Travel Tips

Travel Tip: No Plane Tickets for Thanksgiving? Here’s What To Do

Locations in this article: Chicago, IL Providence, RI San Francisco, CA

We’re only a few weeks away from the Thanksgiving holiday, which is the busiest travel period of the year.

If you haven’t bought your tickets yet, you know what I’m going to tell you—you’re going to pay more each day you delay booking your flights.

In the past, smart travelers would never fly on the Wednesday before Turkey Day, but instead on Thanksgiving itself, when flights were empty.

Well, that secret is way out of the bag now, and many flights on Thanksgiving Day are already heavily booked.

So what are your choices if you still want to fly home for the holidays?

Think alternate airports: Providence instead of Boston, New York’s Islip Airport instead of JFK.

Or, try Oakland instead of San Francisco, and Milwaukee instead of Chicago.

But if all else fails, there’s always plan B: Avoid Thanksgiving altogether and fly the week after the holiday.

This is known in the industry as the dead week. No one is flying, which means no crowds and great deals.

The turkey can wait if the price—and the overall experience—is right.

Keep reading for more travel tips.