The cheapest months to fly this winter

At a glance

• October and November are the best months: median return fares of €43.96 and €43.98, and the largest number of cheap trips.
• In October one trip in four cost at most €32.91; in November at most €38.48.
• December rises to a median of €50.88, with the holidays, Christmas markets and New Year.
• January (€59.10) and February (€68.00) look the most expensive today, but they're seen from far away: they'll probably improve as they get closer.
• The numbers come from 15,202 return trips on Ryanair, Wizz Air, easyJet, Vueling, Volotea and Transavia, read between 9 and 30 September 2026.

Month by month: the numbers

All prices are per person, flight only, outbound and return added together, for trips of 1 to 14 nights. The median price is the one in the middle: half the trips cost less, half cost more. The cheapest quarter is the amount the cheapest 25% of trips stayed within. Trips found are the distinct return trips, under users' budgets, departing in that month.

The trend is clear: from October to February the median price climbs month after month and cheap trips become scarcer. For the last days of September, meaning almost last-minute flights, the median was €53.75 across 690 trips: higher than October, as you'd expect when booking close to departure.

October and November: the sweet spot

This is the real off-season: summer is over, the holidays are far off and airlines have plenty of seats to fill. In our data this is where most of the cheap trips are: over 5,000 in October and over 4,300 in November, with medians below €44.

• October has the lowest cheapest quarter of the whole winter: one trip in four within €32.91.
• November has almost the same median as October, with low prices that are a little less extreme but very widespread.
• If you have a few days free in autumn, this is when a weekend in another city costs the least.

December: prices rise, but not all month

In December the median reaches €50.88 and the trips found drop to 2,466. The Christmas holidays, trips back home, Christmas markets and New Year's Eve all weigh in. The first weeks of the month, especially midweek departures, can still be cheap, though: most of the price rises cluster around the holidays.

January and February: why they look expensive today

In our data January and February have the highest medians (€59.10 and €68.00) and far fewer cheap trips: just over 1,500 and just over 1,000. Be careful about reading these numbers as a rule, though. A likely explanation is that these dates are still a long way off: budget airlines often release or discount seats as departure gets closer, so it's plausible that January and February prices will improve in the coming months. It isn't a certainty, but it's a reason not to buy today at prices you're not happy with.

What to do in practice

• Autumn: if you want to travel in October or November, now is the time to book. It's only a few weeks away and waiting is unlikely to bring prices down.
• January and February: rather than buying at today's prices, pick a budget and get alerted when a flight fits it.
• Avoid the holidays: Christmas, New Year and long weekends are when prices rise the most. Shifting by just a few days can make a difference.
• Be flexible on the destination: if you just want to get away, look at where to fly from your airport on the dates you have free.

With FlyDown you can set up a watch with airports, dates and budget: you get a notification when a flight drops below the amount you chose, even for months that are still far away.

How to read these numbers

• These are the prices FlyDown found for its users, so mostly trips under the budgets people set. They show which months are cheaper at equal conditions, not the average market price.
• They were read in late September 2026: the later months are seen from further away, and that affects their prices.
• They mostly cover European routes.
• We'll update this guide with data from the coming months.

FlyDown is not affiliated with the airlines mentioned: trademarks belong to their respective owners.