Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - When to Book Flights and Hotels for Black Friday

Timing is everything when it comes to scoring the best Black Friday travel deals. While the official Black Friday lands the day after Thanksgiving, many airlines and hotels actually launch sales up to 3 weeks in advance. The key is knowing when to pounce before prices jump back up.

I've found through personal experience that the optimal booking window is 1-2 weeks prior to Black Friday itself. This is when you'll see the deepest discounts, as companies try to fill remaining inventory. Set calendar alerts so you don't miss out.

For example, last year Delta unveiled Black Friday sales a full 12 days early. I happened to be browsing flights on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and found roundtrips to Hawaii for only $328. A few days later, fares shot up over $600.

The same principle applies on Cyber Monday and Travel Tuesday. Don't wait until the last minute - airfares and hotel rates often increase dramatically in the final 72 hours as demand surges.

Marriott is known to launch its Black Friday promotion right after Halloween. In 2021, they offered 25% off + 5,000 bonus points for bookings made between November 1-29. Savvy travelers who booked during the first week of early access snagged the best rates.

Southwest Airlines has an interesting strategy - they open Black Friday flight deals at midnight before the holiday and close bookings just 24 hours later. Last year they offered crazy low $39 one-way fares, but you had to grab them fast. Set your alarm!

The bottom line is that early planning pays off. Sign up for airline and hotel email lists to receive advance notice of sales. And don't just set alerts for Black Friday itself - keep an eye out for pre-sales, especially 7-10 days prior.

While Black Friday marks a prime opportunity for travel deals, you shouldn't wait around if you spot a good fare prior. I'd rather lock in a rate 2 weeks early versus risk losing out. Consider booking refundable options as a backup.

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - Sneak Peek: Airfare and Hotel Sales You Can Expect

Black Friday is prime time for jaw dropping travel deals, especially when it comes to flights and hotels. While bargains abound across the industry, some companies offer especially generous discounts worth highlighting.

Let's start with airlines. Delta is known for rolling out some of the steepest airfare sales for Black Friday. We're talking roundtrips to Europe for under $400 and domestic U.S. flights for less than $100 roundtrip. They run promotions across all cabins too, so you can fly business class internationally for as little as $1,200 or score first class for under $2,000 roundtrip. Sale fares are usually valid for winter travel dates after the holidays.

Southwest also impresses with Black Friday flight deals, slashing fares site wide by 15-25%. While their discounts may not seem as deep at first glance, remember Southwest includes free checked bags and lets you change or cancel without fees. Those extras alone are worth over $100 in savings. Last year they offered one-way fares as low as $39 for winter 2021 and $59 for spring 2022.

In the hotel space, Hilton goes big for Black Friday with site wide discounts up to 30% off plus generous point bonuses. Last year they offered 25% off any stay of 4+ nights, racking up the savings for longer vacations. Points rebates are typically around 2,000 bonus points per night, which adds up quickly on week-long-plus getaways. Sale rates are valid for stays through next summer.

Marriott and Hyatt also delight with Black Friday hotel deals, usually around 20% off plus 5,000-10,000 point bonuses per stay. In the past, discounted Hyatt rates were applicable at top luxury brands like Park Hyatt and Alila. Meanwhile, Marriott offered 25% off at Ritz-Carlton properties in 2021 - an incredible value.

Beyond the major chains, boutique hotels and resorts launch their own Black Friday specials too. Last November, hotels in Mexico's Riviera Maya advertised 40% off all-inclusive packages. In California wine country, the intimate Carneros Resort slashed rates over $400 per night. The savings really add up when looking beyond the mass market giants.

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - Maximize Credit Card Points for Black Friday Travel

Savvy travelers can rack up major credit card points and miles with Black Friday travel promotions. By strategically opening new cards and meeting minimum spend bonuses, you can score enough rewards for free flights and hotel nights. Timing is key - apply for cards at least 3 months prior to give yourself time to earn the sign-up perks.

