If you’re planning on going away this Labor Day weekend you should plan on purchasing that plane ticket soon.
Travel site Hipmunk recently took a look at historical data from past Labor Day weekends to determine the best time to book your flights. As it turns out, the right time to buy is the first week in July. That means the right time to buy flights for that September vacation is next week.
Historic data shows that flight booking prices for the three-day weekend reach their top amount of savings during those first seven days on the month.
Additionally, Hipmunk also compiled a list of the most popular Labor Day Weekend destinations this year as well as what the median booking price is. Right now, the top destination for the weekend is Paris, but there’s still plenty of time for domestic destinations as well as some other international spots to overtake it for that top spot.
Here’s a rundown of where people are currently going, and how much they’re paying to get there:
If you are considering one of those top spots, consider this a warning that you might want to make your bookings sooner rather than later. A destination being popular means that it will likely be harder than normal to score affordable hotel rooms, get dinner reservations, and get your desired seat on the plane.
And if you’re looking for the best deal, try flying out any day but the Friday the holiday starts. That is typically the most crowded day and the most expensive in terms of flights.