How to beat blackout dates and save a bundle

— -- When it comes to travel, it's not just about location, location, location. It's also about timing, timing, timing. And veteran travelers know tweaking your itinerary by as little as 24 hours can make or break a trip—as well as your budget.

But whether your vacation plans overlap with blackout dates, peak seasons or holiday premium surcharges, it's clear not all travel dates are created equal. In all cases, knowledge is power before you book.

Hot dates?

In recent years, blackout dates have been a classic "good news-bad news" for airline frequent flier members. While many airlines and branded credit cards have boasted of the elimination of blackouts and this news has been widely reported, experts say securing award seats is no easier during crunch periods such as the holidays. In fact, in many cases it's harder, as airlines and other travel suppliers still employ sophisticated capacity-control tools to limit availability, even when they don't declare official blackout dates.

In some cases, airline blackout dates remain very much in effect, or they require additional mileage on certain days. US Airways still lists 15 days in 2012 when they apply throughout North America. But that list is supplemented by much more extensive lists for individual cities throughout the U.S., as well as Hawaii and international destinations. And Southwest Airlines notes Rapid Rewards Freedom Awards are subject to "limited" blackout dates.

Even when blackouts have been eliminated, it's still necessary to read the fine print. For example, United Airlines states it has no blackouts on any award bookings; however, its Star Alliance partner airlines do have such dates. The Delta Air Lines SkyMile program notes " blackout dates may apply and are defined by individual carriers." And blackout dates still apply with the American Airlines AAdvantage Vacation Awards Program.

As SmarterTravel.com advises: "Planning around blackout dates is pretty straightforward. The bigger challenge is getting an award seat on a popular flight with severely limited award availability." But blackout dates don't just figure into frequent-flier program redemption. They also signify specific times when sale prices will not apply and discounts will not be applicable.

Airlines for America provides a sobering view of how passenger load factors have soared in recent years. And those high seat occupancies are particularly acute during holidays, especially between Thanksgiving and the first week of a new year, when many flights are maxed out by paying revenue passengers. It's an exceptionally tough time to seek reward seats, nonrevenue travel and deep discounts.

Blacking out the industry

Blackout dates and peak pricing are also common in other travel sectors. Consider the following:

• Rail: For 2012, Amtrak's Guest Rewards program has imposed 24 blackout dates, though members in the elite Select Plus category can redeem during these periods.

• Motorcoach: In recent years Greyhound has imposed both holiday premium surcharges and blackout dates on its lowest advance purchase fares. This year there are 23 blackout days, with a cluster surrounding Christmas and New Year's.

• Theme parks: Such places are all about kids, so prices can vary dramatically based on the time of year and day of the week when school is out. What's more, discounted ticket purchases often carry date restrictions. For example, Disneyland offers four annual passport programs, but the "blockout dates" vary considerably, from a premium plan with none to the lowest-priced plan that blocks out all weekends, many Fridays, all holidays and school breaks and virtually the entire months of June, July and August.

• Lodging: As for the hotel and resort industry, the rule of thumb is the same as dealing with the airlines: Some chains still impose blackout dates on award travel and some do not, but availability and pricing will rise and fall around peak seasons. At properties covered by the Omni Select Guest program, blackout dates range from just a few days a year to multiple windows throughout the year.

• Cruises: As for those booking sailings, remember that blackout dates and price premiums can take two forms—the price of the cruise itself, as well as the price of excursions, particularly on islands during peak seasons.

Choosing wisely

Here are some suggestions for navigating your travels during peak times:

• U.S. travel companies tend to plan their seasons around school calendars. So if you don't have kids of school age, consider traveling when families aren't. (When my son was young enough to miss a week of pre-school, we enjoyed several inexpensive vacations—and avoided the crowds as well.)

• It's ALWAYS smart to tweak your itinerary while shopping for travel, since departing or returning even a few days earlier or later can generate considerable savings. But it's particularly smart to do so during holidays and other peak times. On many occasions, the savings from flying on a Tuesday instead of a Monday, for instance, will cover the cost of an extra hotel night and then some.

• Not all peak and off-peak seasons are apparent to travelers. Some destinations may experience booking peaks and valleys due to a variety of factors, so don't guess when it comes to pricing—check it out.

• While holiday periods can be quite busy, there are lulls within those periods. One common solution is to travel on the day of a major holiday such as Thanksgiving or Christmas. (As a flight operations manager, I once canceled an empty New York-Washington departure on Thanksgiving afternoon, knowing full well that just 72 hours later—on the Sunday after Thanksgiving—the terminal would be clogged on the busiest air travel day of the year.)

• "No blackout dates" doesn't automatically mean seats or accommodations will be available; you still need to find availability. During busy seasons, the general rule is, the earlier you book, the better. In the case of airlines, flights usually are loaded into reservations systems 330 days in advance.

• Priceline already has posted its " Best Days to Fly for the Holidays" calendar for 2012, which can serve as an excellent guide for hotels and other modes of transportation as well.

• If you're using an airline's frequent-flier mileage to secure a seat, make sure that carrier's partner airlines have not imposed blackout dates of their own.

Bill McGee, a contributing editor to Consumer Reports and the former editor of Consumer Reports Travel Letter, is an FAA-licensed aircraft dispatcher who worked in airline operations and management for several years. Tell him what you think of his latest column by sending him an e-mail at USATODAY.com at travel@usatoday.com. Include your name, hometown and daytime phone number, and he may use your feedback in a future column.