2 Hours Too Late

You have probably already heard about the glitch in Delta Airlines' booking system that happened on the morning of Boxing Day. But if you haven't, it's worth the read. It's a travel junkie's dream come true. It's like winning the lotto.  (Search "Delta Glitch" and you will find lots to read.)

#Deltaglitch also became its own trending hashtag pretty quickly.

Some people booked first class tickets to Hawaii for $86 round trip, all fees included. Other domestic fares reported as low as $20.

It seems that for 2 hours prices on an incredible number of routes were accidentally reduced to mere pennies on the dollar. By the time I heard about it, there were only traces left, but no deals. You could search and find the deals (like through Expedia.com) but once you selected to purchase, the updated prices were revealed. Delta took the drastic step of taking their own website offline in order to fix the error.

Look at these screen shots form my Expedia search. It's enough to make you salivate, isn't it?

Such programming errors have happened before with other airlines. With precedent set, Delta really had no choice but to honour all the fares booked at these rock bottom prices.  In the days to come, some may argue that it was a brilliant and well timed (Boxing Day) marketing ploy, but I would argue that simply would be some clever after-thought marketing to cover up what was likely just a "little" human error.

Regardless, Delta just bought a whole bunch of publicity (with the error), and a whole bunch of good will (by honouring purchased fares).

I would also bet big money that Delta.com will see their web traffic counts skyrocket at bargain hunters troll the site into the foreseeable future looking for any deal that resemble the Great Delta Glitch of Christmas 2013.

See the price Delta was offering, as compared
to what you would consider a normal price.

Look at the bottom corner for the price change!
Ah, what could have been!!!

Expedia just taunting us with what could have been! 

Bahamas - Go Now!

It's 28C in the Bahamas today. It's the same tomorrow, and the day after. It sure beats the weather here. But nobody talks about the weather in the Bahamas, because it's always the same. It's always gorgeous and warm, and in that 25-28C range year round. If it rains, it's just for a few minutes and the sun returns.

Air fare costs are more like the Canadian weather... up and down. Volatile, and unpredictable in the winter. However, I've spied a bargain.

If you go on April 15th, and return the 23rd, you can get return air fare, tax included at $415/436/500 from GFK/MOT/YWG airports. This is with Delta Airlines.  So, even if you're not interested in catching the flight from Grand Forks, you can still fly cheaply out of Winnipeg.

I've stayed at the Sheraton Cable Beach. It's my favourite Sheraton on earth (so far). I've also stayed several times at Atlantis.  Nothing satisfies like Atlantis! It literally has something for everyone and at all budgets. (As long as your budget starts at $200 per night).

You could also stay at the Comfort Inn, which is next door to Atlantis. It's a sister hotel, and you have all the waterpark privileges included at Atlantis. So that's a nice little savings, if you're willing to stay a further walk from the pools/casino etc.

The Sheraton is currently offering every 4th night free. So, since this is an 8 night stay, it kind of lines up nicely.

The Lyndon Pilling International Airport at NAS is brand new. Absolutely amazing. It was opened mid  October 2012. I was through there shortly after. It's fairly similar to YWG right now. It's also leaps above the Caribbean hut on an airstrip that was there previously.  It's currently the best airport in the Caribbean IMO.  You should check it out!

At $415 air fare, you'll have plenty of money left over to buy straw market crafts.

It IS BETTER in the BAHAMAS!

Tips for Newbies

Thinking about taking your first plane trip? I have a few tips...

1. Get yourself a travel app like "On The Fly" "Hipmunk" or "Kayak". Something that will effortlessly search all possible routes, airlines and prices for you. My preference is "On The Fly". It never ceases to amaze me with the price differences it can spy.

2. Once you choose your airline, sign up for their frequent flier program BEFORE you book. Even if you think it's just one flight, I can tell you with certainty... it's not. You'll book again. Collect points, tune in to their offers.

3. Sign up everyone in your family individually. Travellers can't collect points for family members. Even your 6 year-old can gather Aeroplan. This was a big mistake on my part. Each of the kids missed out on their Skymiles to Maui. They'd be at a free flight level already if I had know this ahead of time. For whatever reason, I thought if I booked and paid for all four flights I would get points for all four. I was wrong. I missed out. 75% loss.

4. Know your airport security rules... liquids, scissors etc. Don't delay the lines and frustrate other travellers with your naivety. Cdn TSA Guidelines  Don't wear bulky layers of zippered clothes thru security. Seriously... I will give you THE LOOK. Or if you do, please let us go ahead of you.

5. Most airlines only accept credit cards for inflight purchases of drinks or snacks. Don't assume pop or coffee is free anymore. Bring your own kid friendly granola bars etc, if you think your kids might need a snack on the plane.

6. If you think you might be delayed, research ahead of time and know what your alternate flights are. You'll be soooo much further ahead if you can re-book yourself at a kiosk or on your smartphone.

Delta's App and real-time options are far superior to anything else I've ever seen. We were in the air and I received Delta alerts that our flight delay would mean we would miss our connection. They have FREE in-flight wifi access to their site so I was able to follow their alert link instantly. They gave me all my no-charge options and we had a plan before we even landed the first flight. I was incredibly impressed with the technology.

7. Have your ground transportation thought out. Are you renting a car, looking for a taxi or taking a shuttle bus?  I know that after 7 hours in transit and making flight connections my family does not have the patience for a shuttle bus. Free or not, it does not work with our personalities. Best $100 I spend on a trip is having a town car waiting. Pre-arranging it you can generally have this service for $20 more than a regular taxi round trip.  I might pursue the bargain rabidly, but I am not willing to risk a meltdown over $20, a shuttle bus and tropical heat.  Of course, if it's just a direct flight and 3 hours of travel in a day, they can suck it up and wait in line with me for a taxi.