Thanksgiving and Christmas Airfare Hits 10-Year High: Report
Airfare for Thanksgiving and Christmas is hitting a 10-year high, per Hopper, with domestic round trips up 31% and 23% respectively as jet fuel prices soar and Spirit Airlines’ shutdown removes budget competition.
Holiday flying is about to get pricey. According to ABC News, citing travel site Hopper, airfare for Thanksgiving and Christmas is reaching a 10-year high, with jet fuel costs and the shutdown of Spirit Airlines pushing fares sharply above last year.
The numbers
The domestic round trip for Thanksgiving is averaging around $402, up 31% compared to last year, according to Hopper. Christmas fares are averaging $452 for a domestic round trip, up 23% compared to last year.
Hotel bookings for Thanksgiving so far are averaging $170 per night, in line with last year’s prices. The price surge has led to more people booking earlier than they did this time last year, as travelers try to get ahead of potentially higher prices.
Why fares are climbing
Jet fuel reached an average of $4.30 per gallon across four tracked U.S. markets Friday, nearly twice its 2025 average. U.S. airfares in August were 23% higher than a year earlier.
This will be the first year without low-budget Spirit Airlines, which shut down operations in May, and previously helped pull down fares by roughly 15% in each market it operated. Even with Spirit only serving a fraction of the domestic market, it still means there is one fewer budget airline to put pressure on the larger carriers.
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International not spared
The prices for major international travel destinations over Christmas are also high, with fares up by 23% for Mexico and Central America, and up by 15% for Europe, according to Hopper.
Some carriers are now reducing less profitable flying, raising the possibility that fewer available seats could add further pressure during the busiest holiday travel periods.
Options market and stocks to watch
Fewer budget seats and higher fares generally translates to better unit revenue for the majors, though fuel costs eat into margins. Watch these names into the holiday quarter:
DAL: Delta is a premium-heavy carrier that benefits when leisure travelers pay up and corporate demand holds. Watch guidance around unit revenue.
UAL: United has the largest international network exposure, and Christmas international fares are up double digits. Watch for capacity commentary.
AAL: American is more domestic-leisure exposed, so the Spirit shutdown removes a direct pricing constraint in overlapping markets.
LUV: Southwest sits in the sweet spot of the vanished ultra-low-cost tier. Watch bookings and RASM trends into Q4.
ABNB: If flight costs push travelers to drive or shorten trips, watch short-stay booking data for demand shifts.
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