Our 2025 Flight Sales Predictions & Biggest Travel Blunders
Updated:
Nov 14, 2025
15 min read
Hey there, Travellers,
My friend Rachel was recently telling me about her alter ego, Airport Rachel. Airport Rachel and Everyday Rachel are not the same person; one is caring, patient, and up for a laugh, the other has no time for your nonsense, and will see you at the gate.
And she's not alone. Those of us who regularly navigate airports on our own have our system worked out, and throwing someone you care about into the mix might not be the fun start to a trip that you'd hope for.
Enter: the airport divorce. A temporary parting of ways in an overstimulating environment that's often full of people you might perceive as utterly bonkers.
What do you think? Is an airport divorce the secret to happy transit? Or do you have another trick to calm the turbulence before you take off? Let us know in the comments.
Happy travels and safe landings,
Katy - Editor of The Detour
Piggy Banks at the Ready…
Over the past few years, airlines have been dropping sales left, right, and center as that pandemic hangover has worn off and travel numbers have soared to pre-2020 levels and beyond. But, are these sales actually worth it?
We’ve rounded up the best Black Friday deals from the most popular airlines we’ve seen in the past, to shed some light on what you can expect from this year’s sales.
Round-trip flights to Europe under $300, Tahiti at $644 including a checked bag, and five-star flights to Osaka at $690 only scratched the surface of Black Friday deals we've found from across the United States.
Since demand has remained high in the years since the pandemic, it’s highly likely that prices might be a smidge higher across the board than a few years back. We’re keeping our fingers and toes crossed that 2025 will be another year of (good) surprises!
Southwest Airlines
Free bags, open seating, and a generous change policy once made Southwest our favorite “no-frills” airline, hands down. But a lot has changed over the past year, and they've recently embraced the same cost-cutting methods used by other low-cost carriers, putting an end to the generous policies they were known for. Free checked bags, we hardly knew ye!
Their Black Friday sales have traditionally focused on domestic trips under 100 buckaroos, but anything goes with the new Southwest.
What we expect in 2025
Southwest has ignored Black Friday in favor of Cyber Monday for the last four years, and we expect that to continue. They're not the only ones, either—we saw an overall shift to Cyber Monday in 2024. But hey, as long as the sales are good, it's all the same to us!
We figure Southwest's sales are likely to go in one of two directions this year. Either they'll continue to cut costs and deliver some lackluster discounts, or they'll make up for the new lack of perks by slashing their fares even lower. Either way, they'll be the first place to look for domestic flights in 2025.
American Airlines
We had low expectations for American Airlines last year, after they completely skipped Black Friday in 2023. But they surprised us with some killer discounts this time around, landing at the top of 2024's nice list. Great job, guys!
American is the world’s biggest airline and has the most robust network, so seeing them drop a BF sale is always a good thing. Especially as they usually tend to shy away from sales just like their friends at Delta, positioning their product on that more premium tier.
When they do offer sales, they typically focus on short-haul domestic routes. But American has an enormous international network with flights all over the globe, so there's always the chance for some top-tier fares to the rest of the world too.
What we expect in 2025
We're riding high on last year's great sale, so we have great expectations for American in 2025. We're guessing they'll probably focus on domestic routes again, especially since that's been a trend all this past year. But they might choose to leverage their global network and surprise us with some great international ones too.
We'll be keeping an eye on their Asian routes this time around—while American's reach is pretty limited in that part of the world, flights to Asia have been super popular in 2025. Could they be looking for a bigger slice of the transpacific pie?
Alaska Airlines
Alaska has had a big year since last Black Friday, completing a merger with Hawaiian Airlines and solidifying themselves as the premier carrier for the western US. They've also turned their eyes to Asia, launching new non-stop flights from Seattle to Tokyo, with a Seoul route coming in September.
An Alaska Black Friday sale is almost a certainty - they absolutely love doling out discounted fares across their domestic and regional routes every holiday season.
