Why There Is No Perfect Time to Book Business Class Tickets

For years, travellers have been searching for the “magic formula” to score cheap business class tickets. Some claim it’s 60 days before departure, others say you should always book on a Tuesday, Wednesday or wait for Black Friday.

But after monitoring premium fares daily for nearly a decade, we can confidently say: there is no guaranteed best time anymore to book business class.

Old Theories vs. Today’s Reality

Many online articles continue to repeat outdated theories:

• Book exactly 60 or 90 days before departure
• Tuesdays or Wednesdays always have the lowest fares
• Use incognito mode to avoid “dynamic price increases”
• Black Friday, Cyber Monday or January sales offer the best deals
• Last-minute bookings result in cheaper fares

In reality: while you might occasionally find good fares during these times, most business class pricing today is driven by advanced algorithms that adjust fares constantly based on demand, load factors, competition, and revenue optimization, not the day of the week or your browser settings.

What Actually Happens Today

• Dynamic pricing: Fares change daily (sometimes even hourly) as airline systems respond to booking patterns and demand levels.
• Sales are frequent but highly targeted: Airlines publish sales year-round on different routes and departure cities to stimulate bookings. These offers can appear anytime, not just during traditional sales periods.
• Black Friday still offers deals, but not always better ones: Airlines often run sales, but they are not necessarily cheaper than deals published at other random times during the year.
• Incognito mode myth: While some believe that searching flights in private mode lowers prices, we have found no meaningful difference over years of monitoring thousands of fares. Occasionally, fares may differ slightly depending on your location (e.g. €15-€20), but these differences are usually irrelevant compared to the total price of a business class ticket.

The Best Strategy That Still Works

Since there is no longer a predictable “perfect time,” successful travelers today use a different approach:

• Monitor regularly: Fares can drop unexpectedly. The more you check, the better your chances of spotting great deals.
• Subscribe to deal alerts: Our team at Premium-Flights.com tracks dozens of airlines daily and posts verified business class deals as soon as they are published.
• Set your personal price limit: Know what you’re willing to pay and book immediately when you see a fare within that budget. Waiting rarely pays off.
• Be flexible with departure points: Business class pricing can vary dramatically depending on where your ticket originates. For example, starting in Dublin to North America often leads to lower prices compared to Frankfurt to North America.

Flexibility Is Key To Lower Prices

One of the most effective ways to save on business class is by considering alternate departure cities or countries. For example, a Lufthansa Business Class ticket from Frankfurt to Bangkok may cost over €3000. Starting the same journey from Stockholm (with a short connection through Frankfurt) could cost just €1700, and you may even end up sitting in the exact same seat for most of the journey.

For these cases, it will make sense to purchase a cheap positioning flight to your departure city to take advantage of lower fares, if you’re open to a short detour and one extra flight.

Sales Happen All Year, But Unpredictably

Airlines publish sales constantly throughout the year, often targeting specific routes, cities, or regions. These sales can appear at any moment, and usually for limited booking windows. This is where our monitoring comes in, we track these offers daily and post them immediately on our site and via newsletter to give you the best chance to book before prices rise again.

Let Premium-Flights.com Do the Work for You

Instead of chasing outdated booking myths, let us monitor fares for you. We publish new verified business and first class deals daily, departing from both Europe, USA & Canada. This way, you’re always among the first to spot available deals before they disappear.

Subscribe to our free newsletter here to receive our deal alerts and stay one step ahead of airline pricing.

For all strategies on saving money for business class, read our full guide to cheap business class flights.