The best ways to save on travel this fall

For those of you who avoided the sweaty summer hordes in pricey, popular tourist venues from Paris to Yellowstone National Park, say hello to cooler temperatures and sweet savings.

But don’t expect to have the place to yourself. Everyone, it seems, has plans to go somewhere. About 9 in 10 Americans say they have plans to travel this fall and early winter.

Because of “the sustained interest in travel, destinations will likely be more crowded,” Christopher Elliott, a consumer advocate and editor of the travel newsletter Elliott Confidential, told Yahoo Finance.

Demand has ramped up for both domestic and international flights compared to last fall, according to AAA booking data. Cruising, however, takes the prize. Domestic cruise bookings are up 19% over last fall, and international cruise bookings are up 6%.

“Many fall destinations may be more crowded than they have been in previous years, but booking prices and crowds are still lower than during the high season,” Stacey Barber, vice president of AAA Travel, told Yahoo Finance.

Fall road trippers, in particular, are doing a happy dance thanks to cheaper pump prices. Gas prices have been sliding since late July. This week, the average price of a regular gallon of gas in the US was $3.22, down from $3.83 a year ago.

“After ‘revenge travel’ boomed post-pandemic, with airlines hiking fares, we’re seeing some relief this fall,” Kayla Inserra DeLoache, consumer travel trends expert at KAYAK, told Yahoo Finance. Airfares have dropped 26% compared to summer, she said, and 6% year over year.

The folks at travel booking app Hopper agree. “We’re seeing huge savings compared to summer,” Hayley Berg, lead economist at Hopper, told Yahoo Finance. “Prices are at about pre-pandemic levels or lower. On average, just by shifting the travel dates, travelers are saving about 30% on fares compared to those same trips during the summer.”

Read more: The best travel credit cards for September 2024

International trips take off

This fall, interest in international trips is outpacing domestic, DeLoache said.

“Travelers are still hungry for those new experiences farther from home.”

And the price is right. International flight prices are down 8% year over year, per KAYAK.

Demand for vacations to Asia, in particular, has surged. In general, airfare to Tokyo is almost $350 less expensive for October than it was for the exact same trip in June, July, or August.

“The price drops are really substantial,” Berg said, “especially to some of those bigger-ticket destinations.”

Shanghai and Osaka are the top two destinations for international travel right now, even with airfares as high as $1,364 per ticket, Berg said. While that does sound like a lofty fare, a roundtrip to Shanghai is $500 less expensive than it was a few months ago, she said. A flight to Bangkok is about $450 cheaper than it was in July.

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European cities never go out of fashion regardless of the season. Bookings to London, Rome, Paris, Barcelona, and Madrid are big pulls for fall travelers, according to KAYAK.

“Our cultural programs in Italy are always most popular throughout the fall season, in addition to Croatia, Turkey, and Portugal — in particular the Azores — all of which are culturally rich and geographically beautiful places to visit, particularly during this time of year,” James Moses, president of Road Scholar, the not-for-profit educational travel group, told Yahoo Finance.

“With the tourists of summer having come and gone, it’s the ideal time to immerse yourself in the museums, cultural institutions, and archeological sites of this extraordinary region.”

Read more: How a travel credit card could help you save on your next summer vacation

Where the deals are

If you’re looking for a bargain, check out these fall destinations, where Hopper data found airfares have dropped the most since the lazy days of summer:

Seattle: down 36%

Honolulu: 31%

Portland, Ore.: 31%

Los Angeles: 31%

San Francisco: 30%

Boston: 30%

Here are some European locales with the biggest declines:

Oslo: 36%

Brussels: 34%

Berlin: 33%

Amsterdam: 33%

Stockholm: 33%

Prague: 32%

Zurich: 32%

When you travel

The hard and fast travel rules remain. Try to travel midweek — Tuesday or Wednesday — to save roughly 20% on domestic airfare, Berg said.

And take the first flight of the day because disruptions are a reality. “If you can get out early, you typically fare better,” she added.

In general, flights departing after 9 a.m. are twice as likely to be delayed as departures scheduled between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m.

Stay alert for the best fares

If you know where you’d like to take off to and from, set an airfare price tracker. You’ll get an email or text alerting you whenever fares rise or fall. Major travel apps, such as Hopper, KAYAK, and Skyscanner, offer fare tracking, as does Google Flights.

Run a search on KAYAK’s “best time to travel” tool to get an idea of when you might land the best deals. I typed in Washington, D.C., to Santa Fe for four days, and it suggested taking my trip in November. And I am.

“We recommend going to Santa Fe in November as airfare is affordable at $408, the weather is cool with an average temperature of 41°F, and it’s less crowded than usual,” the site reported. “If you’re looking for an alternative month to visit, October is a great choice. Enjoy the beautiful fall foliage, art galleries, and the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta. October has a mild average temperature of 50°F but expect a 14% price increase on flights.”

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Round-trip domestic airfares will begin to increase in October as consumer demand shifts toward holiday trips for Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, reaching a peak the second week of December, Berg said.

Overall, prices will remain just below 2023 levels for the remainder of the year.

Lean into rewards and loyalty points

Frequent flier miles, loyalty hotel rewards, and credit card points are meant to be used and go a long way to making travel affordable.

A rewards credit card that does not charge foreign transaction fees is a must if you’re leaving the US. Always ask for your purchases to be charged in the local currency for the best exchange rate.

Read more: Cash back or points: Which credit card rewards are better?

Consider the health benefits

If the cooling costs of travel this fall aren’t tempting enough, how about this new finding? A positive travel experience is good for your mental and physical health, including slowing down the signs of aging, according to a new study published in Science Daily.

The gist of it: Travel to new places stimulates stress responses and helps our bodies become more resilient. Combine that with the oft-touted health benefits of socialization with new people, the psychic high from being immersed in nature, the physical rewards of hiking, cycling, and even just plain old walking. Hitting the road has all those health benefits your doctor has been nagging you to kick up a notch.

I don’t know about you, but I didn’t need a research report to tell me that.

Kerry Hannon is a Senior Columnist at Yahoo Finance. She is a career and retirement strategist, and the author of 14 books, including “In Control at 50+: How to Succeed in The New World of Work” and “Never Too Old To Get Rich.” Follow her on X @kerryhannon.

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