Latest news with #travelseason
New York Times
08-07-2025
- New York Times
Did You Visit a National Park This Summer? Tell Us What You Saw.
This summer travel season kicked off with worries for anyone headed to a national park. A wave of firings and resignations shortly after President Trump took office depleted the ranks of permanent staff across the system, and seasonal hiring started much later than usual. All this meant reports of uncleaned toilets, closed trails and campgrounds, and long waits at popular sites. The chaos may have pushed nervous travelers to visit state parks or Canadian parks instead. If you still chose to go to a U.S. national park this summer, we want to know about your experience. Were there problems like overcrowding, cancellations or maintenance issues, or did you find things working smoothly? Please share the details of your experience with us, including photos and videos. We will look at all the responses and use some of them to put together a crowdsourced midsummer checkup of national parks. We won't publish your response or use photos or videos you submit without contacting you. If we do include your response, we will need to use your full name and city; we can't use pseudonyms or first names only. Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram and sign up for our Travel Dispatch newsletter to get expert tips on traveling smarter and inspiration for your next vacation. Dreaming up a future getaway or just armchair traveling? Check out our 52 Places to Go in 2025.
CNET
23-06-2025
- CNET
Score Cheap Vacation Flights by Asking Google the Best Time to Buy
If you're looking to save some money on your next flight, check with Google before you hit the buy has officially arrived, and it's vacation season once again. It's one of the most popular times of the year to travel, which can make hopping on a flight a much more expensive endeavor. The good news is that you don't have to pay an arm and a leg for a flight if you know where to look. Even during the peak of summer, it's still possible to find affordable flights, and Google has tons of information to help you make an informed decision. Google Flights has released a robust travel report after aggregating four years of airfare data and trends to provide US travelers with an overarching guide on finding the cheapest flights and the best times to book them. I have reviewed this report thoroughly and highlighted the most important takeaways below to help you find a flight in your budget and let you relax while traveling instead of stressing about money. For more key travel tips, explore these travel essentials you need for every vacation and then take a look at this travel checklist. You should also review CNET's roundup of the best headphones for travel. How to Use Google Maps Like a Pro How to Use Google Maps Like a Pro Click to unmute Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Skip Backward Skip Forward Next playlist item Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 9:29 Loaded : 3.14% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 9:29 Share Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. How to Use Google Maps Like a Pro What days are the cheapest to fly? CNET If you're planning to book a flight, you're likely trying to find the most budget-friendly option. According to Google Flights, the cheapest flights are available when flying on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, with Tuesday being the cheapest day, according to the historical flight data. Flying early- to midweek can save travelers 13% to 20% on airfare compared to flying on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, with Sunday the most expensive day to fly. Do layovers on flights save you money? It may come as no surprise that flights with layovers are cheaper than nonstop flights but you may not realize just how significant those savings can be. The Google Flight data shows that travelers can save 25% by booking a flight with a layover instead of a nonstop flight. Which day of the week is the cheapest for booking flights? There are certainly cheaper days to fly, there aren't really cheaper days to book. "There's not much benefit to buying your tickets on a certain day of the week," according to the Google report. Google Flights does state that Tuesdays are typically the cheapest day of the week to book, according to the data, but Tuesday bookings are only 1.3% cheaper than the most expensive day, Sunday. Is it cheaper to book flights far in advance? To wait or not to wait? According to Google, it's better to book your travel far in advance, especially if you need to fly on a specific day or time. There are some patterns you can analyze to decide whether it's better to wait for lower prices or book now based on specific scenarios, destinations and dates of travel. For domestic flights, the prices are generally at their lowest between 21 and 52 days before your trip -- with 38 days before departure being the cheapest day to book on average. For international flights, the prices are generally lowest between 50 and 101 days before your trip, but it's generally best practice to book as early as you can. According to Google, "Average prices don't meaningfully drop anytime before departure but they usually do start to rise within 50 days of the flight itself" for international travel from the US. Never miss out on the cheapest airfare again./Gianmarco Chumbe/CNET When is the best time to book a flight in every season? Here's what Google says about the best times to book holiday flights and vacation trips to certain popular destinations. Summer break: The cheapest domestic flights in July and August are usually available 13 to 43 days in advance, with 21 days before departure being the cheapest day on average to