My daughter will be honeymooning in STJ October 2-8 ,2017. Since that is the low season when do you recommend purchasing airfare. I'm thinking it could be less during the summer. Any experience/ advice ? Thanks!

There are often fewer flights to STT in the summer - watch for a while and book one when you feel comfortable with the prices -- they really don't change too much but you could find a bargain on occasion.

Thanks so much. I think the days of bargain airfare are gone so they will probably book sooner than later. We've never been there in October, always March or April.

October can be rainy with chance of hurricanes but honestly, I think it will be fine

My recommendation for when you should purchase airfare is to buy when you are comfortable with the price! And then don't look back! Set up an alert which notifies you when there is a change in airfare prices and follow it for a bit. Airfares are so crazy these days, you just never know when you are going to get a good deal. So, follow it for a while and if there comes up a fare that seems reasonable, just buy it. You can also keep track of how many seats are sold on a particular route that you are interested in. If the plane is almost sold out, or pretty full, chances are there will probably not be much, if any, reduction in airfare for that flight. On the other hand, if it's still several months out and the plane is empty, and the fare that is currently being offered is about the same as it has been for some time, you are probably safe in waiting a while to see if they run a sale.

Thanks for the tips! I've done some research too. Hopper seems to be a decent app that does predictions of costs per past year averages etc. I think it will be safe to wait till August to purchase for an October fight.

The risk you run from Charlotte is that the direct flight will sell out. You may shave the cost down to $550-600 but it likely will end up with a connection in Miami. American/former US Airways will greatly reduce the number of flights during that time of year. I have actually paid more flying back through Charlotte in Hurricane season than High Season.

Don't discount the value of the direct flight and the time it saves. Right now Google Flights is showing the direct flight at $702 round trip for your dates.

Jay

Don't forget to to search + or - 3 days if your travel time can be flexible.

We save big $$ by flying down to STT on Tues and returning on a Friday vs our original dates for Weds/Sat.

Booked in July 2016 for our April 2017 trip $329/pp round trip IAD-STT

I was recently checking AA flights from CLT to STT in November/December. Only one direct flight per day and fares were around $700. Not sure when they add the second direct flight.

Look at it now, look at it again in a couple of weeks, and then look at it a few weeks later. If the prices are starting to climb, book 'em. I've waited too long before and paid for it. Literally.

Anything below 600 is a good price. Watched the prices in May and the fare never went below 700 for the days we needed. 619 was available if we moved the return date.

Totally agree with George. Unusual to see it below 650.
I live in CLT!

If it's not to inconvenient check flights from Raleigh. Though not direct I often find much better prices that CLT. As example it was $100/ticket cheaper for flights to Panama City last winter.

100 cheaper is not really a savings when you consider the time and costs involved in going to RDU. In addition you expose yourself to a much greater chance of losing a vacation day when you add a flight and connection. It's a big risk for a small gain.