Air travel for the winter holidays in the US will be record-breakingly expensive this year: the cost of flights for Thanksgiving and Christmas has reached its highest level in the past 10 years. This was reported by the travel booking service Hopper, cited by FOX Weather.
The average domestic return airfare for Thanksgiving is $402. That is 31% more than last year and roughly $95 higher than in 2025. Fares for Christmas travel are even steeper: the average domestic return flight now costs $452, which is 23% (around $85) more than a year ago.
According to Hopper, several months of elevated jet fuel prices linked to the conflict in Iran have driven up ticket costs. Against the backdrop of rising prices, travellers have started planning trips earlier: bookings for both holidays are running ahead of previous years at this point in the season.
Accommodation prices are moving less uniformly. The average cost of a hotel room in the US over Thanksgiving is about $170 per night, which is roughly in line with last year. Christmas hotel bookings, by contrast, have become more expensive: the average price has risen to $197 per night, 18% higher than in 2025.
Experts advise being flexible with travel dates, as this can significantly cut costs. The traditional Thanksgiving travel pattern — flying out on Wednesday and returning on Sunday — will be the most expensive. Sunday, 29 November, is expected to be one of the priciest travel days of the year: the average cost of domestic trips returning that day reaches $604.
Those returning home on Monday or Tuesday can pay around $350 for a ticket, saving roughly $250. Another option is to fly back on Black Friday, when the average fare is about $420. The cheapest day to depart before Thanksgiving is currently Monday, 23 November, with an average fare of around $370; flying directly on Thanksgiving Day costs about the same — $371.
As for Christmas travel, the most expensive time to start a trip will, as expected, be the weekend before the holiday — from 18 to 20 December. On these days, the average ticket price is already approaching $500. Departing on the Monday or Tuesday before Christmas can bring the average cost down to around $440.
Returning home on Sunday, 27 December, will also be costly: fares for that day are about 20% higher than at the start of the week. Those extending their break through to the New Year should also keep an eye on 2 January — forecasts suggest that on this day the average airfare will exceed $560.
Hopper recommends starting to track prices now and booking flights and hotels for the winter holidays by Halloween, while there is still a wider choice of routes and rooms and prices may not yet have risen as sharply.