It was an ordinary afternoon when my text alert from Secret Flying chimed and the phrase “Error Fare” flashed across my screen. Realizing that the trip was to two of Jesenia and I’s dream destinations, I quickly dropped everything to look into it. The trip was from Newark, NJ to Spain, Portugal and Brazil for a shocking price of $212. There was a catch, however. The trip ended in Brazil. I instantly dialed Jesenia to see if we should go for the deal, but much to my dismay, there was no answer. “What do I do?” I thought. Here’s exactly what I did:
- I went to my go-to Google Flights to try to find the error fare. This was to no avail. That $212 price did not seem to show up.
- I did not get discouraged. I took the exact dates and locations and entered them into Priceline. I found that this works better for multi-destination trips. I kept plugging away until that magic number of $212 shined brightly on my screen.
- I booked it. Despite not knowing Jesenia’s availability, I couldn’t risk losing the deal. As I’ve previously expressed, my policy is book now and figure it out later. That 24-hour cancellation policy comes in so handy.
- I then figured “how much could a one-way flight back from Brazil be?” I searched relentlessly to try to find a deal back from Brazil thinking that even with the price of a return ticket, this deal would still be a steal. Sike. The prices of return flights were popping up at no less than $1000. That was not going to make the deal worth it.
- I finally spoke to Jesenia. We decided to spend the evening trying to find a return flight that could work rather than giving up this oh-so awesome deal. Despite this, we went to bed with heavy hearts thinking that the next evening we’d more than likely have to cancel the booking as we could not find an affordable way home.
- The next morning as I was getting ready, something told me to check my phone. A new text had just come in. It was Secret Flying announcing “you won’t believe this but the matching return for yesterday’s error fare is available. $300 for a flight from Brazil to Peru. Colombia and New York City.
- Again, I dropped everything to quickly book the return flight. I followed the same steps from number 2 and made it happen! All of this was done, only for me to realize that the flights were actually Business Class! The Travel Gods came through again. We had two business class tickets to five countries for a little over $500. Unbelievable! Another error fare for the books.
Accommodations:
- We stuck to Airbnbs and only booked a hotel in Brazil because of the potential dangers in the area. Our Airbnbs were outside the city center and we found, we enjoyed it much better that way.
What we learned:
- If you can’t find the error fare at first, keep plugging away and try different sites to make it happen. (Google Flights, Priceline, Kayak etc.)
- Priceline works best for multi-destination flights because it allows you to enter all the different destinations and locations.
- Continue to follow the book first, figure it out later motto. It hasn’t failed us yet.
- Always wait the full 24 hours before cancelling. We almost cancelled and missed the return deal.
- Sometimes it’s actually better to stay outside of the main city. You might find that you like it better.
Does this all seem like too much to you? Understandable! We’ll gladly book your trip for you with a fee of $50 for domestic travel and $100 for international travel. Contact us with your travel inquiries here.
I think 100$ for a flight ticket to one country is more than enough. That’s why I try use deals like this and familiar like hidden flights features which hard to find, but it definitely pays off!
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