Fireworks, barbecues, outdoor concerts, a trip to Rome… there are so many ways to celebrate Independence Day. Turns out, this year travelers are taking an extra-long weekend for the Fourth, considering that it falls on a Wednesday this year. Surprisingly, however, they’re also using the celebration of America’s birth to leave the country. We saw a 40% increase in searches to international destinations for the July 4th holiday versus last year. For domestic destinations? There was only a 5% increase. We’re betting that the perfect combination of cheaper airfare to many European cities and taking additional days off means more American travelers are spreading their wings.
If you’re still debating a July 4th trip… better start making decisions. Our data shows that prices for domestic flights start to spike after June 9th. For international destinations, you should book by June 13th to get the best deals for Independence Day week. And while you’re at it, if you’re trying to figure out the best combination of dates to squeeze the most savings out of your trip (our Flexible Dates feature can help with that), here’s what we found. For both international and domestic flights, you best bet is to leave on July 3rd and return on July 5th. Using those date combinations, we saw a median airfare of $197 for domestic flights and $287 for international flights (mind you, that number includes Mexico and Canada).
Onboard to take a trip for the 4th but not sure where to go? According to our data, these are the top trending and deal destinations for Independence Day:
Top Trending Domestic Destinations
- New Orleans (interest up 198%)
- Baton Rouge (interest up 169%)
- Maui (interest up 52%)
Top Trending International Destinations
Top Domestic Deal Destinations
- Charleston: median airfare is $247, down 31%
- Boston: median airfare is $216, down 18%
- Austin: median airfare is $242, down 18%
- Raleigh: median airfare is $220, down 18%
- Salt Lake City: median airfare is $294, down 14%
- San Juan: median airfare is $332, down 23%
Top International Deal Destinations
- Cabo: median airfare is $401, down 15%
- Calgary: median airfare is $325, down 12%
- Cancun: median airfare is $420, down 11%
- London: median airfare is $838, down 9%
Wherever you let freedom ring this year, be sure you feel confident about how you get there. KAYAK searches hundreds of travel sites at once so you can be confident you’re planning the perfect trip.
Methodology
All data is based on median airfares conducted from KAYAK US and is intended to be used as a guide. Travel dates are July 3, 2018 through July 9, 2018, and search dates are January 1, 2018 through May 29, 2018. All flights considered are economy, round-trip. To compare year over year findings, KAYAK considered searches from searches from January 1, 2017 through May 29, 2017 for travel June 30, 2017 through July 5, 2017.
