Report includes money- and stress-saving hacks for the holidays and beyond

New research finds air travel is a cause of stress for 32% of Singaporeans, who find it more daunting than visiting the dentist and filing taxes

Singapore, 23 October 2023 – Expedia’s 2024 Air Travel Hacks Report was released today in Singapore, providing the latest essential tips to save travellers time and money on flights and make air travel less stressful, from when to book, how to avoid cancellations and the best day to depart on your trip.

The report comes at a time when travellers are beginning to plan their holiday getaways and feeling overwhelmed in the process. According to a survey* of 1,000 Singapore flyers, Expedia found that close to a third (32%) find air travel is more daunting than filing taxes (22%) or the dreaded dentist visit (27%). 22% of air travellers find the process of finding a good flight deal especially stressful. More than a quarter (26%) even checked back ticket prices after booking to see if they could have saved more.

“In terms of stress levels, booking your next flight shouldn’t be in the same ballpark as getting a cavity filled,” said James Marshall, vice president of Expedia Group global air account management. The good news is many of the things that contribute to travel stress are getting better, and Expedia is constantly releasing new tools like Price Tracking, that make the whole booking and flying journey smoother.”  “Airlines are adding capacity and increasing service to meet the sustained air travel demand we’ve seen throughout 2023,” said Chuck Thackston, managing director of data science and research at ARC. “Air travel has proven resilient over the past few years, with travellers increasingly taking to the skies for both business and leisure. Fortunately for those travellers, the cost of airfare has been below 2022 levels for most of the year.”

2024 Air Travel Hacks Report

WHEN TO BOOK

• Book airfare on a Sunday to save on average 27%.¹ Travelers who book on Sundays instead of Fridays tend to save, on average, around 11% on economy flight bookings and 36% on premium bookings.

• Book flights 4 to 5 months ahead to save.² Travelers that booked 128 to 142 days prior to departure saved 10% on average compared to those who waited until the last minute. International airfares tend to increase 9 weeks prior to departure.

WHEN TO TRAVEL

• Depart on a Thursday to save up to 30%.³ Avoid departing on Sundays, which are the priciest days, on average, to start a trip.

• Depart during the day to reduce chance of cancellations.⁴ Some travellers like to maximise their trip by flying out after work and taking a red eye flight. However, year-to-date flight status data reveals flights that depart after 9pm have a 74% higher chance, on average, of being cancelled than those that depart earlier in the day.

MONEY-SAVING TOOLS

• Price Tracking: Take the guess work out of deciding when to book with the Price Tracking feature on the Expedia app, which notifies travellers when flight prices change and uses exclusive data to pinpoint the best time to book.
• Bundling: With flights, hotels and activities, Expedia offers a wide selection of customisable vacation packages in one place, allowing travellers to save when booking multiple items on Expedia. Whether booking items together in the same transaction or in steps, travellers also have their itinerary all in one place making it easier to keep track of their journey.
  

2024 AIR TRAVEL TRENDS

• Scheduled long-haul flights is at 93% of 2019-level while scheduled short-haul flights is at 79% and overall increasing. Average economy ticket prices have decreased by 9% compared to 2022.⁵
• Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Penang range among the most popular destinations of Singapore flyers.⁶
• The fastest growing destination, according to Expedia flight demand data, is Taipei.⁷

ABOUT THE DATA

Expedia’s annual Air Travel Hacks Report is backed by an analysis of billions of data points and the most extensive air ticketing database in the world through collaboration with Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) and OAG, the world’s largest provider of flight information. Expedia has produced the Air Travel Hacks Report annually for more than a decade, making it the ultimate authority on air travel insights and data-driven travel tips.

About Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC)
ARC accelerates the growth of global air travel by delivering forward-looking travel data, flexible distribution services and other innovative industry solutions. We are a leading travel intelligence company that possesses the world’s largest, most comprehensive global airline ticket dataset, including more than 15 billion passenger flights representing 490 airlines and 230 countries and territories. Our solutions and expertise strengthen economies and enrich lives by connecting stakeholders across the travel ecosystem. For more information, visit www.arccorp.com.

About OAG
OAG is the leading data platform for the global travel industry, powering the growth and innovation of the air travel ecosystem since 1929. It has the world’s largest network of flight information, covering the whole journey from planning to customer experience. Customers include airlines, airports, travel technology players, aviation service providers, government agencies, financial institutions, and consultancies. Headquartered in the U.K., OAG has operations in the U.S., Singapore, Japan, China, and Lithuania. For more information, visit: www.oag.com and follow us on Twitter @OAG Aviation.

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Data sources:
¹ Best day of the week to book recommendation is based on average round-trip ticket prices for flights originating in Singapore for January through August 2023, sourced from ARC’s global airline sales database. Percentages noted are averages.
² Ideal booking window recommendation is based on average round-trip ticket prices for flights originating in Singapore for January through August for 2023, sourced from ARC’s global airline sales database. Percentages noted are averages.
³ Best day of the week to depart recommendation is based on average round-trip ticket prices for flights originating in Singapore for January through August for 2022, sourced from ARC’s global airline sales database. Percentages noted are averages.
⁴ How to avoid flight cancellations information is based on January through July 2023 flight status data for flights originating in Singapore sourced from OAG’s global flight data platform. Percentages noted are averages.
⁵ Capacity information is based on number of scheduled flights offered by airlines for January 2019 through December 2023, sourced from ARC’s global airline sales database. Price development information is based on average round-trip ticket prices for January through August for 2023 and average round-trip ticket prices for January through August for 2022, sourced from ARC’s global airline sales database.
⁶ Most popular destinations information is based on Expedia’s 2023 flight demand to-date.
⁷ The fastest growing destination information is based on Expedia’s 2023 flight demand to-date and flight demand in the same period last year.

* The survey about air travel stress was conducted online among 1,000 Singapore air travellers from August 23-29, 2023, by OnePoll on behalf of Expedia.