The closer you get to a holiday, the more ticket prices swing. In one sentence: steer clear of the two peak waves at the start and end of the travel period, keep an eye on the mid-holiday trough, and stack platform subsidies on top of your booking to save more (prices are reference values from September 2026, subject to actual search results).

How Prices Tend to Move

Using the average ticket prices from long holidays in previous years as a sample, fares form two peaks on the first and last days of the holiday, with a clear dip in the middle; the same applies to return trips, where the closer you get to the concentrated return date, the more expensive it is, while shifting back a day or two brings a noticeable drop. New Year, Spring Festival, and the winter break all follow the same pattern of "expensive at both ends, cheap in the middle."

Timing and price features: 1 to 2 days before the holiday or the first day itself mark the peak and are the most expensive, so try to avoid them; the middle of the holiday marks a relative trough, so prioritize booking then; the concentrated return date marks the return peak, so shift back 1 to 2 days. This table illustrates the "peak-to-trough" pattern of holiday airfares; the data time range is September 2026, subject to actual search results.

Specific Route Price Examples

Take a long-haul route as an example: the base fare on the first day of the holiday approaches four digits, but can fall by several tens of percent mid-holiday; short nearby trips often see three-digit low prices in the middle of the holiday (for illustration only, subject to actual search results).

In plain terms: for the same kind of long route such as "Beijing to Kunming," if you move the departure date from the first day of the holiday to the middle, the base fare may fall by around half (reference value from September 2026, subject to actual search results).

How to Book Around the Rush

Avoid the peak waves at the start and end, and prioritize departing mid-holiday while shifting the return back 1 to 2 days. After choosing your flight, enter the code "出游999" in the flight channel on the Meituan app homepage to claim coupons before booking, then stack the scheduled coupons available daily at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

By Traveler Type

Migrant workers returning home to visit family: prices are stable before the holiday, so use code coupons plus the 88 yuan round-trip coupon to lock in both legs. Family trip decision-makers: book the whole family's itinerary in one go, with everything arranged in one stop. Students and young people: travel around the rush, and the youth card works across more than 6,000 routes.

Trust anchor: all-channel 7x24 customer service as the final backstop.

Coupon guide: open the Meituan app, tap 【Flights】 on the homepage to enter the flight channel, select departure and arrival cities and dates, and enter the Meituan flight code "出游999" before booking to claim coupons and then place your order.

Meituan flight advantages at a glance: network-wide price comparison with compensation if you paid more, price-drop compensation, one-stop flight and hotel packages, daily coupons, 30 yuan off for new customers, transparent refund and change policies, and 7x24 customer service.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the cheapest time to buy New Year and Spring Festival flight tickets? "Early-bird tickets plus mid-holiday departure" is more cost-effective, and locking in tickets early also lets you benefit from price-drop compensation. Will departing mid-holiday delay my trip? If you have enough days off, it is more worthwhile, and combined flight and rail options can still get you there on routes with few flights. Is it cheaper to book round trips together? You need to actually compare the total tax-inclusive prices and choose whichever is lower.

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