quiltman

It's because it's 5 months away. If you are willing to wait and book say in august you may find it's cheaper then. Conversely if the particular flight is fairly well booked by then, the price will go up.
it's likely the May flight you chose is lightly booked at the moment.
it's all computerised and done on load management.
foe example,I looked at flights from UK to Cebu last July back in February 2013. Best price was about 800pounds economy and 2300 business.
When we finally sold our house and I had firm dates we could leave, the SAME flights were 900 economy but only 1800 in business. that inferred economy was filling up but not business. We splurged and booked business via Abu Dhabi.
come the day before the flight, economy was full and business was now over 3000! The flight was full ,with only one spare seat in business.
Basically if you have a range of dates you can travel, get prices and if cost looks reasonable then book it.
Ryanair are a good example. book months ahead and it'll cost you say 40 pounds. Same flight looking a couple of days ahead and it's likely to be 140 pounds! I used Skyclub in london for many years and their prices were always cheaper than the airlines!
just my opinion of course.

Dulciusexasperis

"I looked at May flights and there was one for £240 how come there are cheaper flights sooner then September - I would have thought September would be cheaper as there are no major holidays then and it's 5 months away?"

Beckiwoo, you aren't listening. Dynamic pricing changes prices in real time based on various factors. Complex algorithms are used to determine what the optimum price to offer(to maximize profit) is at any given time. So if you look an hour later you may find a price has gone up or down. There is no way to know which it will do or when the lowest price will be offered.

There are two ways to look at it based on that fact. One, is to accept that as fact. The other is to try and actually understand how it works. Think of it as the choice between just driving a car or knowing how to build a car from scratch.

When you say, "how come" and "I would have thought", what you are saying is you want to know how to build the car from scratch. If you really do then you are going to have to be able to understand the algorithms they use. Take a look at this link and just scroll down about a third of the way to see some of the algorithms. Then tell me if you really want to try and understand. http://users.encs.concordia.ca/~akgunduz/asif.pdf

Personally, all I need to know is that NO ONE can predict when the best time to book will be. There are no guaranteed best days (Thursdays) or lead times (45 or 60 depending on who you listen to), all there is are guesses. Even the people writing the algorithms cannot tell you when will be best. That's the whole point.

Tirytory

Dulci....have you been updating your charming skills again???

Aviator

Here's how it works, or does not work. The report indicates the UA change their pricing up to 500,000 times a day under DP. Even if this estimate is off, it is a lot.

However there are still seasonal variation in pricing and days of the week. Certain days of the week are more popular than others for travel, as are times of day.

The best way to do it is the way I book. I pay the same any time of day, day of the week, or time of year. No need to hunt around.

beckiwoo

Speak English mate cos I understand none of what you are saying!

And 'I'm not listening...'???? I'm the first person in this thread to ask about flight prices and time of year, no one else had commented on it and I hadn't argued with anyone about it.

For everyone else who is speaking English on here...I will keep checking the flight prices and if it doesn't go down i will pick another date

Aviator

With dynamic pricing, you see a fare you like take it, otherwise it could go up in minutes. Prices change thousands of times a day with some carriers. No surety of getting a better price.

Some retail stores are even looking at this pricing structure now. I feel sure gas stations must be using it.

lookingtogo

We booked some flights very early. Didn't buy the insurance as they were regional flights. Then there was an illness in the family. Lost every cent but one internet provider at least refunded us our taxes.

The other didn't (is that normal?)

Anyway just another thought to consider

Aviator

They are under no obligation to do so.

Dulciusexasperis

The Oil Companies do indeed use dynamic pricing to determine the price at the gas pump Aviator. Only the few independent gas stations left do not. They usually price based on the cost to fill their storage tank and stay with that price until the next delivery they get.

A few days ago I went into the supermarket with my wife to pick up a few things. There is a gas station right on the same property. We were in and out in no more than 20 minutes and the price had dropped a full cent per gallon when we came back out. Later that same day I happened to drive by again and the price was back up a cent.

Sorry you didn't understand what I wrote beckiwoo. I did of course write in English but if what I wrote was beyond your ability to understand there is nothing I can do for you.

rivingtonpike

Not sure she asked you to do anything for her.....

Aviator

Are you naturally objectionable, or is this an acquired skill?

Another troll maybe?

The4BellsLondon

URs twin ?

beckiwoo

Thank you, that's much easier to understand

lookingtogo

Gotcha. Scumbags.

Ebookers is the one that returned it voluntarily. Last minute didn't.

Oakvillian

Are you in Canada? Do you typically do the mental arithmetic whenever you pass a gas station? Was the gallon in question a US gallon or an Imperial gallon? Enquiring minds would like to know, since all the gas stations hereabouts sell their fuel by the litre. A quarter-cent per litre price fluctuation hardly seems worth remarking on. Far be it from me, though, to suggest that anybody on here may be mistaken in their observations or opinions...