book. Thanksgiving: The cheapest domestic flights over the Thanksgiving holiday are usually available 26 to 59 days in advance, with 45 days out being the cheapest -- meaning it's best to book Thanksgiving flights in early October. Christmas: The cheapest domestic flights over the winter holidays are usually available 36 to 72 days in advance, with 58 days out being the cheapest. It's best to book Christmas or holiday travel in the latter half of October. Spring break: The cheapest domestic flights in March and April are available between 33 to 59 days in advance, with 44 days before departure being the cheapest time to book on average. When is the best time to book a flight to Europe? International flights to Europe from the US are usually cheaper 50 or more days before departure, with 94 days out being the cheapest day to book on average. As with all international travel, it's generally best practice to book as early as you can. When is the best time to book a flight to Mexico or the Caribbean? International flights to Mexico and the Caribbean are the one exception to the broader international trend, according to Google. That's because flights are generally at their lowest between 26 and 68 days in advance, with 44 days out being the cheapest. For more, check out CNET's picks for the best travel credit cards in 2025. You can also explore the 12 travel essentials you always need to pack and the worst airlines for flight delays and cancellations.
CTV News
03-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Calgary airport prepares for passenger surge with major summer events
The Calgary Airport Authority says it expects more guests than ever before this summer as people arrive for the Calgary Stampede and the G7 summit. (File) The Calgary International Airport is preparing for a busy summer season, with several major events set to bring thousands of extra tourists to the city. The Calgary Airport Authority will release its summer scheduling and anticipated passenger numbers Tuesday morning. It experienced record numbers last year, with an estimated 64,000 passengers passing through the airport daily in July and August. Between Stampede, the 2025 Rotary Convention and the G7 Leaders' Summit happening this summer, officials are preparing for an even busier travel season. Preparations have already started at the airport in advance of the G7 summit, which will take place from June 15 to 17. The authority says travellers can expect some road closures in and around the perimeter of the airport during that event. Passengers will also notice increased security presence at curbside for pickups and drop-offs. This is a developing story. More details to come...
CNN
01-06-2025
- Business
- CNN
The ‘golden summer of cheap flights': Now's the time for last-minute deals
Still haven't pressed 'purchase' on your summer vacation? There's some good news for procrastinators this hectic travel season. If you have yet to book peak summer airfare to popular destinations in Europe, among other places, you can expect to find lower prices and more award availability than the norm for this typically busy time of year, travel experts say. The indications of a slowdown in global travel, paired with ongoing economic uncertainty, are resulting in some bargain international and domestic airfares. And now might be the sweet spot for finding a last-minute summer travel deal. Travel expert Katy Nastro, with airfare tracking site Going, says that while it's hardly an exact science, there's typically a 'Goldilocks' window for booking flights during peak travel times, such as summer. It's usually recommended to lock in peak-season domestic airfare at least three to seven months out from the date you plan to travel. For international flights, the experts at Going suggest booking four to ten months out for peak dates. But this summer has 'sort of flipped itself on its head,' Nastro says, adding that even for close-in travel dates to destinations near and far, there are still summer airfare deals to be had for people booking just one to three months out. For non-peak travel periods, the Goldilocks window is one to three months in advance for domestic fares and two to eight months out for international flights. It's not only domestic destinations with deals, says Nastro, calling this summer 'the golden summer of cheap flights.' 'Typically, at this point, you'd be hard-pressed to find something over to Europe in the $400s, round-trip, from major cities in the US … We're still seeing that, which is really incredible,' says Nastro. She cited a deal spotted on May 28 showing mid-July round-trip airfare from New York to Dublin for $392 on Aer Lingus, and select July and August dates for round-trip airfare from Los Angeles to Paris for $579 on French Bee. On May 29, round-trip domestic airfare deals spotted by Going included Miami to Las Vegas in August for $175; Cincinnati to Charleston for $78 (June-August availability); and New York City to Nashville for $127 (July and August availability). This summer is unique, Nastro says, because there's still 'abundance and availability' for flights to destinations in Europe, as well as Canada and Mexico, and Latin American destinations such as Brazil and Peru. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, data collected from third-party sources (primarily online travel agencies) indicates bookings from major US cities to major European cities made between the end of January and mid-May are down by about 10% for travel this June, July and August. Bookings made in the opposite direction, from the Europe to the US, are down 12%. The drop in international arrivals into the US appears to be having a bigger impact more broadly for airfares on European carriers than US carriers, Nastro says. She suggests looking for deals on airlines such as Aer Lingus, SAS, Lufthansa, Norse Atlantic Airways and Icelandair. 