by Tom Bastek
Last updated: 11:00 AM ET, Mon June 1, 2015
Illustrations courtesy of Trivago.
Trivago.co.uk came out with information this week showing how the best rates for your hotel room come when you book it about one month out. Even though hotel prices increase as you get closer to the actual date of travel, the data surprisingly shows that booking your room at a date further out doesn't always result in lower prices. In fact, they are never as high as they are two to three months out.
As the data above shows, the prices two months out and day of are very comparable. This means that planning way in advance isn't always your best bet.
"Although many people assume that hotel prices will be at their highest the day before travel, this is actually not the case," Denise Bartlett, UK Public Relations said. "There is no significant difference between booking two months or one day in advance, and it is considerably more expensive to book three months in advance. This information really opens the door to last-minute decisions and spontaneous trips."
Although in general, approximately one month in advance is the best time to book, there are discrepancies according to the country of travel. When travelling within the UK, hotels should be booked 4-5 weeks in advance for the cheapest rates.
"It is also interesting to note the country differences, with UK travelers frequently visiting France, Spain, Italy and Germany," Bartlett said. "Whereas holidays in Spain are best planned at least four weeks in advance, a trip to France could be booked just two weeks in advance for the best price. This takes the pressure off holidaymakers feeling they have to book their summer holidays months in advance."
The data is based on travel from January to December for the UK, Spain, Italy, France and Germany and price data from the past two years.
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