Travel experts say this is the best time to buy flights and hotels (2024)

Travel experts are urging Americans to book their summer vacations now, claiming flights and hotels are at their cheapest.

The best booking timeframe, known as 'the Goldilocks window,' is happening right now.

The term refers to the time before a flight when you are most likely to see an amazing deal pop up.

Brian Kelly, founder of travel website The Points Guy, says it's not too late to organize your summer vacation plans.

'When traveling internationally, you wanna book at least 60 days in advance and domestic, the sweet spot is usually 45 days,' he said.

Kelly advised aspiring travelers to go with the best deal instead of hunt for the perfect location.

'Demand for travel is strong, especially intergenerational travel,' Kelly told GMA. 'I recommend - choose the destination where the deals are so you can spend less on airfare and hotels and spend more at your destination.'

He says that one of this summer's hotspots with the best deal is the beautiful island state of Hawaii - a great spot for travelers who want to enjoy stunning beaches, rich culture and great weather.

'We've seen great airfares this summer to Hawaii - JFK to Honolulu we're seeing in the $400 [range] which is 40% below historical prices.'

Other popular destinations - such as European destinations - are also seeing a dip of 10 percent in prices compared to the same time last year.

The average summer airfare is $325 domestically and $1,000 internationally, according to travel booking site Hopper.

Some of the best deals this week include round trip flights from Boston all the way to Barcelona for as little as $493.

Travelers can score plane tickets from Chicago to Paris for just $571 round trip.

Kelly reminded travelers that the best way to score a deal is knowing the best tips and tricks to save money - for example, picking the best day to travel.

'There's not one day of the week where cheap fares magically appear. If you travel on Tuesdays and Saturdays in general, those days are cheaper than flying on a Thursday, Friday or Sunday,' he said.

Google recently unveiled its top 20 destinations that have been trending on the search engine's flight-booking service.

The list, which was shared with GMA, revealed which destinations travelers from the U.S. have been searching for through the search engine between June 1 and August 31, 2024.

At the top of the list was London, followed by Paris in number two.

France is ranked first in the list of most visited destinations by international travel - with almost 80 million international tourist arrivals in 2022.

The United Kingdom was seventh on the list - with around 31 million visitors, but that could change after its popularity as a summer 2024 vacation destination.

Tokyo was in third place - despite Japan not making it into the top 10 most visited destinations for the past few years, but that is also subject to change for this year's rankings.

Also in the top 10 were Rome, New York, Cancun, Orlando, Las Vegas, Seattle and Athens.

The biggest changes from 2023 to 2024 is that Cancun was bumped from the number two spot to number six - while Tokyo rose from number eight to number three.

San Juan, Puerto Rico and Madrid entered the top 20 list this year, while Chicago and San Francisco missed the mark.

Data from Google also showed that 'travel itinerary' and 'solo travel' reached an all-time high in January.