'That doesn't mean that you can't find something on Delta, United, etcetera. (But) what we've noticed is more so the deals are coming from these European carriers,' she says. For the best deals to Europe this summer, staying flexible is the key to success, says Hayley Berg, lead economist at the travel platform Hopper. Berg says airfare to Europe from major US hubs this summer is comparable to what it was during the summer of 2019, which was one of the cheapest summers in recent memory for travel to Europe thanks to low fuel prices, competition and the entry of new lower-cost airlines. Hopper's 2025 International Travel Guide reports airfare from the US to Europe is averaging $817 per ticket this summer — down 10% from last summer's prices, despite the fact that, overall, more international flights are scheduled to depart from US airports to global international destinations this summer than in 2024. Consumers who can stay flexible about where they fly and when they go to Europe can expect to get the best deals, Berg says. That means traveling on weekdays and taking the deal-seeking approach. 'Where I most frequently see low prices are Dublin, Stockholm, Copenhagen. And then … depending on when in the summer you go, the trifecta of London, Paris and Rome,' Berg says. 'Just because there's so much volume that flies into those (three) destinations, you are likely to find a deal if you kind of do your homework.' When it comes to the best travel dates for cheaper fares to Europe, the last two weeks of August is the sweet spot for savings, she says. 'The average airfare is $300 cheaper if you travel in the last two weeks of August versus the peak in June and July,' she says. As an added bonus, once you're there, you can also expect fewer crowds, cheaper accommodations and shorter lines at major European attractions like the Vatican at that time of year, Berg says. Domestic airfare within the US is down about 3% for bookings this summer over last summer, she adds, in particular to big US city hubs like New York City, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Dallas and Los Angeles. But travelers who shop around and aren't locked into specific dates can find significantly more savings. 'If you use some of our advice around being flexible, you can shave a couple hundred dollars off of a domestic trip for a family of four, or even a couple,' Berg says. Jack Ezon, founder of EMBARK Beyond travel agency, says Europe's summer of savings goes beyond airfare. He points to Greece, in particular, as being full of relative summer bargains right now. 'Mykonos, Santorini, there's opportunity on the mainland, pretty much everywhere. We're seeing guaranteed room upgrades and lots of great programs at hotels trying to promote it,' he says. While this summer's surprise season of cheaper airfares might make it tempting to roll the dice and wait before booking anything, dragging your feet too much longer into June isn't likely to pay off if you're looking to score a deal, says Nastro. People who were hesitant to book anything because of uncertainties surrounding travel and the markets are likely to start making plans sooner rather than later, she says. As a result, airfares are expected to go up. 'I don't want people to get in the thinking that, 'Oh, I could just book something for July 4th at the end of June, and I should be safe,'' she says. 'Our age-old wisdom, and just knowing what we know about airfare, that's not going to be the case — even in this unique summer that we are in.' Frequent travelers and credit card holders sitting on a pile of loyalty points and miles should tap them for unexpected summer deals, says Tiffany Funk, co-founder of award flight search tool, 'How award seats work is they are distressed inventory,' she says. 'For the most part, these are seats that airlines have acknowledged they're probably not going to sell. Those are the ones that they really let their loyalty programs leverage.' And while there's not exactly a 'glut of award seats' available this summer, Funk says there are more options for redeeming awards now compared to last summer. Being open — to award options that pop up last-minute and to flying in the back of the plane — is one way to score a deal. 'For people who, like myself, have not put together their summer travel plans yet and are able to be opportunistic, that's always a good way to use your points,' says Funk, adding that the best awards pricing has seen for travel this summer has been in economy class. 'Prior to 2021, pretty reliably, airlines did not really sell a lot of their premium cabin seats. Now they sell the majority of them,' she says, leading to more award inventory available in economy class. Recent one-way economy class award airfares booked on include New York to Paris in August on Virgin Atlantic for 9,600 miles plus $75 per person and Phoenix to London in August on American Airlines for 15,000 miles plus $6 per person. Points also have the advantage of being much more flexible than cash when it comes to changes and cancellations, says Funk — something travelers might particularly appreciate in more uncertain times. 'So if you see something, book it. You can always change it later. For most of these programs, there's not a fee to do that,' Funk says. The time to strike is now. 'I think we've all been holding our breath, but really, what the population is showing us is they want to go on vacation and they're willing to pay for it. And if there are great deals, they're going to find them so that they can get more for that budget.' Terry Ward is a Florida-based travel writer and freelance journalist in Tampa who is guilty of hoarding her Star Alliance miles.