What we expect in 2025
Alaska is one of the most consistent US airlines when it comes to Black Friday sales, so we're expecting the same from them yet again. We're sure to see some really terrific discounts on domestic routes, including to rarer spots like Bozeman or Redmond.
There's also the possibility of better deals on flights across the Pacific this year, falling in line with yearly trends and Alaska's new focus on Asian travel. Could this be the year we get crazy cheap fares to Tokyo?
Travel Mistakes We'll (Hopefully) Never Make Again
We’ve all been there. Wide-eyed, in a foreign land, full of glee. You no longer feel the sharp ache of life’s shackles, those burdens feel a million miles away. The butterflies in your stomach remind you that you’re on your path. You’re doing you. You’re alive!
And damn, is that not the most intoxicating feeling? That's what travel is about.
But then there are those moments in travel that we don't always talk about, when those butterflies suddenly turn into a giant pit.
Missed flights, forgotten passports, ten years on a secondary security screening list… Our members and the team at Jack’s recently shared those travel mishaps they hope never to repeat. And honestly, some of these are a masterclass in exactly what not to do.
Except our Editor, Katy, that is. When asked, she simply said: “I’m really a very good traveller, so not much stupidity to offer.” An admirable stance. A suspicious one, but admirable…
Here are some of our favorites (and a handful of lessons we’ve learned right alongside you).
From Bali to… Frostbite?
“When our visa for Indonesia couldn’t be extended, I booked a week in Shanghai in February. While it was 25°C in Indonesia, we arrived in Shanghai to 0°C and frost!
Also, it was Chinese New Year — everything closed, no food stalls, not even local eateries. We made the best of it and booked tourist excursions until we could go back to Indonesia.” - Elisabeth
Going from beach vibes to freezing winds wasn’t quite the mid-trip refresh Elisabeth had in mind—but hey, at least she got to experience a very different side of Asia - sans dumplings.
Our takeaway: Always check the weather and the national holidays before booking that spontaneous side trip.
Never again - Gambia.
“Never go to Gambia ever again - rubbish on beaches, sea too rough to swim in, and constant harassment by locals asking for money.” - Kaminee
Our takeaway: Sometimes a destination just doesn’t click - and that’s okay. Not every beach is a paradise, and if you’re looking for just a quick sun holiday with your creature comforts, there might be better places. But we wouldn’t write off Gambia just yet.
Where the country shines is in the interior and on its river. Take a journey upriver, either as a day trip or a multi-day excursion, and you'll have the opportunity to learn more about the true Gambian lifestyle.
Whether that’s spotting chimpanzees, cruising along the Bao Bolong Reserve, or visiting megalithic stone circles and traditional villages, can you really say you’ve seen Gambia without venturing into its interior?
Overpackers Anonymous
“Taking too many things on our trip to North and Central America meant we had to take an extra hold bag. Costing £70–£110 each flight we took!” - Albert
That “just in case” sweater and 10 more pairs of underwear? Not worth a hundred quid per flight.
Our takeaway: Give our genius one-bag packing hacks a read - non-negotiable.
Leaving the hotel... and forgetting where it was
“This is basic, but leaving the hotel in a foreign country and not remembering its name or address so you can get back to it.” - Robin
Our takeaways: A quick photo of the entrance (or a pin on Google Maps) can save you an embarrassing game of charades with taxi drivers.
Pick of the Clicks
All the important (or silly, or strange) travel news from across web this week.
- Thailand may be known as a party destination, but don't get tripped up by their new drinking rules next time you visit.
- If Saudi's recent push for tourists has put it on your radar, the country's first UNESCO World Heritage Site should be firmly at the top of your to-visit list.
- Level up your festive European trip with these wintry train journeys beautiful enough to bring a tear to a glass eye.
- And finally, most of us have wondered what it would be like to just sack it all in and hit the dusty trail. But very few of us have ever gone right ahead and done it. Here's what happened when one intrepid adventurer spent 5 months walking over 3,500 miles from Mexico to Canada. No mention of how many Compeed she went through, we notice...
