Deals on holiday flights are ‘few and far between’ for Arizonans

PHOENIX – It’s not too late for Arizona travelers to find good deals on flights for the holidays, but destinations matter.

“There’s some deals out there, but they’re kind of few and far between,” Rick Seaney, CEO of travel website FareCompare, told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona Morning News on Friday.

Seaney said that if you’re trying to keep your round-trip flight costs under $200, Southern California, Colorado and Dallas are in reach.

You can get to the Pacific Northwest, Northern California and even Fort Myers, Florida, for under $250.

“Every $50 you extend your price point you essentially can kind of get farther away,” Seaney said.

If you’re dreaming about sandy Christmas on a beach in Mexico or the Caribbean, don’t expect to find a deal, if you can even find a flight.

“Those are all above $800 right now,” Seaney said. “Almost all those tickets are sold out.”

If you want to really get away for something a bit more affordable, you might want to look across the Atlantic Ocean.

“You can actually get anywhere in Europe right now for the next six weeks or so pretty much under $600 round trip,” Seaney said.

National motor club AAA is projecting the busiest holiday season ever for travel.

“AAA projects a record-breaking 112.5 million Americans will travel this holiday season, meaning more than one-third of all Americans,” Michele Donati of AAA Arizona told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Thursday.

That includes around 2 million Arizonans, an estimated 1.9 million by road and 156,000 by air, an increase of nearly 5 percent for 2017.

Will you be traveling with an unusual item? Use the "What Can I Bring" search on https://t.co/Dc3TizobuR for info on packing: https://t.co/a1MsqBEWnY #TravelTips pic.twitter.com/7rFRorafcf

— TSA (@TSA) December 12, 2018

For drivers, traffic will be lightest on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, Donati said.

“If you look at Dec. 22, Dec. 23 and even Dec. 26, those are going to be the busiest days in the skies and airport,” she said.

“So if you have the flexibility, if you’re traveling someplace a little closer to home, and you can leave on the holidays themselves, that’s going to be your best bet”

Donati said fliers should plan to arrive at the airport at least two hours before departure.

Seaney added that you should check your flight information the night before.

“They do change hundreds of thousands of flights, usually only by a few minutes, but they can change them,” he said.

“And make sure that your phone number, cellphone number and your email address are on your reservation just in case they change something.”

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Nailea Leon contributed to this report.

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