Best Day to Book Flights in Canada: Booking Windows, Days and Seasons

The old advice to “always book on a Tuesday” no longer holds up. Airlines used to release fare sales in batches early in the week, but carriers now reprice fares continuously with demand-based systems, and travel-search companies such as Kayak, Expedia and Hopper describe the Tuesday-booking rule as outdated. What still tends to matter is booking within a sensible advance window (roughly 1 to 3 months ahead for many domestic Canadian routes, longer for international), flexibility on travel dates, and tracking a route’s price over time. This guide is part of the consumer guides for Canadians; for the rest of a trip budget, see saving for a vacation, the passport application guide and how much to tip at hotels, restaurants and taxis.

Best Days & Times Summary

Factor	What Actually Helps	What Doesn’t
Day to book	No reliable weekday pattern; the advance window matters more	Waiting for a specific weekday
Day to fly	Midweek (Tuesday-Thursday) is often, but not always, cheaper than weekends	Assuming one day always wins
Time to fly	Early morning, late night (still holds up)	Peak hours

Best Day to Book

The Tuesday Rule Is Outdated

For years, conventional advice held that airlines released fare sales Monday night or Tuesday morning, competitors matched by Tuesday afternoon, and that window was when fares bottomed out. With fares now repriced continuously, travel-search companies’ own fare analyses find the day of the week you book has little effect compared with how far ahead you book and how flexible your dates are, and their day-of-week rankings shift from one route and year to the next.

In practice, that means a fare that looks fair within your target booking window is not likely to drop just because a particular weekday arrives.

What Actually Moves the Price

Factor	Explanation
Advance booking window	The single biggest lever; see the windows below
Date flexibility	Shifting by a few days can beat waiting for a “good” weekday
Demand trends over time	Tracking a route’s price history beats guessing a day of the week
Seat inventory left	Airlines raise prices as cheaper fare classes sell out, regardless of day

Best Time of Day

Time	Notes
Early morning	Before demand spikes; any effect is small
Late night	Airline systems update; same caveat as above

Best Days to Fly

Which Days to Fly

The day you fly, as opposed to the day you book, still affects fares on many routes, but published rankings disagree from one source and year to the next, and the gap between days is usually modest. The common thread is that weekday flights are often priced below weekend ones, and Sunday is often among the pricier days.

Day	General Pattern
Monday-Thursday	Typically cheaper (exact ranking varies by source and route)
Friday	Mixed: rankings differ by source and route; worth comparing
Saturday	Typically mid-range
Sunday	Typically the most expensive, most consistently across sources

Because the day-to-day ranking is unsettled, a flexible-date search (see below) shows the actual prices for your own route.

Time of Day

Flight Time	Price Level
Red-eye (late night)	Lowest
Early morning (6am)	Low
Mid-morning	Medium
Afternoon	Medium-High
Evening	Highest

Advance Booking Windows

Domestic Canada

Route	Best Window
Major routes (YYZ-YVR)	3-6 weeks
Regional	2-4 weeks
Last minute	Sometimes deals
Holiday travel	2-3 months

International

Destination	Best Window
USA	1-3 months
Europe	2-4 months
Asia	3-5 months
Caribbean	2-3 months
Australia	3-6 months

General Rules

Booking Timing	Result
Too early (6+ months)	Higher prices
Sweet spot (1-3 months)	Common target window
Last minute (<7 days)	Usually expensive
Last minute (budget airlines)	Sometimes deals

Seasonal Patterns

Cheapest Times to Fly

Period	Domestic	International
January 7 - March 1	★★★★★	★★★★★
September	★★★★☆	★★★★★
October	★★★★☆	★★★★☆
November (not US Thanks.)	★★★★☆	★★★★☆
April-May	★★★☆☆	★★★☆☆

Most Expensive

Period	Why
December 15 - Jan 6	Holidays
March Break	Family travel
Summer (June-Aug)	Peak season
Long weekends	Victoria Day, etc.

Canadian Airline Tips

Where to Book

Option	Best For
Google Flights	Price tracking
Skyscanner	Flexibility search
Direct airline	Best price guarantee
Kayak	Comparison
Secret Flying	Error fares

Canadian Carriers

Airline	Booking Window
Air Canada	2-3 months domestic
WestJet	2-3 months
Flair	Last minute deals
Swoop (merged into WestJet, October 2023)	N/A
Porter	1-2 months

Two ultra-low-cost carriers that used to appear in this kind of comparison no longer fly: Swoop’s final flight was October 28, 2023, before it merged into WestJet’s mainline operation, and Lynx Air ceased operations entirely on February 26, 2024, after filing for creditor protection. Flair and Porter are the lower-cost carriers that remain alongside Air Canada and WestJet.

Flexi-Date Strategies

How to Use Flexible Dates

Strategy	How
Google Flights calendar	Shows cheapest days
±3 days	Compare the fares on either side of your dates
One-way searches	Mix airlines
Nearby airports	Check alternatives

Price Tracking

Tools to Use

Tool	Feature
Google Flights	Track prices
Hopper	Predictions
Kayak Alerts	Email notifications
Air Canada app	Watch prices

When to Buy

Price Trend	Action
Prices dropping	Wait (unless deadline)
Prices stable	Book when reasonable
Prices rising	Book immediately
Very low	Book immediately

Hidden Savings

Strategies

Tactic	Savings
Hidden city ticketing	Against most airlines’ fare rules; checked bags and return legs can be lost
Positioning flights	Start from cheaper city
Points + cash	Reduce out of pocket
Error fares	Rare, and airlines don’t always honour them
One-ways vs round trip	Compare both

Holiday Travel

When to Book

Holiday	Book By
Christmas	Early October
March Break	Early January
Summer	March-April
Thanksgiving	Early September
Long weekends	4-6 weeks before

Holiday Tips

Strategy	Reason
Fly on the holiday	Often cheaper
Fly Christmas Day	Lower demand
Red-eye	Saves day, cheaper
Alternative airports	Check YHM, YXU, etc.

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Better Approach
Waiting for a specific weekday to book	Booking within your target advance window; day-of-week booking effects are small
Waiting for last minute	Booking ahead (usually)
Only checking one site	Compare 3-4
Fixed dates	Flexible dates
Ignoring nearby airports	Checking airports within driving distance
Not tracking prices	Price alerts

Bottom Line

The Tuesday-booking rule no longer reflects how airlines price fares. What tends to matter more is the advance-booking window (roughly 1 to 3 months ahead for many domestic routes), flexibility of a few days either side, and watching a route’s price over time with alerts from Google Flights or a similar tool. A travel rewards credit card or Aeroplan points can offset part of the fare. Before you go, whether you need travel insurance depends on your destination and the coverage you already have through work or a credit card.