How to find the best Black Friday and Cyber Monday travel deals

Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Travel Tuesday deals have been coming in thick and fast for the last few weeks — you may have already spotted some of our round-ups of the best early deals.Tomorrow, however, marks the first official day of sales with many more deals set to be announced.

Whether you have your eye on a sweet rate for a high-end hotel suite, want to save cash on transatlantic airfare, bag a great deal on Brightline tickets or simply snag a good price on a pair of designer sunglasses or luggage, there’s something for everyone.

But with so many deals flying around, finding the right one for you can be overwhelming. Here’s how to navigate your way through this year’s Black Friday deals and maximize your savings.

Related: These are the best credit cards for shopping online

When is Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Travel Tuesday?

As the sales period has evolved, knowing when to grab a bargain can be confusing.

Generally speaking, there are three main days of sales in 2024, but many deals are already live. The official sale days are as follows:

• Black Friday (Nov. 29)
• Cyber Monday (Dec. 2)
• Travel Tuesday (Dec. 3)

Traditionally, Black Friday is best for getting deals in-store; however, each year, we’ve seen more and more online deals and sales. A worthwhile tip is to check both in-store and online pricing if you can before buying anything.

Cyber Monday occurs on the Monday after Black Friday and is when most companies release deals online. However, it’s not uncommon for companies to launch deals even earlier. A good example is Amazon, which is already running lots of discounts, you can see a selection of the best here.

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Meanwhile, Travel Tuesday is the day after Cyber Monday and is when we see airlines, hotels, cruise operators and other travel companies release flash sales and other deals they haven’t already shared. Again, there are some great hotel deals, discounted flights and cruise offers already live.

Here’s a run-through of other key Black Friday sale dates to put on your calendar:

Best travel essentials deals

• Amazon: Black Friday sales will run Nov. 21 to Dec. 2.
• Best Buy: Early deals are already live, but Best Buy’s official Black Friday sales will run Nov. 21-30, and Cyber Monday sales will be Dec. 1-2.
• Target: Early Black Friday sales are already live and run through Nov. 30. They’ll also have a Holiday Price Match service if they offer a better deal on an item between now and Dec. 24, so keep those receipts. Expect more deals on Cyber Monday.
• Walmart: The first wave of Walmart sales began on Nov. 11 for Walmart+ members, with in-store deals on Nov. 15 for all customers. The second online wave began on Nov. 25 for Walmart+ members and more in-store on Nov. 29. Now might be a good time to sign up for Walmart+. Cyber Monday deals will begin on Dec. 1 for members.

Best hotel deals

You can read out full hotel deals guide here, but until then, here’s a snapshot of the best deals.

Hilton: Save up to 20% on nightly rates at participating Hilton properties in the U.S. and Canada. This deal is bookable from now through Jan. 5, 2025. It requires a two-night minimum stay for travel between Nov. 4, 2024, and April 21, 2025. Hilton also offers 30% off the bed-and-breakfast rate at participating Hilton hotels in Colombia and Brazil. To book: Visit Hilton.

• World of Hyatt:World of Hyatt members can save 25% at participating hotels and resorts in the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America. Book now through Dec. 9 for stays between Nov. 21, 2024 and April 20, 2025. (Nonmembers only save 20% so it pays to sign up for a free World of Hyatt loyalty account.)
• IHG: IHG One Rewards members can get 25% off select stays through April 2025. Stays must happen between Nov. 23, 2024, and April 30, 2025 and be booked by Dec. 4. To book: Visit IHG.

• Marriott: From Nov. 26 through Dec. 3, Marriott Bonvoy members can save 25% off stays at 7,000 participating hotels around the world for stays that occur from Dec. 1, 2024 through Jan. 20, 2025, when booked via the Marriott Bonvoy App. Marriott Bonvoy members who book online will receive 20% off and non-members will save 15%. To book: Download the Marriott app (for the best savings) or visit the Marriott website.
• Virgin Hotels: 25% off the best available rate for travel through Dec. 31, 2025, if you book before 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 31. To book: Visit Virgin Hotels.
• Rosewood Hotels & Resorts: From Nov. 29 through Dec. 3, save 30% on stays at select Rosewood hotels. Most Rosewood hotels are also offering a minimum $100 property credit (though APAC properties have a slightly lower $50 minimum. To book: Visit Rosewood Hotels & Resorts.
• The Standard Hotels: Book now through Dec. 3 for stays through March 31 and save 30% on Standard stays in NYC, London, Bangkok, Singapore, Miami Beach, Ibiza, The Maldives Hua Hin and Melbourne. The Standard’s online shop will also have discounted items up to 25% off from Nov. 26 through Dec. 1 and 30% off Dec. 2. How to book: Visit The Standard Hotels.
• Sandals Resorts & Beaches Resorts: Save up to 65% and get up to $1,500 in credits by booking at Sandals Resorts. Families can save up to 65% on a vacation and get up to $1,000 in credits at Beaches Resorts in Jamaica and Turks and Caicos. Certain room bookings are eligible to receive a free night. This sale is on through Dec. 3, 2024, for travel through Dec. 3, 2025. To book: Visit Sandals Resorts or Beaches Resorts.

