Traveling for spring break? Now may be the best time to book
If you're looking to travel for spring break, now may be the best time to book that plane ticket.
New data from travel booking site Hopper shows that current domestic airfare is "relatively low" this month at around $234 round-trip and international airfare is at "historic lows" at $649 round-trip.
But these prices aren't expected to last long.
Hopper forecasts domestic air fare will rise an average 7 percent every month until June, with the highest potential price hikes in March. By April 2022, Hopper predicts air fares will reach pre-pandemic prices.
"If you're traveling domestically for the spring, I would expect higher prices moving forward," Hopper Economist Adit Damodaran told ABC News. "And some of the best deals that you're going to find are probably out there right now."
By the end of May, Hopper's data shows domestic fares will be around $315 round-trip, an increase of 35 percent compared to current rates.
Damodaran expects to see summer airfare prices increase in the coming months, but he thinks travelers might still be able to find good deals going into February and March.
"It could be worth tracking those prices right now, but not necessarily booking summer prices right now," he said. "Typically, airlines have just released those tickets about six months in advance, so they'll typically vary quite a bit in the coming days and weeks. But I would recommend booking around March or April for sure."
The anticipated jumps in price are likely the result of seasonal demand, rising jet fuel prices, and most significantly -- demand recovery post-Omicron.
"Omicron is really the biggest factor in terms of the airfare increases that we're predicting for February and March," Damodaran explained. "Usually that seasonal summer demand kicks in a little bit later in the year closer to April, so that initial increase in prices is really due to Omicron."
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease specialist, said Sunday he is "as confident as you can be" about the prospect of most states reaching a peak of omicron cases by mid-February.
Travelers' booking behavior seems to be clustering around the same timeframe.
Based on travelers' search history, Hopper has seen a large interest in the weekend following Valentine's Day and mid-March -- suggesting "a rough timeline for when travelers are expecting the situation with the Omicron variant to improve domestically."
The most popular cities people are searching to travel to are all warm weather destinations: Orlando, Las Vegas, and Miami.
International fares won't be immune to the price hikes either, Hopper forecasts, but they are expected to climb at a slower rate.
The booking site predicts international ticket prices will increase an average of around 5 percent every month until June, "with the most significant increases between now and March as demand recovers following the Omicron variant wave."
London currently holds the number one spot for most popular international destination, followed by Cancun and Paris.
