Google's 2026 holiday travel trends show Christmas flights are cheapest 56 days out as fare windows move earlier

Key Takeaways

• Google has published its 2026 holiday travel trends and tips, based on five years of aggregated Google Flights data for US departures.

• Christmas fares typically bottom out about 56 days before departure, five days earlier than last year, while Thanksgiving fares are lowest around 34 days out.

• Flying out on a Monday and back on a Tuesday or Wednesday saves about 14% on weekend travel, while the day of the week you book makes almost no difference.

• Travellers can check the cheapest time to book for their own route in Google Flights or AI Mode in Search, and Google names Hilo and Athens among this season's trending destinations.

Google's advice for anyone planning to fly home for the holidays this year fits into one line, which is to book as soon as possible. Its annual holiday travel report, written by James Byers, group product manager for Search, and published on The Keyword on 5 October 2026, uses five years of Google Flights data to work out when fares tend to be cheapest, and the headline finding is that the sweet spot for Christmas has moved earlier again.

The report doubles as a guide to Google's own travel tools, pointing readers to Google Flights and AI Mode in Search to check prices on their own routes, and it rounds things off with lists of the destinations people are searching for more than they did last year.

Google Flights data shows Christmas fares are cheapest 56 days before departure and Thanksgiving fares about 34 days out

The analysis covers flights departing the US and looks at how many days before departure prices typically hit their lowest point. For domestic flights in general that low comes about 39 days out, within a range of 22 to 57 days, which is slightly wider than in 2025. International flights reach their lowest point at around 89 days, although Google notes that prices barely move across a long range of 50 to 133 days, so booking early is the safer option.

The holiday dates are where the timing gets tighter. Thanksgiving fares are typically cheapest about 34 days before departure, within a range of 21 to 57 days, which puts the best prices in October. Christmas fares bottom out about 56 days ahead, five days earlier than last year, so the strongest deals fall between late October and mid November. Looking further ahead, spring break trips in March and April are cheapest around 50 days out, a full week earlier than last year, while summer trips in July and August reach their low at about 21 days. Flights to Europe tend to be cheapest about 90 days ahead, and trips to Mexico and the Caribbean around 43 days ahead.

Google also tackles some familiar booking folklore. Wednesday is technically the cheapest day to book, but only by about 1.4% compared with Sunday, which the report treats as negligible. The days you travel matter much more, with a Monday departure and a Tuesday or Wednesday return saving about 14% compared with weekend flights, and up to 20% on domestic routes compared with leaving and returning on a Sunday. Nonstop tickets cost about 20% more on average than flights with a connection.

For travellers who already know where and when they want to go, Google points to the cheapest time to book feature in Google Flights and AI Mode, which compares current prices with previous years and shows whether fares are likely to rise or fall before departure. The trending destination lists are based on the biggest relative increases in Google Flights searches compared with 2025. Hilo in Hawaii leads the domestic Thanksgiving list ahead of Buffalo, Columbus, Punta Gorda and Greenville, while Athens tops the international list for Christmas and New Year's Eve, followed by Québec City, Rio de Janeiro, Hanoi and Guatemala City.