Who Books Furthest Ahead, and What Do They Look Like?

Our data suggests that booking earlier leads to lower fares, but booking timing is only part of the story. Early planners are also more likely to take longer-haul, international trips, which tend to be more expensive to begin with. As a result, some of the observed fare difference may reflect where travellers are flying, rather than when they book. This may help explain why the gap is much larger in the U.S. (23-30%) than in Canada (9-11%), as U.S. early planners are more likely to travel to long-haul destinations such as Tokyo and Bangkok.

Deal Hunters Really Do Get a Deal; Nearly Half Off, Route for Route

By definition, Deal Hunters paid fares in the cheapest 25% of prices for their specific route, so some savings are expected. The striking part is just how large those savings are: in Canada, their median fare was 49.5% below the typical fare for the same route and month, while in the U.S., it was 42.6% below the typical fare for the same route. In other words, these travellers aren’t just getting a marginal discount. They’re paying roughly half the typical fare.

Multi-Destination Travel Remains Stable

Multi-city travel remained largely unchanged year-over-year, increasing just by 0.5 pts in Canada and remaining flat in the U.S. This minimal movement suggests that travellers aren’t meaningfully shifting toward or away from combining multiple destinations into a single trip.