Planning your spring break vacation? We’ve got tips on how to find deals

Need something to get your mind off the snowy weather? Well, with spring break right around the corner, why not plan a trip somewhere warm?

We’ve got tips on how to save some money when planning that vacation.

First, the bad news.

“There’s about a 50% increase year over year in Spring Break bookings,” said Peter Greenberg, travel editor for CBS News.

“And already this year, it’s up about 15%, which means of course, fares are gonna go up. So for anybody who procrastinates about spring break to the normal and traditional destinations, there’s a penalty for that, and that’s gonna be higher fares.”

He said Fort Lauderdale in Florida and South Padre Island in Texas are already pretty pricey for this year’s Spring Break trip, but, if you’re looking for warm, there are some spots in Florida that could still be deals.

“Panama Beach or Destin, and Pensacola, they have lower rates and those rates will probably stay lower,” he said.

Greenberg said to aim for booking those Spring Break trips about 54 days or so ahead. So if you’re planning for mid-March, now’s the time.

“For every day you wait, airfares will go up around 2% to 3%,” he said.

And not every school or district has the same Spring Break. Greenberg said looking at your dates and where you want to go can help save a lot of money.

“Sometimes Easter rolls in and rolls out on different dates, schools are out at different dates, so based on where you want to go, you should take a look at the booking, and if the bookings are lower, that’s when you want to go to avoid the crazy crowds during those intense times when everybody shows up.”

And he said there isn’t a specific good day of the week to travel when it comes to Spring Break, but, “there is a terrible day to travel back, and of course that’s any Sunday after spring break. You want to come back on a Tuesday or Wednesday.”

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