How the hunt for the cheapest air ticket turned out to be expensive

I’m clever. At least, that’s what I think. But my over-analyses have often backfired and cost me money. So I’m not as clever as I think.

Every time I book a flight ticket, I go through a bizarre ritual. First I check a couple of aggregator portals. Once I shortlist the flights, I double-check it on the airline’s website. Then I wait for Tuesday because conventional wisdom says you get the best fares on Tuesdays, although some say that’s not true.

Even that doesn’t satisfy me. Maybe it’s too early to book the flight; I might get a better rate after a couple of weeks, I tell myself. And I wait. When I’m ready to buy the tickets, the flight would have been sold out, or the fares would have gone up. Strange, isn’t it?

Leaving Las Vegas 

I berate myself for refusing to book earlier. In a few days or the following week, I’d have forgotten the episode. And the cycle repeats itself. Unbelievable! And I thought I was smart.

The biggest faux pas happened in Las Vegas recently. I had gone through the usual drill of checking Google Flights and Kayak before logging on to the Delta website. There were at least three flights on the day I was flying, and I opted for the cheapest.

The day before the flight, I didn’t get the online check-in alert. I was perplexed. I checked the flight itinerary and was aghast to find that my flight was a month away. In my haste to pick the cheapest fare, I had overlooked the date.

The situation was salvaged by amending the booking. But I had to part with $150 — the price for being super smart.

How I missed the Hogwarts Express

One recent episode was my holiday in Scotland. I had been planning the trip for several months. I talked to my friends who had gone there. Factored their inputs, and did my research.

The Glennan Viaduct, immortalised in the Harry Potter movies as the Hogwarts Express, caught my attention. The viaduct, a renowned feat of Victorian engineering and Scotland’s longest concrete railway bridge, is a picturesque sight with its 21 arches.

I wanted to ride the Jacobite Steam Train. Tickets were available; there were still three months left, and I hadn’t even bought the flight tickets. A month before the trip, I started booking my tickets. Alas, the train tickets were sold out. I was so crestfallen that I didn’t bother to make the trip to Mallaig to see the viaduct.

There have been several such instances, but I don’t seem to have learned my lesson. Once, I made a one-day trip to Kerala after botching the dates of what should have been a three-day travel.

I always tell myself that I will be careful the next time. I become so cautious that I end up filling in the flight details several times. That’s when disaster strikes.

Don’t worry; I’ll check everything thoroughly before making the next payment. The only problem is that I’ve said this far too many times.