What's the Deal: Book your holiday travel in September

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- It's still officially summer, but travel experts say now is the time to get a jump start on booking your holiday travel, including Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Eve.

New data shows September may just be the best time to find the cheapest flights.

There are typically two holiday travel strategies: buy now to avoid a huge price surge or wait and hope prices will drop.

New data trends from Google's travel team warn about waiting, saying if you want to save - book now.

Regardless of where you are going, Google says airfares usually go up 75 days before departure and another surge 35 days before.

If you're traveling for Thanksgiving, the busiest in terms of traffic, if you book in October, you will likely see a 95 percent price increase and another 30 percent in November.

But there's a different school of thought from the travel website Hipmunk, which says the first week of October is optimal to book those Thanksgiving flights.

Whichever you choose, here are some savings tips to remember:

- Experts recommend flying on Thanksgiving Day for the cheapest flights, fewer crowds and shortest lines.

- Don't fly back the day after Thanksgiving. Avoid Black Friday travel if possible and return midweek, if you can, to save the most.

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