Common Cents: Secrets to Getting the Best Holiday Travel Deal

The holiday travel season is around the corner and the opportunities to lock in low prices are dwindling fast.

Before you’re stuck with an exorbitantly high price or forced to use your least favorite method of transportation to get from point A to point B: Book your trip now. For those traveling by land start planning your trip now.

The Early Bird Gets the Worm
Hint: The longer you wait to buy a ticket, the higher the cost. As a New York transplant, my holidays are spent in three possible states –Pennsylvania, Maryland or Virginia.

Despite similar distances to each destination, when it comes to Amtrak travel, the price rarely reflects the millage. (As a matter of fact, one of my longest train trips to Canada, was the cheapest ticket I ever purchased.) Going to D.C. for the holidays on Amtrak with a regular fare has ranged anywhere from $69 to $120 based on timing. That’s why if you want to lock in a price on a train ticket, make an early reservation. Here’s a little secret: You can reserve a ticket without payment if you book a train ticket using 1-800-USA-RAIL. Caveat: Travelers are given a specific time period to pay for a reservation before loss of reservation, unless you call back and politely ask for an extension.

Regardless of what route you’re taking on the train, there’s one commonality, the longer the distance between the booking date and travel time, the cheaper the ticket. “As the holiday season approaches, trains are filling up,” says Clifford Cole, of Amtrak. “You want to give yourself a couple of weeks, at least two weeks,” to book a lower fare. Greyhound also offers 20% of regular travel for tickets booked 7 days in advance.