It’s almost cherry blossom season.
Which is why we have trips to Asia on our mind. And good news is, we dug into our data to discover the cheapest possible destination for you to visit if you’re headed East. Find out how you can hack your trips so you’re hitting a sweet spot in the travel calendar: ie going when prices and crowds are low but the weather is still 👌.
The pre-check
The week’s latest travel stories and news.
- Think they call it Jetbleu?
JetBlue just announced that it’s launching direct flights to Paris starting in June (but you can book now). The first routes will be out of JFK, with Boston following later in the year - A Paris icon is back.
After a devastating fire shut it down indefinitely, Notre Dame cathedral in Paris has announced it will begin receiving visitors late next year - Let’s hear it for the droids. 🤖
Salt Lake City is the first airport to accept mobile IDs on both Apple and Android devices as identification at TSA security. Previous launches were limited to iOS devices. - Another complication post-Brexit.
Travelers who currently do not require a visa to visit the UK will need to start applying for pre-approval to enter the country, starting in 2025. - To tip or not to tip.
As a general rule, tipping to show appreciation is great. But if you struggle to know when it’s appropriate or expected when you travel – Emily Post shares the rules.
Trending travel
This is the cheapest Asian destination from your state.
ICYMI, travel to Asia is a big deal rn with searches up 485% in the past 3 months vs. the same time last year*. But travel to Asia is definitely not cheap, so we did some mad scientist-level maths to figure out when to go. We broke down the cheapest destinations, and when to visit them, state by state** – but here are some of the cities that popped.
- Tokyo, Japan.
Did someone say cherry blossom season? Tokyo took the top spot for 17 of the 59 US airports we researched, with flights starting at $813**.
Find flights - Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Vietnam’s largest city is the overall cheapest destination in Asia to fly to during the in-betweasons, with flights starting at $717**.
Find flights - New Delhi, India
For several US airports, India’s capital city is the best deal if you’re traveling between peak and off-season**.
Find flights - Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok pairs cheap eats with “cheap” flights for several Midwestern cities like Chicago, Omaha and Minneapolis**.
Find flights
Find your state and see where to go.
Community Voices
Who runs the world?
Women’s History Month is a time to celebrate the strong, independent women going out and exploring the world on their own. You might’ve noticed that recently, solo female travel has become a big deal. According to Wanderful, 73% of women feel that travel makes them stronger.
So we asked one of their creators, Christine Lozada, to tell us her top tips for traveling solo as a woman.
Social Shoutout
We respect the hustle. @idkitssammy is using KAYAK Explore to plan her “50 dates in 50 states.”
Links in this Newsletter are for informational purposes only, and there is no affiliation, sponsorship, or endorsement by or with KAYAK Software Corporation whatsoever.
Methodology
*KAYAK US considered flight searches between 12/9/2022 and 3/8/2023 for all future travel dates. For YoY % comparison, KAYAK compared the same search dates for the year prior.
**KAYAK considered flight searches between 8/1/2022 and 1/31/2023 for travel dates in the months of February, March, April, May, October and November 2023 (previously defined shoulder season in Asia) from every US international airport code to Asian cities to determine the cheapest city to travel to during a specified shoulder season month. Airport codes without enough search data were excluded. Cities that did not meet a certain minimum click threshold were excluded. Prices are on average and are for example purposes only.