CNN
01-06-2025
- Business
- CNN
The ‘golden summer of cheap flights': Now's the time for last-minute deals
Still haven't pressed 'purchase' on your summer vacation? There's some good news for procrastinators this hectic travel season. If you have yet to book peak summer airfare to popular destinations in Europe, among other places, you can expect to find lower prices and more award availability than the norm for this typically busy time of year, travel experts say. The indications of a slowdown in global travel, paired with ongoing economic uncertainty, are resulting in some bargain international and domestic airfares. And now might be the sweet spot for finding a last-minute summer travel deal. Travel expert Katy Nastro, with airfare tracking site Going, says that while it's hardly an exact science, there's typically a 'Goldilocks' window for booking flights during peak travel times, such as summer. It's usually recommended to lock in peak-season domestic airfare at least three to seven months out from the date you plan to travel. For international flights, the experts at Going suggest booking four to ten months out for peak dates. But this summer has 'sort of flipped itself on its head,' Nastro says, adding that even for close-in travel dates to destinations near and far, there are still summer airfare deals to be had for people booking just one to three months out. For non-peak travel periods, the Goldilocks window is one to three months in advance for domestic fares and two to eight months out for international flights. It's not only domestic destinations with deals, says Nastro, calling this summer 'the golden summer of cheap flights.' 'Typically, at this point, you'd be hard-pressed to find something over to Europe in the $400s, round-trip, from major cities in the US … We're still seeing that, which is really incredible,' says Nastro. She cited a deal spotted on May 28 showing mid-July round-trip airfare from New York to Dublin for $392 on Aer Lingus, and select July and August dates for round-trip airfare from Los Angeles to Paris for $579 on French Bee. On May 29, round-trip domestic airfare deals spotted by Going included Miami to Las Vegas in August for $175; Cincinnati to Charleston for $78 (June-August availability); and New York City to Nashville for $127 (July and August availability). This summer is unique, Nastro says, because there's still 'abundance and availability' for flights to destinations in Europe, as well as Canada and Mexico, and Latin American destinations such as Brazil and Peru. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, data collected from third-party sources (primarily online travel agencies) indicates bookings from major US cities to major European cities made between the end of January and mid-May are down by about 10% for travel this June, July and August. Bookings made in the opposite direction, from the Europe to the US, are down 12%. The drop in international arrivals into the US appears to be having a bigger impact more broadly for airfares on European carriers than US carriers, Nastro says. She suggests looking for deals on airlines such as Aer Lingus, SAS, Lufthansa, Norse Atlantic Airways and Icelandair. 'That doesn't mean that you can't find something on Delta, United, etcetera. (But) what we've noticed is more so the deals are coming from these European carriers,' she says. For the best deals to Europe this summer, staying flexible is the key to success, says Hayley Berg, lead economist at the travel platform Hopper. Berg says airfare to Europe from major US hubs this summer is comparable to what it was during the summer of 2019, which was one of the cheapest summers in recent memory for travel to Europe thanks to low fuel prices, competition and the entry of new lower-cost airlines. Hopper's 2025 International Travel Guide reports airfare from the US to Europe is averaging $817 per ticket this summer — down 10% from last summer's prices, despite the fact that, overall, more international flights are scheduled to depart from US airports to global international destinations this summer than in 2024. Consumers who can stay flexible about where they fly and when they go to Europe can expect to get the best deals, Berg says. That means traveling on weekdays and taking the deal-seeking approach. 'Where I most frequently see low prices are Dublin, Stockholm, Copenhagen. And then … depending on when in the summer you go, the trifecta of London, Paris and Rome,' Berg says. 