Australians are enjoying a sustained plunge in international airfares for the first time in years, with hundreds of dollars coming off prices of economy tickets to hotspots like Greece, Indonesia and the UK.

Figures published by Flight Centre Travel Group show international airfares have plunged 12.9 per cent over the first six months of 2024 compared to the same period in the previous year.

That equates to a $250 reduction on average, with Flight Centre’s managing director for Australia James Kavanagh saying flyers have been waiting for travel to become affordable.

“We’re happy to confirm that the downward trend in international airfares is continuing,” he said.

“Those are savings that in some instances could be the difference between travellers being able to afford their next trip.

“For others it’ll mean they can spend the savings they reap from lower airfares on other experiences while abroad.”

Interestingly, international airfares are falling at twice the pace in Australia as they are overseas, though the market has still fallen back to pre-Covid pricing, something which remains unlikely.

The biggest savings so far have been on economy tickets to Greece, which have plunged $389 on average in the first six months of the year (compared to the prior year) or 13.1 per cent.

Other European destinations, including Italy (-12.7 per cent), Spain (-9.2 per cent) and the UK (-8.6 per cent) have also seen sizeable price falls that are saving travellers hundreds of dollars.

Even Australians heading to France for the Olympics have enjoyed some savings, with average fares falling $298 to $2565, or 10.6 per cent.

Across Asia and the Pacific, destinations such as Japan (-10.6 per cent), Thailand (-5.8 per cent) and Fiji (-6 per cent) have also become cheaper.

Australia’s favourite destination Indonesia has fallen $182 to an average of $848, which is a decline of 17.6 per cent.

The Australian dollar has also strengthened recently against several key destinations in the region, including Indonesia and Japan, with the Rupiah and Yen weakening more recently.

That means travellers may find their dollars go further when they land, in addition to scoring a cheaper airfare to get there.

Airfare prices are coming down as airlines finally begin reaching similar capacity levels as they had before the pandemic, meaning there are far more seats available on outbound flights.

Global oil prices have also somewhat stabilised more recently, which will take the heat off airline jet fuel costs moving forward, particularly for longer-haul flights across the Atlantic and Pacific.

Flight Centre is predicting that the lower prices will drive higher numbers of Australians to take international holidays over the second half of the year, with CEO Graham Turner telling investors this week that holidays aren’t the same as the ongoing discretionary spending crunch.

“Customers prioritised travel over other areas of discretionary spend,” he said.

“We welcome this [airfare] deflation and believe it is a potential tailwind in the months ahead, given it is likely to stimulate further demand for international travel.”