The post-pandemic travel boom is slowing down, and flight prices are falling along with it.

“Everyone assumes, because airfare was sky-high last summer, that this is still the case when, in reality, the average price of airfare is as cheap today as it was in 2006. It has fallen 11 out of the past 14 months, so cheap flights are very much available,” Katy Nastro, a travel expert at Going, wrote to SFGATE in an email.

Nastro pointed out that although prices are falling due to seasonal changes, the outsize travel demand of the post-lockdown period has finally passed. And since more consumers were looking to fly internationally this summer, domestic flight prices are going through a cool-down period. 

Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet, confirmed prices are down overall. “In 2023, airfares are about 19% lower than a decade ago,” she wrote to SFGATE in an email.

However, French also said that while base airfares are dropping, they may not come with the same perks they did years ago. Many airlines are unbundling their basic tickets and charging extra for things that used to be included in the price of a flight. A common example is what’s now called a basic economy ticket, which may not include a carry-on bag or the option to choose your seat.

“Unbundling isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If you’re not checking bags or don’t really care if you’re in the middle seat, then you can save money. But it can feel like you’re being nickel-and-dimed if you’re the kind of person expecting those amenities, and then you end up needing to pay for them,” French said.

Consumers might be benefiting from excess supply, too, she added. In January 2023, U.S. airlines had 6% more seats available for booking compared with January 2019, according to data from travel booking app Hopper. 

As for booking those flights for the holiday season, NerdWallet flight experts generally recommend booking one to three months in advance, consistent with Google Flights’ recommendation to look for deals on December travel in early October. If you book within that window, you should certainly save money; just be prepared to bring only a personal item or pay extra for a seating assignment.