Travel Tuesday Brings Big Travel Discounts After Cyber Monday
Black Friday wasn't enough. Cyber Monday didn't satisfy. Now there's Travel Tuesday—the travel industry's attempt to grab a piece of the holiday shopping frenzy.
Travel Tuesday falls on December 2 this year, the Tuesday after Cyber Monday. It's when airlines, hotels, and booking platforms slash prices to move inventory during the slowest travel season.
How This Started
Online booking platform Hopper coined "Travel Tuesday" in 2017 after noticing the Tuesday following Thanksgiving was a profitable time to book flights. So, they gave it a catchy name, marketed it as a thing, and now it's a thing.
According to consulting firm McKinsey & Company, search interest for "Travel Tuesday" jumped over 500% from 2021 to 2023. Companies noticed. Now everyone's running Travel Tuesday sales.
Most deals come from U.S.-based companies, but the marketing concept is spreading to the UK and elsewhere as the travel industry realizes people will buy stuff if you call it a special sales day.
Why This Day Exists
Simon Calder, travel correspondent for The Independent, explained it plainly: "The dying days of November and the first two weeks of December comprise the lowest of seasons when the airlines cut fares to whatever level they need to fill their planes."
Translation: nobody books travel right after Thanksgiving. Airlines and hotels have empty seats and rooms. They'd rather sell cheap than not sell at all.
Travel Tuesday isn't some magical day when deals appear out of nowhere. It's the industry packaging their desperation to fill planes and hotels during slow season as a special event.
What to Expect
Expect discounts on flights, hotel stays, and package deals from airlines and operators worldwide. How deep the discounts go depends on how desperate companies are to fill inventory.
Some years deliver genuine bargains. Other years deliver "sales" that aren't meaningfully cheaper than booking any random Tuesday in early December.
The hype matters more than the actual deals sometimes. Companies know people respond to manufactured urgency and limited-time offers, so they slap "Travel Tuesday" on promotions they'd run anyway.
How to Actually Save Money
Browse before you buy. Check prices now. Know what things actually cost so you can spot real deals versus fake markdowns.
Set a budget and stick to it. Sales days exist to make you spend money you weren't planning to spend. Decide your limit beforehand.
Be flexible. Want the biggest savings? Be flexible with dates and destinations. The best deals go to people willing to travel whenever and wherever prices are lowest.
Consider bundles. Package deals—flight plus hotel—often offer better savings on Travel Tuesday than booking components separately.
Sign up for notifications. Get alerts from your favorite airlines, hotels, and booking platforms. Book directly with them when possible since they usually offer better deals than third-party sites.
Don't fall for fake urgency. "Limited time offer!" "Only 3 seats left at this price!" might be true or might be marketing tactics to make you panic-buy. Take a breath. Do the math. Make sure it's actually a good deal.
The Slow Season Reality
Late November through early December is objectively the worst time for travel bookings. People just spent money on Thanksgiving. They're saving for Christmas. Nobody's thinking about vacation.
Airlines and hotels know this. They'd rather sell seats and rooms cheap than have them sit empty. That's where Travel Tuesday deals come from.
If you were planning to book travel anyway, waiting for Travel Tuesday might save money. If you weren't planning to book travel and a "deal" convinces you to, the travel industry just successfully manufactured demand during their slowest period.
Is It Worth It?
It depends. If you need to book travel and can be flexible about when and where you go, Travel Tuesday might deliver genuine savings during the industry's slowest season.
If you're hoping for magical deals that don't exist any other time of year, you'll probably be disappointed. Most "Travel Tuesday" promotions are repackaged versions of deals already available with a marketing label slapped on.
The best strategy: know what you want to book, research prices beforehand, and be ready to pull the trigger if December 2 brings legitimate savings. Don't buy just because it's Travel Tuesday. Buy because the price is actually good.
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