Best cruise deals

Holland America Line: Up to 25% off sailings with Holland America‘s Black Friday offer, which runs through Dec. 1. Passengers who book a cruise before the deadline will receive included gratuities, 50% reduced deposits and free fares for third and fourth passengers sharing a cabin with the first two cruisers.

HX (Hurtigruten Expeditions) and Hurtigruten: Through Dec. 9, cruisers interested in HX‘s sustainable expedition voyages to places like the Galapagos, Antarctica and more can save up to 50% on cruise fares. This offer is valid for cruises departing between Dec. 1, 2024, and Oct. 31, 2025. Additionally, Hurtigruten, is offering 25 to 50% off select voyages departing Dec. 1, 2024 – Sept. 30, 2025, when you book a cabin through Dec. 2.

MSC Cruises: Through Nov. 25, MSC Cruises is hosting a Black Friday Preview Sale, with up to 35% in savings on cruise fares and free basic alcohol and Wi-Fi packages. Voyages offered under this promotion include those on new ship MSC World America, which is set to debut in April of 2025.

Best lounge access

• Save 30% on Priority Pass’ Standard Membership and pay $69 instead of $99. Or you can save 25% on a Standard Plus Membership, paying $245 instead of $329. Shop: Priority Pass

In previous years JetBlue has offered promo codes for $100 off of flights and up to $400 off of JetBlue Vacations packages. Spirit Airlines has offered one-way flights starting at $20.21. Frontier Airlines has also discounted flights by 99%. Alaska Airlines also ran a $29 fare sale last year.

Many international airlines also offer Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. For instance, Air Canada has previously offered up to 30% discount on fares. Likewise, Qatar Airways has offered a 10% discount on newly booked flights. British Airways also often has significant discounts for its travel packages.

While theme parks like Disney don’t always participate in Black Friday-specific sales, others do. For example, in 2020, we saw Legoland offer up to 50% off passes, and Universal Orlando also ran a buy-two-get-two-days free deal.

How to find Black Friday travel deals and maximize your savings

Black Friday and Cyber Monday travel deals have already started popping up, though the intensity and frequency of the deals as Cyber Monday and Travel Tuesday approach.

The best outcome for shopping Black Friday travel deals is when you are able to double or even triple dip your savings. In addition to finding the deal itself, you might also be able to earn extra cash back or bonus points. This applies to merchandise purchases as well.

Here are some top tips for staying ahead of the curve so you can pounce on the best deals as they’re released and also make some additional savings.

Follow the right social media accounts and email newsletters

Subscribe to email lists for every airline, hotel brand, car rental company, rail operator and more that you’re interested in. As a rule of thumb, if the brand also has a loyalty program, you should sign up for that, too. Special deals are often released to members that aren’t accessible to the general public.

For example, if you’re interested in deals from Royal Caribbean, JetBlue Airways and Hyatt, be sure you’re on their respective email lists.

You should also follow the travel brands you care about on social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, as the companies often promote special savings on their accounts.

But don’t just stop there. You should also make sure you’re signed up for booking sites like Expedia and airfare sites like Skyscanner, which will likely flag drops in prices or special offers that they’re running.

Follow TPG

TPG will share curated lists of Black Friday deals for cruises, airlines, hotels, travel gear and more, too, so remember to follow the TPG social channels and subscribe to the free TPG daily newsletter.

Set price alerts for dream trips

One additional way to find Black Friday travel deals (at least for airfare) is to let the deals come to you. This may not work for all deals, but setting a price alert for a flight you know you want to take is a great way to get notified of price drops without having to constantly scour the web for savings.

There are some early Black Friday deals already out there, so we recommend getting these tips into action as soon as possible if you want to be able to shop the broadest selection of offers.

