WASHINGTON – The bad news for air travelers hoping to book early for that Thanksgiving flight is that buying early may not help them at all.
Many flights are nearly full already, says CBS Travel Editor Peter Greenberg.
Waiting until the last minute to nab the last seat on a plane is also no longer an option. As the airline industry has consolidated, airlines have condensed routes and dropped capacity, he says.
He says travelers should consider flying instead the Monday before and the Monday afternoon following Thanksgiving to get the best deals and have the smoothest flight. Booking a flight on Thanksgiving morning is another option with a return trip Friday afternoon when everyone else is stuck inside a mall trying to take advantage of Black Friday deals.
“You save money. You’re on a plane that no one else is on,” he says of Black Friday travel.
And not all seats and routes are displayed on Internet travel sites. Try picking up the phone and calling the airline to find alternatives, Greenberg says.
“You might be surprised what’s available,” he says.
He also suggests that harried travelers trying to avoid the holiday crowds use the arrivals pick-up area when they leave for their tip instead of the departures drop-off area. Then walk up stairs to go through security.
And on their return trip, travelers should have their family or friends pick them up at the departures drop-off area instead of the arrivals. “Pull up to the curb and go,” Greenberg says.
Another tip to minimize the hassles of traveling during Thanksgiving week is to ship any holiday gifts instead of packing them into checked baggage.
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