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Your Ultimate Guide to Travel Tuesday 2026
September 27, 2026
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired.
Quick answer: Travel Tuesday 2026 is Tuesday, December 1, 2026, the day after Cyber Monday. As of October 20, 2026, no major airline, hotel chain or booking site has published its Travel Tuesday 2026 offer, so this guide shows what brands offered in 2025 and how to get ready now.
We will update this page as 2026 offers are announced. Until then, treat every 2025 deal below as history, not a current price.
When Is Travel Tuesday 2026?
Travel Tuesday always lands on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. Here is the 2026 holiday sale calendar:
- Thanksgiving: Thursday, November 26, 2026
- Black Friday: Friday, November 27, 2026
- Cyber Monday: Monday, November 30, 2026
- Travel Tuesday: Tuesday, December 1, 2026
The travel booking app Hopper created the event in 2017 and calls it Travel Deal Tuesday. In 2025 it fell on December 2, and Hopper said it was the event's ninth year.
Many brands do not wait for Tuesday. In 2025, plenty of hotel and cruise sales opened in mid to late November and some ran into the following week, so the useful window is roughly Thanksgiving week through the first week of December.
Traveling for the Holidays? Don't Book Before Reading These Credit Card Tips
Which Travel Tuesday 2026 Sales Have Been Announced?
As of October 20, 2026, we have not found an official Travel Tuesday 2026 announcement from Hopper, a major U.S. airline, a big hotel chain or an online travel agency. Hopper typically announces its offers the week before the event. In 2025, its press release went out on November 25.
A few early Black Friday travel sales are already live. The clearest one we could confirm:
- Margaritaville at Sea: a "Black Friday Early Access" sale advertising 65% off cruise fares. Cruise Fever reports it runs October 14 through November 3, 2026, with third and fourth guests sailing free on select sailings. Check the cruise line's site for current terms.
If a brand you care about runs an early sale, compare it with last year's Travel Tuesday offer from the same brand (see the table below). If the early price is already as good, there is little reason to wait.
Paying for a prepaid, nonrefundable deal? Use a card with trip cancellation coverage so a covered emergency does not cost you the whole trip.
What Travel Tuesday 2025 Offered
These are 2025 offers, shown as history. They have all expired and none has been confirmed for 2026. They are useful as a benchmark for what a good Travel Tuesday deal from each brand looks like.
| Brand | Type | 2025 offer (expired) | 2025 booking window | Travel window |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hopper | Hotels | 15% to 50% off in select destinations (headline: up to 40%) | December 2, 2025 | Varied by property |
| Expedia | Hotels | Up to 50% off thousands of hotels | Nov. 20 to Dec. 2, 2025 | Varied by property |
| Marriott Bonvoy | Hotels | 25% off in the Marriott app, 20% off online (members) | Nov. 25 to Dec. 2, 2025 | Nov. 30, 2025 to Feb. 22, 2026 |
| Etihad Airways | Flights | Up to 35% off economy fares | By Dec. 2, 2025 | Jan. 13 to June 24, 2026 |
| Turkish Airlines | Flights | Round trips from $529 | By Dec. 12, 2025 | Jan. 12 to April 30, 2026 |
| United Airlines | Award flights | Up to 25% off select economy awards for Chase cardholders | Dec. 1 to Dec. 5, 2025 | Select routes |
| American Airlines Vacations | Packages | Discounted packages, up to 50% off miles purchases | Through Dec. 6, 2025 | Through Oct. 31, 2026 |
| Holland America Line | Cruises | Up to 30% off fares, reduced deposits | Nov. 20 to Dec. 4, 2025 | Dec. 2025 to Oct. 2027 |
| Princess Cruises | Cruises | Up to $800 in instant savings | Nov. 25 to Dec. 2, 2025 | Select sailings |
| Royal Caribbean | Cruises | Up to $1,000 off fares | Nov. 7 to Dec. 8, 2025 | Select sailings |
A few patterns stood out in 2025:
- Hotels and cruises led. Hotel discounts of 25% to 50% and cruise fare cuts with free third and fourth guests were far more common than big airfare sales.
