanting to fly to Australia this year and catch a cruise over to New Zealand, but airfares were excessive. I caught an airfare to Europe for 50% of the current levels 90 days out. We'll be doing a Baltic Cruise out of Copenhagen.

Six months out was when I booked. I got what I thought was a good price. We did not fly open jaw, we flew in and out of Brussels because it was the cheapest flight we could find. I booked on a Sunday, when I found the cheapest fares. Kayak will send you notifications of fares. I will squeeze a penny till it bleeds. And that doesn't mean I can't afford to travel, it's means I'm thrifty. ;)

Zoe is right, don't shop after you have bought your tickets.

Jenny

I booked in Dec 14 for our Sept Europe Trip.More choices and better deal.
Mike