First flight or red-eye? Sleep or savings? A new study shows Australians have strong opinions about preferred times to fly overseas, while some travellers will chase the cheapest international flight, regardless of departure time.
TravelIinsurance.com.au research found more than one-third of Aussie travellers (36%) prefer early morning or sunrise departures for international flights – more than any other time of day.
Midday was the next most popular departure time with 18 per cent of respondents keen for more of a lie-in before flying.
Only 11 per cent were interested in flying overseas in the evening and just 10 per cent would opt to jet off in the afternoon.
And those red-eye flights? Only four per cent said they preferred the final late-night flight of the day to arrive overseas in the early morning.
One in five (21%) Aussie travellers said they’ll fly overseas whenever it’s cheapest, regardless of departure time.
Generational preferences to fly overseas & other factors
Early morning flights are also popular as they can be cheaper when booked online and can feel like you are maximising your time on arrival for short- and mid-haul destinations.
Other deciding factors include the length of travel to fly overseas with late-night flights sometimes more amenable for long-haul destinations, such as the UK and Europe.
The survey also found Baby Boomers were the most price-conscious with 26 per cent preferring to fly overseas whenever it’s cheapest.
Gen X travellers showed a clear bias for early starts with 39 per cent choosing early morning departures for international flights.
Millennials were more inclined to fly out during the day with 20 per cent opting for midday flights and 13 per cent favouring afternoon departures.
Gen Zers were the most likely to opt for evening flights (13%), suggesting a preference for later travel times.
Psst: Here’s the best and worst times to fly from Australia’s busiest hubs.