'Just because there's so much volume that flies into those (three) destinations, you are likely to find a deal if you kind of do your homework.' When it comes to the best travel dates for cheaper fares to Europe, the last two weeks of August is the sweet spot for savings, she says. 'The average airfare is $300 cheaper if you travel in the last two weeks of August versus the peak in June and July,' she says. As an added bonus, once you're there, you can also expect fewer crowds, cheaper accommodations and shorter lines at major European attractions like the Vatican at that time of year, Berg says. Domestic airfare within the US is down about 3% for bookings this summer over last summer, she adds, in particular to big US city hubs like New York City, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Dallas and Los Angeles. But travelers who shop around and aren't locked into specific dates can find significantly more savings. 'If you use some of our advice around being flexible, you can shave a couple hundred dollars off of a domestic trip for a family of four, or even a couple,' Berg says. Jack Ezon, founder of EMBARK Beyond travel agency, says Europe's summer of savings goes beyond airfare. He points to Greece, in particular, as being full of relative summer bargains right now. 'Mykonos, Santorini, there's opportunity on the mainland, pretty much everywhere. We're seeing guaranteed room upgrades and lots of great programs at hotels trying to promote it,' he says. While this summer's surprise season of cheaper airfares might make it tempting to roll the dice and wait before booking anything, dragging your feet too much longer into June isn't likely to pay off if you're looking to score a deal, says Nastro. People who were hesitant to book anything because of uncertainties surrounding travel and the markets are likely to start making plans sooner rather than later, she says. As a result, airfares are expected to go up. 'I don't want people to get in the thinking that, 'Oh, I could just book something for July 4th at the end of June, and I should be safe,'' she says. 'Our age-old wisdom, and just knowing what we know about airfare, that's not going to be the case — even in this unique summer that we are in.' Frequent travelers and credit card holders sitting on a pile of loyalty points and miles should tap them for unexpected summer deals, says Tiffany Funk, co-founder of award flight search tool, 'How award seats work is they are distressed inventory,' she says. 'For the most part, these are seats that airlines have acknowledged they're probably not going to sell. Those are the ones that they really let their loyalty programs leverage.' And while there's not exactly a 'glut of award seats' available this summer, Funk says there are more options for redeeming awards now compared to last summer. Being open — to award options that pop up last-minute and to flying in the back of the plane — is one way to score a deal. 'For people who, like myself, have not put together their summer travel plans yet and are able to be opportunistic, that's always a good way to use your points,' says Funk, adding that the best awards pricing has seen for travel this summer has been in economy class. 'Prior to 2021, pretty reliably, airlines did not really sell a lot of their premium cabin seats. Now they sell the majority of them,' she says, leading to more award inventory available in economy class. Recent one-way economy class award airfares booked on include New York to Paris in August on Virgin Atlantic for 9,600 miles plus $75 per person and Phoenix to London in August on American Airlines for 15,000 miles plus $6 per person. Points also have the advantage of being much more flexible than cash when it comes to changes and cancellations, says Funk — something travelers might particularly appreciate in more uncertain times. 'So if you see something, book it. You can always change it later. For most of these programs, there's not a fee to do that,' Funk says. The time to strike is now. 'I think we've all been holding our breath, but really, what the population is showing us is they want to go on vacation and they're willing to pay for it. And if there are great deals, they're going to find them so that they can get more for that budget.' Terry Ward is a Florida-based travel writer and freelance journalist in Tampa who is guilty of hoarding her Star Alliance miles.
