In this week’s Traveler’s File column, at right, we detail “best” and “worst” holiday-season travel dates, as projected by Priceline.com on Nov. 14. We wanted to see how their predictions held up after a week of ticket sales. So on Nov. 20, using for round-trip travel some dates chosen from Priceline.com’s recommendations, we checked air fares for ourselves (which we can’t promise will still be there by the time you read this), to see if the airlines’ own fares reflected Priceline.com’s predictions.
We chose sunny Phoenix for our from-Chicago fare check. Here’s what we found:
“Best” dates:
Dec. 2-5: $247 ATA; $289 ATA; $300 Frontier
Dec. 5-13: $247 ATA; $289 American, ATA; $294 Northwest
Dec. 13-19: $247 ATA; $289 America West, United, American, ATA; $294 Northwest, American, United
Dec. 20-24: $294 ATA; $299 America West; $304 American
Dec. 29-Jan. 3: $300 Frontier; $341 ATA; $399 ATA
“Worst” dates:
Dec. 9-12: $247 ATA; $289 ATA, United American; $294 Northwest, United, American
Dec. 15-21: $294 ATA; $309 United, American; $314 United, America West, American
Dec. 21-26: $299 America West; $304 America West; $310 America West
Dec. 23-26: $344 ATA; $349 United, America West; $354 United, America West
Dec. 26-Jan. 1: $425 ATA; $480 ATA; $503 ATA/Delta, ATA/Frontier
Conclusion: Call the airlines first for their lowest fares on your dates. They can hold a reservation for you while you shop for other prices. Then, if you are willing to abide by Priceline.com’s rules, offer them a lesser figure and see if they’ll accept.
