Based on the International Air Transport Association calendar, airlines announce the most new flights and routes for the summer travel in April and for winter travel in November. During these months, you might have a better chance of finding an award seat.

In our own research, we’ve noticed that six months out seems to be the sweet spot for finding an award seat. Although it’s generally a good idea to start looking for an award as far out from your departure date as possible, that’s not always the best time to find a seat because not all the seats that will be available for awards have been loaded into the system at that early date.