Which do you book first, Room or Airfare?

[Dis703]

I've done it both ways. I can always change my room and dates if need be, but airline tickets not so much. So if I book a flight first I know I'm stuck with those dates.

 

[DemoBri1]

Being a DVC member I have to book my room before air. However, on trips where we stayed on cash we still booked the room prior to my air. The reason is that I won't need the air if I cannot get the room I'd like.

 

[Shellyred8]

We almost always book rooms first. Our days are usually flexible and we can change the rooms around if we find a good deal on a flight that is on different days from our room reservations.

 

[elle101me]

I book the flight first so I can choose the cheapest days to fly.

 

[mastermind307]

We're flying out of Indianapolis. Southwest normally has 3 nonstop flights to MCO. And ideally I'd like to book the earliest one.
If I was planning to book directly through Disney, it would be easier to modify my dates, but I'm looking at renting points. If I go that route then my dates will be set and I know the earlier I book the better chance I have at getting the resort I want.
Such decisions!

 

[Daniela Rose]

Room. JetBlue hadn't even released our dates yet when I booked the resort.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

I usually book our lodging first to take advantage of a good promo/deal then book air around a couple months out. I almost always end up changing our trip dates though to get the lowest flight prices for the seven of us.

 

[Farro]

We always book our room first.

 

[kwdw]

I USUALLY do the comparison - looking at the SW prices and room prices at the same time - make a decision and book both - within minutes of each other. Now - SOMETIMES - I book the room first - and see if I can get a cheap flight when it gets closer and if I really decide to go. It's easier to cancel the room.

 

[ChristineOH]

I book airfare first, because I usually book the room after discounts come out. We always fly SWA, so it's easier to change flights with them than other airlines, but we've never had to do that due to lack of room availability.
For our route and travel dates, I've always found flights to be the cheapest the day they are released, so it doesn't make sense for us to wait.

 

[April Mayfield]

We got a great deal on SWA when we went in June. I swear it was $200 one way on a Monday and then when we went to book it Tuesday night it was $69...!!!! And that was a return flight on July 3rd. Rates are HIGH right now for our upcoming trip December 31-January 5. New Year's Eve is much less expensive than the day before or New Year's Day. I've booked our room already, but not air. When do y'all think SW has the best rates? We're just short of 5 months away.

 

[disneyvoice]

We always book our room first. We book far enough in advance to find decent rates on flights and since we always fly Southwest the only thing that varies is the resort we choose to stay at. We sometimes play around with dates so we can stay at a specific resort and then make our flight reservations based around when we can get the resort.

 

[oceanmarina]

I always , always book air first. Airfare can fluctuate so much , I have saved over 1,000 by booking airfare early.

 

[Laundress]

Always airfare first. I have a small window of vacation time so I make whatever hotel situation fit