When is the best time to book your next holiday? Actually, that’s a trick question, because there is no “best time” to book a holiday.
It depends on where you are going and when. And it often comes down to luck.
I’ve been noodling around online over the past few days trying to find something to do in March. Yes, I know that’s only next month, but the same problems arise whether you’re booking for next week or two years hence.
For reasons that are not really important, I have a flight to Munich booked for March 10 and a return flight from Munich booked on March 19. As yet, there is nothing in between, not even a hotel booking.
I am thinking — and this will not come as a big surprise to anybody who knows me — of taking a cruise. There’s only really one that suits is a seven-day return trip from Savona, which is relatively accessible by plane, train and automobile from Munich.
The problem is that the itinerary is very similar to a cruise I took a year ago. The difference would be the ship, which I haven’t been on before. So that’s one dilemma: do I want to go or not?
The second dilemma is, if I do decide to go, do I book now or wait?
The risk with waiting, of course, is that the cruise might sell out altogether, or the cheap cabins will all be gone and I’ll be forced to pay more than I am comfortable with.
The risk of booking now is that something better might come along closer to the date, and that if I book now, I’ll have to pay now. Also, price may drop, and I could get a better deal with a last-minute booking.
In any case, isn’t the money better off in my bank account than in the cruise line’s. So, for the time being, I’ll wait.
My advantage, of course, is that I am booking for myself and I am flexible about what I do. If you are booking for more people — say a family holiday — and your holidays are fixed, or your heart is set on a particular trip at a particular time, then the best advice is to book as early as you can, and be prepared to pay a little more for the sake of securing exactly what you want.
