when to buy airline tickets

I'm flying with similar dates, and facing the same questions as you. How I'm trying to balance it is that I also need to do hotel reservations, and I know that where I want to stay fills up around 2-3 months ahead of time. I'm not willing to budge on that, and paying an extra $100-200 is worth a month or two less of stress and being able to cement other plans.

There'll almost always be better deals ahead, but you have to do what works for you and your plans. If you have somewhere to stay, and aren't firm on dates, you could put off and likely save a hundred dollars or two. If you're trying to make another plans, you'll likely want to take the plunge the next time you see a price you're happy with.

Buying plane tickets seems to be an art rather than a science!

One philosophy is the "stock market" approach. Track airfares for a while, to get a sense of their cost, plus when they typically rise or fall. Use this information to determine a price you are comfortable with, and purchase when airfares are in that range. The recent economy has altered historical airfare patterns, though, and there are numerous discounts on summer travel. You might want to take a close look at the current deals.

I always check Orbitz, Best Fares and Kayak. I also have emails from British Airways, Virgin, American Airlines, North West and Travelzoo.

I know it's not London but this week Travel Zoo mentioned that AerLingus had great prices to Shannon and Dublin. For example NYC to Dublin or Shannon for $245 each way. Travel betw.June 16-Aug22. Purchase tix by 3/19. Darn good.

YOu might register for email alerts.

Hi Cheri, Lamont covered it, but there have been a number of people who have posted this question recently, you may want to search the previous threads for more detail and advice--some people may not have repeated their posts.