It’s hard to believe, but the summer travel season is already coming to a close. Even though Labor Day Weekend is less than two weeks away, it’s not too late to score inexpensive flights and cheap hotel stays in some sunny locales. Procrastinators are being rewarded this year, as late-summer airfares in general are trending lower compared to 2023. According to data from the travel booking site Hopper, the average domestic airfare clocks in at $211 round-trip for Labor Day Weekend, which is five percent lower than last year. Even flights to Europe are averaging out to $798 round-trip, which is a 10 percent drop from Labor Day 2023.
As you’re booking cheap flights, one factor to keep in mind is that many of the lowest airfares depart from airports that are expected to be the busiest over the holiday weekend, and therefore will likely be fairly hectic. The top five busiest airports over Labor Day will be Los Angeles (LAX), Boston (BOS), San Francisco (SFO), Newark (EWR), and New York-JFK, according to travel search site Kayak.
Whether you’re looking for an outdoor adventure, a lively nightlife scene, or to plop down on a beautiful beach and do nothing, here are seven destinations with affordable flight options—just don’t wait too long to book.
All listings featured on Condé Nast Traveler are independently selected by our editors. If you book something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Reykjavik, Iceland
Planning a Labor Day jaunt to the Land of Fire and Ice might sound like a splurge, but in reality, there are tons of affordable airfares still available from major US airports. Flights from New York City to Reykjavik are clocking in as low as $446 round-trip on Hopper, while round trips departing from Boston are as low as $450. Once you arrive in Iceland, you could be treated to one of the most coveted celestial sights: the aurora borealis. Early September is the start of the peak Northern Lights season when night skies start to become darker for longer periods following the near-continuous daylight of summer.
