Black Friday Tips

As we head into the next couple weeks of travel deals (yay!) here are the best ways to prepare and what you can expect.

• Be flexible! Rather than finding deals for pre-set plans, let the deals find you and then make the plans.
• Book flexible! A lot of great deals have the caveat that they’re non-changeable and non-refundable. Read the fine print when grabbing the deal and evaluate the risk!
• Plan for off-season / shoulder season travel. Most deals will be December-March and September-December. You’re very unlikely to see any summer deals, especially not to Europe. Embrace the off-season!
• A good deal is 20-40% off the base price for a flexible rate. If you have some places in mind, do some research on their base prices so you make sure you’re getting a good deal.

How Flight Deals Work ✈️

• Whether it’s technically Black Friday or not, cheap flights are happening now!! For December through April travel, we’ve seen some of the cheapest flights in years.
• Set a price tracker on Google Flights for filght patterns you’re eyeing. We’ve already seen a TON of cheap flights over the past week or so for off-season travel! ALSO Going.com should be your best friend – it’s the most comprehensive price tracker and they email you deals and tips based on your airports.
• Epic sales already going:
  • IcelandAir – Aurora Friday Flight Sale, most major US cities to Europe for ~$400 or less, book by December 2nd for travel between January 1 – May 31 2026
  • AerLingus has round trip flight sales from the US to Europe for less than $400 from the East Coast, and $650 from the West Coast for December – March 2026 trips.
  • Scandinavian Airlines has round trip low fares (and an amazing calculator tool to find them!) from the East Coast to Europe.
    
• SEE ALSO: AIRLINE GIFT CARD PURCHASES + POINTS DEALS. Even if the airline isn’t offering cheaper flight deals, you will see a ton of them offering gift card purchase bonuses and/or points purchase deals!
  • Delta – get 4x miles on Delta gift cards, bonus miles on rental cars, 4x miles on Delta cruises, varying end dates for each offer

Where You’ll Find the Best Deals ✈️ + 🏨, 🚢

• VACATION COMBO WEBSITES: Look at major airline “vacation” portals (i.e. their flight + hotel combos) rather than on a la carte flights. Here are some we know of so far:
  • Jet Blue Vacations – $450 off select flight and hotel packages, must book by 11/25 for travel dates between 1/1/26 and 10/15/26.
  • Delta Vacations – save up to $250 on Delta Vacations
  • United – up to 60% off vacation packages with United, book by December 2nd and travel by June 30, 2026.
  • American Airlines Vacations as of right now just has “up to $150 off packages,” which isn’t amazing.
    
• CRUISE LINES: Black Friday is a GREAT time to buy cruises if you’ve got flexible dates! Flexibility is important because, while Norwegian’s is extremely broad, most will have it limited to certain dates & itineraries.
  • This is not a drill. Norwegian Cruise Line is offering 50% off all cruises from November 20-26, across all itineraries and ships, including upcoming launches. This includes their Free at Sea package which has unlimited open bar, specialty dining, wifi, etc.
  • Holland America has their Black Friday pre-sale listed as of today (11/21) with up to 30% off cruise fares on many itineraries sailing December 2025 – October 2027. This promo includes a 50% reduced deposit. Offer ends Nov 30.
  • Princess Cruises is offering a Black Friday Balcony Sale (but says it ends on Sunday, November 23?) up to $250 savings, $200 onboard credit for balcony or suite rooms, and up to 50% off. This means they’ll probably have a different one pop up for next week!
  • Royal Caribbean has a Black Friday Preview Sale up for up to $900 off.
    
• THIRD PARTY BOOKING ENGINES: Expedia, Booking.com, your credit card travel portal, etc.
  • Booking.com – Huge Black Friday sale, November 20th – Dec 3rd, discounts in 6 categories for travel through December 31st 2026. 40% off some accommodations, 25% off car rentals, 20% off select airport transfers, etc. 
  • Expedia – get 50% off select hotels and resorts if you book by December 2nd, for travel through December 31, 2026

Hotel & Resort Deals 🏨

As I’ve been poking around this week, I’ve noticed some amazing hotels have their own Black Friday promo that pops up on the home page (i.e. The Bath Priory with 30% off). If you’ve got a bucket list hotel stay in mind, check out their website directly this week.

Here are what some major chains are offering so far (MEH):

• Hilton – offering up to ~25% off stays, from November 5-December 15
• Hyatt – members get up to 30% off, non-members up to 25% off. Book by December 11, for qualifying stays through April 30, 2026.
• Marriott – through the Bonvoy app, can save 25% off on stays

Make sure to compare with the Booking.com sale!

Miscellaneous Travel Offers

• Going.com membership deals, up to 40% off 
• Priority Pass Lounges – 40% off sale on membership
• Away Luggage – 25% off everything through Dec 1st!
• Intrepid Travel – fully guided tour operator – discounts up to 20% off hundreds of small group trips, sale ends December 4th. Sale applies to travel in 2025 or 2026.

Know someone traveling in 2026? We’ve put together our favorite ideas for unique, easy, and impactful gifts that you won’t see on any other lists.