How far in advance to book hotels?

Or budget flights for that matter. I can never decide whether it%26#39;s better value to buy now for March (say!) or will prices get cheaper as the time gets nearer? I%26#39;m talking mid-March, not high season.

Currently looking at Hotel de la Paix Montparnasse.

Thanks.

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I like to book early, but, you can come across problems, for example, I%26#39;ve found the budget airlines don%26#39;t tend to have their initeries posted very far in advance (I%26#39;ve been caught out where easyjet cancelled their Belfast -Venice service for example..) Having said that, I%26#39;ve been booked for Venice/Rome in late March, (from Dublin)for a month or so now, so intineries for then should have been released by now.

Also, some hotels won%26#39;t let you book more than 3 months in advance, so it will depend on where you want to stay.

Glad you%26#39;re going back!

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I don%26#39;t think there is ever anything to be gained by waiting to book budget airlines. As an almost invariable rule the lowest fares will be found far ahead of your travel date. There may be an occasional last minute bargain, usually on an unpopular route at a low demand travel period, but rarely on most flights into Paris IME. (Not that you asked but the same thing goes for TGV and Eurostar tickets. Book as early in the process as you can if you do not need to keep your travel plans flexible.)

Much the same thing goes for hotels in Paris. I rarely see much fluctuation in hotel prices if you are booking direct. Some hotels have internet %26quot;special%26quot; deals, that are usually pretty constant throughout the year and generally involve a minimum three night stay or sometimes a weekend. Otherwise the most common discounts on Paris hotel rates will be found in the late July to late August period. These may not be published until late spring/early summer or even later. Some of the hotel booking sites may have last minute bargains, but if it is important to you to stay in a particular area or more especially in a particular hotel I would not risk a last minute booking.

Most of the well reviewed and moderately priced hotels in popular areas have very high occupancy rates throughout the year so they do not need to offer discounts. If you are happy with your hotel selection book it now. The only thing that will change if you wait is the possible availability on the dates you want.

Leastwise that%26#39;s my €0.015 worth...

L-

[Exit stage left singing sotto voce: %26quot;Oh, that sinking dollar, oh, that sinking dollar...%26quot;]

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We always book as early as we can--6 months or more in some instances-- and we always book 2 or 3 hotels. Hotels can change hands, close down to remodel, go out of business, etc. We always cancel in plenty of time those hotels we choose not to use so as not to inconvenience the hotel. We also book the train tickets 90 or 120 days in advance to get the lowest fares. Life has some surprises so we also buy trip insurance for those nonrefundable expenses we%26#39;ve booked in advance. It%26#39;s far better to have your reservations and your tickets in hand than to scurry about trying to purchase things at the last minute and being rebuffed.

oprah44

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Have you unpacked from your last trip to Paris? I am really jealous now:)

I second oprah, book early with cancelation policies in mind.

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Thanks for the answers. I%26#39;ll go for the hotel in the next couple of days, because that at least I can cancel, as you say.

The flights, if I go budget, are non-refundable.

Booking hasn%26#39;t opened for the opera yet, and while I still want to go back to Paris at my earliest opportunity, I%26#39;d prefer it to be round that opera.

And, after today, technically the last day of my break although I went back to work yesterday, I have sworn that I won%26#39;t spend 8 hours a day planning Paris. Well, I%26#39;ll try. 19 weeks and 5 days.