Check historical pricing

Just because a Black Friday or Cyber Monday travel deal pops into your email doesn’t necessarily mean it is a deal.

It’s not unheard of to see some hotels offer promotions that aren’t actually cheaper than member rates or ongoing AAA rates. Double-check member rates and any loyalty program savings before you book.

It’s wise to think through where you want to go now, then see what the regular prices are for everything from hotels to flights for the destination you are most interested in. This way, you’ll be better positioned to judge just how much of a deal something truly is.

Airfare deals can be subject to seasonality and hidden fees, such as charges for checked bags. Use Google Flight’s historical pricing feature to understand whether the offered deal is a good saving or whether adding things like checked bags will wipe out any savings.

Finally, sites like Amazon regularly see prices yo-yo throughout the year, and they don’t always save their best deals for Black Friday or Prime Day. If you’re buying from Amazon, we recommend using a site like Camelcamelcamel.com, which tracks historical shifts in pricing. You can also use the site to set alerts on specific products you want to buy,

Use online shopping portals

Many travel companies are part of an online shopping portal, and if you book through a shopping portal, you can earn something in return, such as extra points, miles or cash back.

To get the most bang for your buck, use a shopping portal aggregator like CashbackMonitor.com or Evreward.com to see which portal has the best return — since payouts can vary from day to day.

You won’t find all travel companies on sites like Rakuten, but it’s worth looking there, too, especially since many shopping portals will offer an increased payout during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday period.

For example, let’s say you are booking a trip with IHG. Often, you’ll find that you can earn cash back for stays at select properties by first starting at the Rakuten shopping portal. While rates are typically around 3%, we’ve seen promotions climb to as much as 20% cash back.

Marriott, Hertz, Hawaiian Airlines, Qatar Airways, Expedia and British Airways are just some of the other travel companies that can be found in these booking portals.

Check your Amex Offers

Amex Offers is one of our favorite ways to save money on purchases, and you can easily save hundreds of dollars each year by applying Amex Offers to bookings.

Travel-related Amex Offers pop up regularly, especially during Black Friday and Cyber Monday travel bookings. Do remember, however, that you must use your targeted American Express credit card when paying after adding the offer to your card to take advantage of these special offers.

If you have multiple American Express credit cards, you’ll want to look through all your accounts, as you might see different offers per card.

Also, keep in mind that a purchase must actually go through by the expiration date. So, if you make a hotel reservation at the Grand Hyatt Vail for next March and don’t pay when you book, the statement credit won’t be triggered.

Use the right credit cards

In addition to paying attention to Amex Offers and similar deals via credit card issuers, it’s important to ensure you’re always using the best travel credit card possible when finalizing any travel-related reservation. This is so you receive extra perks, such as automatic travel protection or bonus points, for every purchase.

Two of our favorite cards for travel purchases are the Chase Sapphire Reserve and the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.

With these cards, you’ll earn bonus points for each dollar spent on travel (excluding when you’re using the Reserve’s $300 travel credit) and receive top-notch travel protection benefits. This will come in handy in case you get sick before a trip and need to cancel, incur a delay while sitting at the airport or need to be evacuated in case of an emergency.

Use the ability to rebook to your advantage

In many situations, you can refund your airline tickets or hotel booking within 24 hours of making your reservation, so it’s often best to err on the side of booking first and double-check all the details later if you don’t want to miss out. This is especially true for booking sites that offer significantly discounted promotions for only a limited number of reservations.

Even if you aren’t in the market for a new trip right now, you may find it possible to save on your trip if you rebook any flights or hotels you’ve already locked in at a lower Black Friday travel deal price.

With many hotels and airlines offering flexible cancellation policies these days, it is easy to cancel and rebook in some cases if the flight you have already booked goes on sale. Some carriers, such as Southwest Airlines, even allow you to re-price a fare without going through the process of canceling and rebooking your flights.

Don’t wait too long

When you find a great deal, particularly with airfare or hotel bookings, you won’t want to sleep on them when they happen, as they’re often in short supply, so you’ll need to be ready to act when they appear.

Know your upcoming availability and travel budget so you can quickly know if a deal works for you. If you need to text eight people and wait for them to talk to their families, check their time-off schedules and ponder the trip, you could easily miss out.

Once those deals are released, you’ll need to act within minutes (in some cases) to succeed in booking them, so having a general idea of where you want to go and possible dates you can travel will help make it possible to pull the trigger immediately.