Let's use Delta Airlines as an example. They typically offer roundtrip flights to Europe for around $400 and domestic U.S. deals under $100 roundtrip over Black Friday. To cover those costs solely with points, you'd need:

By signing up for a Delta SkyMiles credit card, you can earn 50,000-70,000 bonus miles by meeting minimum spend requirements. That's enough points for a free trip to Europe or multiple domestic flights!

Same goes for Southwest. Their Chase credit cards offer between 40,000-75,000 Rapid Reward points for meeting bonus requirements. At Southwest's lowest redemption rate, that covers up to 6 free one-way tickets.

For hotels, the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass offers 130,000 Hilton points by spending $4,000 in the first 4 months. Hilton redemptions start around 30,000 points per night. You could cover 4+ free nights with that sign-up bonus.

By signing up for 2-3 strategic hotel and airline cards in September, you can earn enough points for free Black Friday travel by December. Just make sure to pay off balances in full.

Beyond new sign-ups, you can maximize points by using cards with Black Friday travel bonuses. The Capital One Venture card offers 10x miles on hotel and car rental purchases. Chase Sapphire Reserve gives 10x points on Lyft rides, perfect for airport transfers.

Check your existing credit cards too. American Express regularly offers bonus points or cash back for purchases at specific merchants. Last year they gave 10% back at Best Western and Hilton, which can add up quickly.

The key is stacking multiple bonuses at once - new card perks, targeted promotions, and Black Friday travel deals. With the right strategy, you can book dream vacations for pennies on the dollar.

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - Use Miles for Deeply Discounted Award Flights

While Black Friday sales open the door for cheap cash fares, don't overlook leveraging your miles and points. Award bookings during peak holiday periods represent incredible value compared to regular pricing. If sitting in business class to Asia or the South Pacific is on your bucket list, Black Friday represents the perfect opportunity to make it happen without breaking the bank.

I'm obsessed with finding sweet spots and outsized value when redeeming my hard-earned points. Black Friday and Cyber Monday often deliver the perfect storm - discounted cash fares drive down award rates, while ample award availability surfaces as airlines open up more seats. This creates a limited-time window to book luxury business class tickets at a fraction of the miles compared to peak season.

For example, last November I snagged a business class flight on Etihad from Abu Dhabi to the Maldives for only 88,000 American Airlines miles. The cash fare was over $3,000 for the same dates. Thanks to a Black Friday American Airlines miles sale plus Etihad's generous award chart, I scored an incredible 35+ cents per mile in value.

The key is targeting airlines that don't levy fuel surcharges on award bookings, which avoids hundreds of dollars in extra taxes. I suggest focusing your search on Middle East carriers (e.g. Etihad, Qatar, Emirates) or Asian airlines like Cathay Pacific and Japan Air Lines. Redeeming miles for luxury flights to Southeast Asia or the South Pacific delivers some of the highest cents per mile redemptions possible.

Partner awards are your best bet for mileage deals, allowing you to redeem on airlines like Etihad using flexible currencies like American AAdvantage miles or Capital One miles. Plus, many programs run Black Friday mileage sales, so you can stock up on points and miles at a discount too.

Always compare award pricing across a few different flexible programs to find the cheapest option. For instance, my Maldives business class ticket would've cost me 95k United miles, but only 88k miles on American. Leveraging the variability across programs nets huge savings.

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - Scope Out Travel Deal Sites for Black Friday Promos

While booking directly through airlines and hotels can yield major savings on Black Friday, don’t sleep on big deals offered by Online Travel Agencies and metasearch sites. Expedia, Priceline, Kayak and others dangle their own discounts which at times exceed direct promotions.

Last Black Friday, Priceline offered a coupon code taking $100 off Express Deal flights along with 12% discounts on hotels and cars. Express Deal flights tend to already offer lower fares by bundling airfare and hotel, so stacking another $100 off resulted in roundtrips under $200.

