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Supply and demand. Mix in other costs such as fuel, competiton, etc., and you have the basis for fares. There is no pattern any more to booking later or not.
The best thing to do is check all sorts of alternatives. For example, can you fly to one island and catch a short boat ride to your final destination?
Here's an example: I needed to fly one time from South Florida to San Fran. Everything was over $1,000 from Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm. In the end I booked a round trip originating in Miami on one airline and another originating in San Fran on a different airline. Both were direct/non-stop flights. I didn't care about the returns because I wasn't going to use them. The total was $525.
So a few other tips:
- drive to another airport
- fly to another airport that is really cheap and then book another flight out of there
- take a train to another airport that is less expensive
- fly really late or really early; both will make you lose a day on either end of your trip so you have to decide the value of your time
- check rates daily because they can change
- leave before the big rush and come back half way through, or visa-versa. That gets you there for part of the time but you're not traveling when it's expensive. For example, fly someplace on Christmas day or Thanksgiving day rather that 2-3 days before. You'll get a much better deal because everyone already wants to be there.
You can save a lot of money if yo work all the angles but you'll pay through the nose when you want something right when everyone else wants it. Simple economics 101 - supply & demand! Good luck and have fun because I know you'll figure a way!!
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