During certain times of year, it may seem like everyone you know is traveling: summer, spring break, the winter holiday season. But during those perennial travel peaks, you can also count on travel prices to skyrocket.

To avoid airline and hotel premiums, try waiting until shoulder season instead. With some strategic planning and a great travel credit card in your wallet — you can take advantage of lower prices and fewer people on your upcoming vacation.

What is shoulder season?

There’s a peak season for nearly every vacation destination — when the crowds are largest and the prices most exorbitant. But there’s also an off-season — when the weather might be less appealing and usual hotspots empty out or even temporarily close. Shoulder season falls between these two periods.

Shoulder seasons can differ depending on the location, but are usually during autumn and spring.

For example, the ideal time to visit a beach destination like Cancun, Mexico, or Costa Rica might be during the warm and dry winter months. Summer and early fall are less busy, thanks to scorching temperatures and potential bad weather. Shoulder season for these locations falls during spring, around April or early May.

On the other hand, if you want to visit Greece during its shoulder season, plan to go around late September or October. You’ll miss the peak summer holiday season through July and August, but you can still enjoy the mild Mediterranean waters before winter.

Read more: How to use your credit card for international travel

Shoulder season savings examples

One of the biggest reasons to forgo peak travel months and take your trip during shoulder season is to save money when there’s less demand from fellow travelers.

Travel prices (transportation, lodging, recreation, etc.) have increased by more than 20% since 2019, according to the latest Travel Price Index from the U.S. Travel Association.

Traveling off-peak can help you save some money even as costs increase. Remember, these prices likely won’t be as low as your destination’s true off season, but you can score some solid deals if your plans are flexible.

Here are some examples of shoulder season savings available as of publishing:

Award flights

Maybe you had major FOMO seeing your friends enjoy an Italian summer this year, so you’re planning your own trip for 2025. If you want to fly United Airlines from the New York metro area to Rome during the height of summer (the weekend before the July 4 holiday), it would cost you 70,000 miles for a nonstop award flight. For more premium fares, you could pay upwards of 200,000 miles per ticket.

But peak summer isn’t the only time you can enjoy Italy. Consider moving your trip up by a couple months to early April 2025. Premium Economy and Business class tickets may still be steep, but these new dates could lower your Economy award ticket by 30,000 miles — nearly doubling the value of your redemption.

Read more: The best airline credit cards

Purchased flights

Domestic vacation destinations have shoulder seasons, too — and savings can apply on fares you purchase, not just award travel.

Let’s say you live near Charlotte, North Carolina and want to take your family on a trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. During the busy holiday season, round-trip flights on American Airlines between Dec. 27 and Jan. 3, 2024 might cost you over $400 each.

Instead, think about traveling during the fall shoulder season. The same flights a month earlier, between Nov. 29 and Dec. 6, 2024, cost nearly $200 less. You’ll still enjoy temperate fall weather and may even avoid some bustling holiday crowds in the parks.

Hotel bookings

Don’t forget about hotel savings during shoulder season. Take the December holiday travel season. Say you want to go on a ski trip to Vail, Colorado, and you prefer to stay at Hilton properties. Between Dec. 22 and 28, you could book the Highline Vail (a DoubleTree hotel) for nearly $700 per night — high even for a Hilton Honors member.

But if you’re willing to wait a few months and take your trip towards the end of the season in late March, you could score the same room for around $150 less per night.

Note: Hotel and airline programs typically use dynamic pricing models. The examples above are accurate for the dates noted at time of publishing, but they can often change. Remember that airfare and hotel prices differ depending on when you book, the days you travel, whether you book directly or through a portal, and many other factors.

You can often count on airfare and hotel deals during off-peak times. But don’t forget about the other costs of your trip. For example, local restaurants may lower prices when there’s less tourist demand, or popular attractions may offer discounts (and broader availability) on ticket prices.

Before you book, always research your destination to ensure you score all the best savings available during your stay.

Read more: Our picks for the best travel credit cards

More ways to score travel savings

Shoulder season is a great time to take advantage of travel deals, but popular destinations will carry steep price tags, no matter when you go. You may also have obligations that mean you can only travel during certain times, and don’t have the flexibility often required for the biggest savings.

That’s why it can pay to have a combination of strategies to help ensure you make the most of each dollar you put toward your trip. Here are a few additional details to consider:

• When to book: It’s always smart to track airfare before you book if you want to score the best deal. A recent Expedia report found that you can get the best savings when booking domestic travel 28 days in advance. For international travel, book at least 60 days ahead of departure but no more than four months ahead.

• Travel times/days: Not only can you benefit from traveling outside of peak seasons, but you can also choose off-peak flight times and days to save some money. According to the same Expedia report, Thursday is the cheapest day of the week to fly, while Sunday is the most expensive. So if you can spare an extra day off work to leave for your trip on Thursday instead of Friday or return on Monday instead of Sunday, you could get a better deal.