Expedia also impressed last November with a flash sale offering $100 off $400 hotel bookings, plus 15% off activities. One savvy traveler on Reddit combined the two promos to score a Las Vegas hotel package including show tickets and a convertible rental for just $320 total. Not bad for a weekend in Sin City.

While Expedia and Priceline entice with booking coupons, metasearch engines like Kayak and Skyscanner excel at surfacing cheap fares you won’t find elsewhere. I always search those sites as a second check before finalizing any Black Friday flight purchase.

Kayak’s flexible date search is invaluable for finding the cheapest fares surrounding Black Friday. Given the volatility of airline pricing, you could save $100+ by shifting your departure date by just 1-2 days in either direction. Kayak surfaces these savings quickly without having to run countless searches.

The Explore Tool on Skyscanner goes one step farther allowing you to view the lowest priced dates for your entire trip. I managed to adjust my departure and return dates over Thanksgiving to shave over $250 off my fare.

Beyond airfare, don’t forget to check metasearch sites for hotel deals beyond the major chains. Last Black Friday, Priceline advertised 20% discounts at select independent properties I couldn’t find elsewhere.

While published coupon codes entice, hardcore deal hunters know that additional unadvertised discounts hide across these travel sites too. Check cash back portals like Rakuten - last November Expedia offered 8% back while the public deal was 5%.

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - Be Flexible with Location and Travel Dates

As an obsessive flight deal hunter, I'm constantly scoping out wiggle room to uncover the deepest discounts. While snagging cheap Black Friday airfares takes timing and luck, a little flexibility goes a long way. Being open-minded with location and travel dates cracks the code on scoring the lowest possible fares.

Don't fixate on specific dates or destinations. My best Black Friday scores involved searching a range of dates across a few destination possibilities during the deal hunting phase. While my ideal trip was Cancun over Thanksgiving week, I first cast a wider net including Costa Rica, Aruba, and Puerto Vallarta over late November and early December.

Lo and behold, the cheapest deal popped up for Montego Bay departing on December 2nd. The price? A paltry $120 nonstop roundtrip out of Denver, compared to $480 for Cancun during peak Thanksgiving. While Montego Bay wasn't my original plan, who could pass up those savings? The trade-off was minor - I'd be sipping rum punch on the beach a week later.

Flexibility also pays dividends when exploring alternative airports. Last year I initially focused on nonstops out of Chicago to Europe as it's my home airport. But on a hunch, I expanded the search to include one-stop options from Minneapolis and Indianapolis. Sure enough, I spotted $200 roundtrips to Barcelona from Indy versus $550 from Chicago. Was the 3 hour drive worth it? Absolutely, to pocket an extra $350.

While the savings are obvious for flights, don't forget hotels too. Many resort areas like Cancun offer significant bargains by shifting your travel dates before or after peak weeks. One couple I know postponed their Caribbean vacation from the week before Christmas to the second week of January. That decision netted all-inclusive rates over 40% cheaper.

Airbnb provides another source of savings, as alternative accommodations often cost significantly less than big-brand hotels over peak dates. Last year, a colleague opted for an Airbnb on Sanibel Island instead of a chain beach resort in Naples over Thanksgiving. The price difference was eye-opening - $100 versus over $400 per night.

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - Beware of Blackout Dates and Other Gotchas

While Black Friday conjures up images of blowout travel deals, the reality is you need to tread carefully to avoid gotchas. Savvy travelers plan ahead and read the fine print to sidestep blackout dates and other caveats limiting those tantalizing discounts.

Blackout dates remain the biggest bugaboo. Airlines and hotels usually exclude the weeks around Christmas and New Year's, when leisure demand spikes. Trying to use Black Friday promos over the holidays leads to nothing but frustration.

