the surprises

What has changed

We explored surprising travel data to uncover the patterns, behaviours, and trends that challenge what we think we know about travellers. By looking beyond the expected, we can surface unusual booking habits, unexpected destinations, and revealing shifts in behaviour that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Is the booking window getting shorter or longer?

U.S.

+14%

Longer

CANADA

+25%

Longer

Travellers are booking earlier.

Once route and lead time are accounted for, fares are essentially flat across the week.

What is the BEST day of the week to book?

Weekly booking share by day of week, with Tuesday the busiest at 16% of weekly bookings.

Tuesday is the busiest. Not the cheapest.

Once route and lead time are accounted for, fares are essentially flat across the week.

Top travel months

Travel share by month: losing share January through March, flat April through August, growing share September through November (October the biggest travel month), and December.

Biggest Booking Day

BLACK FRIDAY

Biggest Booking Day

CYBER MONDAY

Shoulder season is heating up

+15.6 pts

Aruba saw the biggest increase in shoulder season share.

Followed by Costa Rica (Liberia), Nassau, Montego Bay, and Cebu.

What happened to prices?

LONG-HAUL INTERNATIONAL

FARES DOWN ↓

SHORT-HAUL / DOMESTIC / TRANSBORDER

FARES UP ↑

U.S. domestic fares rose by 49.3%

What shifted most against the status quo?

DESTINATION ON THE RISE

Casablanca

#138

#39 (+ 99)

BIGGEST FALL

Waterloo Region

Fell 17 ranks

TRAVEL STYLE SHIFT

Zurich

+6.7 pts toward solo travel

Methodology

This report is based on FlightHub booking, search and pricing data from October, 2025, to August, 2026, compared with the equivalent period one year earlier. The findings reflect activity across FlightHub’s Canadian and U.S. customer base.

Figures are reported in each market’s local currency (CAD for Canada and USD for the U.S.). Unless otherwise noted, market designation refers to the country where the booking was made, while destination rankings reflect the actual origin and destination of travel.

Popularity and travel-interest rankings are based on search activity, while all other rankings and trends are based on completed bookings. Pricing figures reflect airfare rates observed during the reporting period.

Year-over-year comparisons are expressed as percentage changes or point changes, depending on the metric. Where available data was insufficient to support a finding, this is noted rather than estimated.

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