Holiday air travel costs reach new heights. Here’s how to save
If you’re considering booking plane tickets home for the holidays this year, you might want to prepare yourself for “shock,” says Nick Ewen of the travel website, The Points Guy.
Hopper, a travel aggregator website, estimates that Thanksgiving airfares are up 31% year-over-year, while Christmas airfares are up 23%.
What’s behind that spike? The cost of jet fuel remains up over 100% since last year due to the Iran war and wider regional instability in the Middle East. In response, airlines across the globe have had to pass down some of those costs to customers.
At the same time, demand for air travel has been unrelenting and the number of passengers screened at U.S. airports has decreased less than a percent so far in 2026 compared to 2025.
PBS News’ Tim McPhillips spoke with Ewen to break down the reasons behind air travel prices and what you can do to save some money this holiday season.
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