• Consider alternative destinations: Rather than traveling to the most popular destinations on your social media feeds this year, consider alternative locales. A recent Tripadvisor survey found that the top trending destinations for 2024 were Tokyo (worldwide) and Napa Valley, California (in the U.S.). Unless you have a specific reason to travel to a current hotspot this year, consider going somewhere more under-the-radar and within your budget. You may find better prices for the original location in the future, when it’s not a current trending travel spot.

Use a credit card to save during shoulder season

Choosing the right time to travel isn’t the only way to save money. A great travel credit card can also offer discounts, savings, and more — both when you book and while you’re away.

If you open a new card before your trip, you can take advantage of a valuable sign-up bonus or an introductory 0% APR period. Some welcome bonuses offer hundreds of dollars toward travel after you meet a spending requirement, which can lead to big savings when you’re ready to book. And with a 12- or even 15-month 0% APR, you can take time to pay down the cost of your trip without taking on any extra interest charges — as long as you make sure to pay the balance in full before the offer ends.

While you’re actually traveling, you can still use your credit card to your advantage. Many cards offer no foreign transaction fees, which can save you 1%-3% on each transaction you make abroad. And when you use your card while traveling, you’ll continue to earn rewards on each purchase to get a headstart on points or miles for a future trip.

Travel credit cards to consider

These travel credit cards will help you earn rewards toward future travel. And when you’re ready to redeem, you can compare flexible redemption options to find the best way to maximize your rewards.

Chase Sapphire Preferred? Card

• Annual fee
  $95
• Welcome offer
  Get up to $1,050 in Chase Travel? value: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months — worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel — plus up to $300 in statement credits on Chase Travel purchases within your first year
• Ongoing Purchases APR
  20.99% - 27.99% Variable

• Rewards rate
  • 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel?
  • 3x points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries
  • 2x points on all other travel purchases
  • 1x points on all other purchases

• Benefits
  • Points are worth 25% more when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Travel
  • Earn up to $50 in annual statement credits for hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel
  • On every account anniversary, earn bonus points equal to 10% of your total purchases made the previous year

Learn more

Why we like it: The Chase Sapphire Preferred? Card is one of our top travel credit card picks for all types of travelers. With bonus categories ranging from travel purchases to dining, streaming services, and more, you can rack up points on spending at home and when you book your trip. Plus, it has a great welcome bonus and a few annual benefits to help offset its $95 annual fee. One of our favorite perks is a boost on your points when you redeem them through Chase Travel?. Instead of a standard 1 cent per point, you’ll get a value of 1.25 cents for each point you use to book using the portal.

Read our full review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred card

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

• Annual fee
  $95
• Welcome offer
  Earn 75,000 miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months
• Purchase APR
  19.99% - 29.99% variable

• Rewards rate
  • 5x miles on hotels, vacation rentals, and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
  • 2x miles on all other purchases

• Benefits
  • Receive up to a $120 statement credit for Global Entry or TSA Precheck application fees
  • Receive a $50 experience credit, room upgrades, and early check-in at eligible hotels
  • Access Hertz's Five Star membership tier, offering free upgrades, a wider selection of vehicles, and more

Learn more

Why we like it: It’s easy to earn miles toward future travel with a Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card thanks to its flat rewards structure. You’ll get 2x miles on every dollar you spend using your card (plus a boosted 5x points when you book eligible travel through Capital One Travel). That makes the Venture card a great option if your spending doesn’t often fall within common bonus categories. There’s plenty to like about the ways you can redeem your miles, too. Either use them to book travel through Capital One Travel, put them towards travel purchases charged to your card, or transfer them to any of Capital One’s 15+ transfer partners.

Read our full review of the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Wells Fargo Autograph? Card

• Annual fee
  $0
• Welcome offer
  Earn 20,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 within the first 3 months
• Introductory APR
  0% intro APR on purchases for the first 12 months, after which the standard APR applies
• Purchase APR
  20.24% - 29.99% variable

• Rewards rate
  • 3x points on dining, travel, gas and EV stations, transit, select streaming services, and phone plans
  • 1x points on all other purchases

• Benefits
  • Get up to $600 of cell phone protection against damage or theft
  • 0% introductory APR is useful to finance large purchases for up to a year

Learn more

Why we like it: The Wells Fargo Autograph? Card is a good choice for travelers who don’t want to pay an annual fee. You can get 3x points from each dollar you spend on several travel and everyday categories: restaurants, travel, gas, transit, popular streaming services, and phone plans — plus a standard 1x points on everything else. Unlike some other travel credit card options, you can also enjoy an introductory 0% APR on new purchases with this card, which could be helpful if you want some extra time to pay off the cost of an upcoming trip.

This article was edited by Rebecca McCracken

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