For example, last year Delta offered roundtrip flights to Europe for an incredible $280 over Black Friday weekend. However, the sale excluded travel between December 15 and January 15. Friends who didn't read the fine print called me incensed when their bookings to Paris over Christmas week got rejected. Had they checked the blackout dates in advance, we could've strategized alternate dates.

Southwest also notoriously blocks discounts over Thanksgiving and Christmas/New Year's. Their reputation for no change fees doesn't apply to blacked out dates either. Southwest usually permits date changes without penalty - just pay any fare difference. But try to switch a discounted Black Friday booking into a blackout period, and you'll pay full-price.

Hotels also heavily restrict dates, with Black Friday deals applying strictly to off-peak seasons. Last year, Hilton offered 25% off any 4+ night stay, but you had to travel before December 17 or after January 10. Marriott likewise advertised five nights for the price of four, excluding late December through early January.

While the holiday season sees the most limitations, other blackout spans crop up too. Common exclusions include spring break, popular summer weekends, and big events like Mardi Gras or Austin's SXSW conference. A work colleague almost got burned booking a Miami hotel over Art Basel weekend. While the resort advertised 30% off, the rate shot up hundreds of dollars for Friday and Saturday nights.

Beyond blackout dates, keep an eye out for other fine print tripping up travelers. Most airfare sales mandate a Saturday night stay, restricting weekday getaways. Advance purchase requirements are another nuisance, forcing you to buy tickets weeks or months out. And minimum stays can ruin flight deals for quick weekend trips.

I once found an unbelievable $99 roundtrip fare to Hawaii in March on Delta. But the promoter demanded booking at least 10 days out and staying over a Saturday. For my flexible schedule, I made it work - but the constraints eliminated the deal for many other travelers.

Scrutinizing fare classes also uncovers potential pitfalls. Basic economy and other restrictive fares exclude seat selection, upgrades, changes, and bag checks - significant gotchas. The cheapest fares may carry worse cancellation policies too, making them riskier.

Score Big Travel Deals: The Inside Scoop on Black Friday Bargains - Plan Ahead and Set Price Alerts for Best Fares

Getting the jump on Black Friday travel deals requires planning ahead and setting price alerts to pounce when bargains emerge. As an avid deal hunter and budget globetrotter, I start monitoring fares 4-6 months prior to lock in the lowest rates. Airlines frequently file sales up to 11 months out, providing savvy planners ample opportunity to score discounted flights if they know where to look.

The key is leveraging airfare prediction tools and custom alerts to notify you the moment deals matching your target dates and destinations appear. Google Flights makes this easy. Simply enter your route and ideal travel timeframe, then click “track prices.” You’ll get email notifications any time cheaper fares become available. I recommend tracking 2-3 destinations to maximize flexibility.

For hotels, Kayak and Expedia allow you to monitor rates and get alerts when prices drop at your preferred hotels. Last September, I set a Kayak alert for the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya over Thanksgiving week. Two months later, they launched a sale knocking 25% off previously sold out nights. My price alert ensured I didn’t miss the markdown, saving me over $400.

Savvy travelers don’t just set one-off alerts and call it a day though. Limiting your search to a single departure date is leaving money on the table. I always track a range of midweek and weekend departures for at least a week surrounding my ideal dates. Airlines constantly tweak sales spanning 2-3 weeks, rather than single dates. Casting a wider net vastly increases your odds of getting the best deal.

While most travelers wait until the month before travel to book, airline pricing algorithms behave very differently when you lock in flights further out. I routinely save 25% or more by booking 6-8 weeks in advance, as it signals high intent to purchase and can trigger additional markdowns. Hopper’s data shows flights are generally cheapest 21-60 days out domestically and 40-90 days out for international.

My friend Dan swears by WhatsApp flight deal alerts from Secret Flying, which tipped him off to a mistake fare netting $550 roundtrip tickets from LA to Japan - an insane deal he booked 11 months out. While such unicorn fares are rare, it exemplifies why locking in early and staying vigilant pays dividends.