NEW YORK, Feb. 27, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As students across the United States pack their bags for a week away from their books, new research from Fly.com™ has identified an average airfare savings opportunity of $242 (or 48%) for top spring break destinations.
This year, travelers from major college towns are overwhelmingly choosing Florida for their mid-term getaway; with Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Miami, Tampa and Fort Myers proving to be the most popular destinations for flights between Feb. 23 and March 30, 2013. Las Vegas and two Mexican beach towns, Cabo and Cancun, are also favorite getaway options.
While the cost of airfare to these destinations is up an average of 4.2%, compared with the 2012 spring break travel period, savvy travelers can still save money on each of this year's most popular flight routes. Data analysis from Fly.com's Fare Calendars tool reveals that spring breakers can save more than 50% on airfare if they change their travel dates by a day or two. For instance, students from Georgetown University can score a roundtrip flight from Washington, D.C., to Fort Lauderdale on March 2-6 for only $171; a 52% savings compared to March 2-10 itineraries.
"Moving your preferred travel dates by one or two days is key to securing low-cost fares," said Warren Chang, vice president and general manager, Fly.com. "Airfares can change from one day to the next but we have found that consumers can save hundreds of dollars when they pick the right day to travel. Because Fly.com Fare Calendars identify where and when it is cheapest to fly over a 90-day period, they are a perfect tool for last-minute spring break getaways."
Other popular spring break destinations revealed through the Fly.com study include Honolulu and San Juan, Puerto Rico. San Francisco and Los Angeles also rank highly with those flying from the East Coast. New Orleans is only a favorite with spring breakers flying from Philadelphia, Detroit and New York.
Fly.com used data collected from more than 2 million user searches and extracted domestic and international flights with travel dates between Feb. 23 – March 30, 2013 for major college towns in California, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C. This information was then correlated against Fly.com Fare Calendars pricing on Feb. 26 for the same travel period.
To find the best fares for spring break travel, visit Fly.com's Fare Calendars.
Boston:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. Orlando
$178
47%
2. Fort Myers
$198
48%
3. Fort Lauderdale
$168
54%
4. San Juan, Puerto Rico
$252
48%
5. Miami
$239
52%
6. Las Vegas
$252
44%
7. Los Angeles
$278
37%
8. Tampa
$222
41%
9. San Francisco
$289
43%
10. Cancun
$375
31%
Columbus:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. Orlando
$239
49%
2. Las Vegas
$281
45%
3. Fort Lauderdale
$232
55%
4. Miami
$261
56%
5. Fort Myers
$246
54%
6. Tampa
$238
51%
7. New York City
$234
49%
8. Phoenix
$288
46%
9. Los Angeles
$301
40%
10. Cancun
$352
59%
Detroit:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. Denver
$118
72%
2. Fort Lauderdale
$208
61%
3. Orlando
$278
48%
4. Las Vegas
$268
39%
5. Tampa
$188
63%
6. Miami
$249
55%
7. Fort Myers
$220
55%
8. Cancun
$317
55%
9. Phoenix
$288
46%
10. New Orleans
$227
62%
Los Angeles:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. Miami
$348
42%
2. Cabo
$289
53%
3. New York City
$278
43%
4. Honolulu
$379
50%
5. Fort Lauderdale
$228
62%
6. Las Vegas
$72
50%
7. Orlando
$329
36%
8. Chicago
$238
42%
9. San Francisco
$118
54%
10. London
$892
14%
New York City:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. Miami
$218
52%
2. Fort Lauderdale
$168
60%
3. San Juan, Puerto Rico
$266
47%
4. Las Vegas
$313
31%
5. Orlando
$184
56%
6. Honolulu
$405
58%
7. San Francisco
$330
34%
8. Cancun
$372
46%
9. San Jose, Costa Rica
$405
48%
10. New Orleans
$236
65%
Philadelphia:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. Fort Lauderdale
$217
50%
2. Tampa
$209
56%
3. Las Vegas
$292
39%
4. Miami
$251
51%
5. Los Angeles
$277
49%
6. Orlando
$203
54%
7. Fort Myers
$281
38%
8. San Francisco
$277
55%
9. New Orleans
$245
52%
10. San Juan, Puerto Rico
$301
45%
San Francisco:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. New York City
$282
43%
2. Las Vegas
$118
58%
3. Cabo
$397
39%
4. Honolulu
$380
48%
5. Fort Lauderdale
$292
43%
6. Cancun
$429
37%
7. Chicago
$238
48%
8. Los Angeles
$118
54%
9. Portland, Oregon
$138
47%
10. Seattle
$178
42%
Washington D.C.:
2013 Top 10 Routes
Lowest Fare
Savings
1. Orlando
$140
49%
2. Fort Lauderdale
$94
69%
3. San Juan, Puerto Rico
$227
57%
4. Miami
$202
48%
5. Las Vegas
$304
43%
6. San Francisco
$308
39%
7. Los Angeles
$300
32%
8. Tampa
$150
55%
9. Cancun
$320
49%
10. New York City
$120
25%
About Fly.com
Fly.com™ (www.fly.com) is the world's easiest-to-use airfare search engine available in the U.S., U.K., Canada and Germany. Fly.com scours major U.S. airlines, international carriers and online travel sites, and then helps people easily sort and refine results by criteria such as number of stops and departure times. Unlike online travel agencies, Fly.com is not a booking engine. Instead, users are referred to their preferred website for direct booking. Fly.com is owned by Travelzoo Inc. (NASDAQ: TZOO).
About Travelzoo
Travelzoo Inc. is a global Internet media company. With more than 26 million subscribers in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific and 25 offices worldwide, Travelzoo® publishes deals from more than 2,000 travel and entertainment companies. Travelzoo's deal experts review offers to find the best deals and confirm their true value. In Asia Pacific, Travelzoo is independently owned and operated by Travelzoo (Asia) Ltd. and Travelzoo Japan K.K. under a license agreement with Travelzoo Inc.
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Media Contact:
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Fly.com, North America
+1 (650) 316-6835
[email protected]
SOURCE Fly.com