Travel: Is it too late to book your December holiday flights?

With the holiday season around the corner many South Africans are planning their holiday destinations — but, is it too late to book flights at a reasonable price?

According to travel experts, the best time to book your December holiday flights would be mid-year as tend to offer the most competitive rates before the demand starts spiking.

Mid-year best time to book your December flights

Speaking to The Citizen, Take off Travel manager Elan Thinnies the best time to book December holiday flights to ensure availability and reasonable prices is just before the June school holidays.

“If you’ve booked before the June school holidays then you can secure the best rates and cheapest flights,” he said.

Flights are generally higher during peak season, Thinnies said that for some it may not be too late to book their flights if their budget allows.

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“It depends on the person what is too late, there’s a cost and if you have the money then why not go?”

“It can become quite expensive to book now, compared to booking three, four, five months ago. I guess it’s relative to the person,” he added.

10 tips for finding last-minute flight deals for the holidays

Thinnies said travellers should book early, especially if they find a good price.

Here are 10 tips for last-minute cheap flights, according to Cheap Flights.

• Be flexible
• Choose your dates better
• Use flight price engines
• Less luggage
• Fly early and late
• Consider package deals
• Buy one-way tickets
• Avoid unnecessary perks
• Consider budget-friendly airlines.
• Book early

ALSO READ: Here are South Africans favourite international holiday destinations for 2023

South Africans’ favourite holidays destinations

According to Flight Centre, the top 10 international destinations South Africans travelled to in 2023 were:

• Mauritius
• Dubai
• Thailand
• Zanzibar
• USA
• Bali
• UK
• France
• Italy
• Maldives

“Mauritius often tops the list due to its proximity, affordable flights, and diverse activities like beach excursions, water sports, and adventure tourism around Le Morne Brabant,” it said.

Flight Centre also revealed that Johannesburg was the most popular local destination in 2023 among these top five local destinations:

• Johannesburg
• Cape Town
• Durban
• Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
• George

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