- Booking windows were short, travel windows were long. Many offers had to be booked within a few days but covered travel well into 2026.
- Membership mattered. Marriott's best rate was for Bonvoy members booking in its app, and Hopper's and Tripadvisor's hotel deals were app exclusives.
- Hopper's own data favored the day. Hopper said Travel Deal Tuesday 2024 had more deals than Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined, with trips planned on its app at 3.5 times the previous Tuesday.
How to Prepare for Travel Tuesday 2026
The best Travel Tuesday purchases are trips you were already planning. Use the next six weeks to set yourself up:
- Pick two or three trips and a date range. Know your destination, how flexible your dates are and what a normal price looks like, so you can recognize a real discount in minutes.
- Set fare and hotel price alerts now. Google Flights, Hopper and most hotel apps let you track a route or property. A month of price history tells you whether a sale price is any good.
- Join the free loyalty programs. In 2025, several of the best hotel rates required a free membership or the brand's app.
- Read the booking and travel windows. Most deals require booking within a few days and limit travel dates. Check blackout dates and minimum stays before you pay.
- Check the cancellation policy. Many sale rates are prepaid and nonrefundable. Pay with a card that includes trip cancellation coverage when the rate cannot be refunded.
- Book early if the price is right. Sales that open on Black Friday or earlier can sell out of the best dates before Tuesday.
Heading home for the holidays too? Our guide to credit card tips for holiday travel covers what to check before you book.
Which Credit Card Should You Book With?
Travel Tuesday deals are often prepaid and nonrefundable, so the card you pay with matters as much as the discount. Look for a card that offers trip cancellation and interruption insurance, trip delay coverage and rental car coverage.
For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card includes trip cancellation and interruption insurance of up to $10,000 per covered traveler and $20,000 per trip for prepaid, nonrefundable travel when a covered reason applies. It also offers trip delay reimbursement of up to $500 per covered traveler for delays over 12 hours or an overnight stay, plus primary rental car coverage.
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The Sapphire Preferred earns 5x points on travel booked through Chase Travel and 2x on all other travel. Its current welcome bonus is 75,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening, and it has a $95 annual fee.
Coverage terms and exclusions apply, so read your card's guide to benefits. For more options, see our list of the best credit cards with travel insurance.
How Kudos Helps You Book Smarter
Kudos is free and works at online checkout, including on travel sites. With the free version you can:
- See which of your cards earns the most at checkout, then autofill it
- Earn Kudos Boost at the standard rate at 15,000+ stores, on top of your card rewards
- Check approval odds and build a Dream Wallet in Card Explorer if you want a travel card before the holidays
- Use Test Drive to see what a new card would have earned on your past spending
Kudos Premium adds 1.25x Boost, auto-activated card-linked offers and a Benefits Tracker that reminds you of protections and credits you already have. That is handy when you are deciding which card to put a nonrefundable trip on.
Frequently Asked Questions About Travel Tuesday 2026
When is Travel Tuesday 2026?
Travel Tuesday 2026 is Tuesday, December 1, 2026. It follows Black Friday on November 27 and Cyber Monday on November 30.
Have any Travel Tuesday 2026 deals been announced?
Not as of October 20, 2026. Early Black Friday travel sales have started, such as Margaritaville at Sea's early access cruise sale, but airline, hotel and booking site offers for December 1 have not been published yet.
Is Travel Tuesday better than Black Friday for travel?
Often, yes. Hopper said its 2024 Travel Deal Tuesday had more deals than Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. Still, many brands start sales earlier in Thanksgiving week, so compare prices as soon as sales open.
Are Travel Tuesday deals refundable?
Many are not. Sale rates are often prepaid, with short booking windows and fixed travel dates. Read the cancellation policy and pay with a card that includes trip cancellation coverage.
What did airlines offer on Travel Tuesday 2025?
Examples included up to 35% off Etihad economy fares, Turkish Airlines round trips from $529 and up to 25% off select United award flights for Chase cardholders. These offers have expired and are not confirmed for 2026.
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Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are those of Kudos alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
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