Choosing a target price and dates for an alert

A well-set alert tells you about the fares that matter to you and stays quiet the rest of the time. Two choices make the difference: which dates you watch, and whether you set a target price.

A specific date or a whole month?

Choose a specific date when

• You must travel on that day, for example for an event or a fixed holiday.
• You already know your return date too.

Choose a whole month when

• You are flexible and want the cheapest day in that month.
• The route has few recent prices for single days. Month alerts often have more data to work with.

A month alert follows the lowest price for any day in the month. When the email arrives, use the price calendar and nearby dates strip to find the exact day.

To set a target or not

If you leave the target as Any drop, you hear about meaningful drops at any price. If you set a target, you also hear when the price reaches or falls below your number.

How to choose a target

1. Search your route and look at the prices on the calendar and the route page’s cheapest months chart.
2. Note the lowest prices you see for your dates and the months around them.
3. Set a target a little above the lowest you have seen. A target far below anything recent may never be reached.
4. Enter the target in the alert’s currency, shown next to the field.

Examples

• “I’m going in the spring, any week.” Create a month alert for each month you could go, with no target, and compare the drops.
• “We fly on the 14th, whatever happens.” Watch that date with a realistic target, and book when it is reached.
• “I’ll only go if it’s cheap.” Set a firm target and let the alert wait.

Return trips

When you create an alert from a results page for a return trip, the alert follows that return trip. On the price alerts page, the alert follows the departure date or month you choose.

Travelers and currency

• Alert prices are per adult, like the prices in results.
• The alert uses the currency you had when you created it. Changing your currency later doesn’t change existing alerts.

If this, then that

• If you never hear anything, your target may be too low. Remove the alert and set a new one with a higher target or none.
• If you hear too often, add a target so only the prices you care about trigger an email.
• If your plans firm up, replace a month alert with a date alert for the exact day.

Our guide to when to book flights helps you judge whether a price is good, and price alerts explained covers strategy.

Still stuck? Contact us, choose the price alerts topic and tell us the route and the email address the alert uses.