Can't get out of our country

[Kiwi-family]

We have been trying for the past few days to book tickets to Madrid and have been singularly unsuccessful. Now we are asking ourselves whether we are maybe meant to NOT be walking.....or whether we are supposed to practice perseverance. Is this going to be a camino of trials?
We found cheap tickets online and decided to dispense with our friendly travel agent. After a few days of not being able to use the sites, we sent off an email to our travel agent and another one we have used in the past. Three days have elapsed and we haven't heard from either of them! We have tried the online sites again and have had feedback from customer service about how to get around one of the problems, but can't get back onto the site! If we manage to, we have to put in a fake birthdate for one of our kids who will be an adult by the time of travel and then ring them up and they will change the "mistake" free of charge! The other site we have managed to use today will not take our money. But they won't let us fly for free either so it looks like we are stuck DownUnder.

 

[Anniesantiago]

Personally, I wouldn't push it.
Sometimes God or the Universe or whatever you call it puts barriers in our way for a reason.
Just ride the wave... when the time's right the door will open.
That's what I believe.

 

[zzotte]

Lesson learned, look for the cheap tickets ( times, schedules etc ) on cheap sites, BUT purchase the tickets directly from the airlines because if you ever have a problem dealing direct with issued airlines tickets will make you live a lot easier.

Zzotte

 

[Kitsambler]

Perhaps it is not so much a matter of a door closing, as it is a matter of your being redirected. Are there other time or location options to be considered yet?

 

[gerardcarey]

I have come around to Zzotte's way of thinking.
Previously I would take the results of my research to a local travel agent and have them book the flights. My reasoning was that it would be good to have a local contact if anything went wrong while I was away.
Nothing has ever gone wrong that I couldn't handle.
I now book direct with the airline and one immediate benefit has been the "no charge" when I needed to change flights or delay a flight a few days. If you book thru an agent expect a charge of up to $200 to change flights.
Looking fwd to 2016!
Regards
Gerard

 

[gittiharre]

Have you tried Jetabroad? Super easy to use. Very helpful to deal with I found...I use them every time. Gitti

 

[urbanhiker]

We have been trying for the past few days to book tickets to Madrid and have been singularly unsuccessful. Now we are asking ourselves whether we are maybe meant to NOT be walking.....or whether we are supposed to practice perseverance. Is this going to be a camino of trials?
We found cheap tickets online and decided to dispense with our friendly travel agent. After a few days of not being able to use the sites, we sent off an email to our travel agent and another one we have used in the past. Three days have elapsed and we haven't heard from either of them! We have tried the online sites again and have had feedback from customer service about how to get around one of the problems, but can't get back onto the site! If we manage to, we have to put in a fake birthdate for one of our kids who will be an adult by the time of travel and then ring them up and they will change the "mistake" free of charge! The other site we have managed to use today will not take our money. But they won't let us fly for free either so it looks like we are stuck DownUnder.

You have probably tried this already, but on the technical side, have you tried using a different browser on your computer? Like Firefox for instance. Sometimes when it appears the site isn't responsing, it is because it doesn't work well with the browser you are using. If you are using Sarfari for instance, try Firefox. Just a thought.

 

[Saint Mike II]

Hola Kiwi - maybe they Camino God wants you to stay home and watch the Wallabies win the Rugby World Cup!!!
On my first Camino adventure I looked at ways to get to Madrid either in less time or for less dollars. It turned out that that these two desires are pretty much mutually exclusive : pay more and fly direct; pay less and take up to 36 hours to reach Madrid. The other lesson I learnt - book as far ahead as possible (virtually as soon as you have determined your dates).
I know that this does not help "now" - so how about going back to your travel agent - in person if possible. Cheers.

 

[KiwiNomad06]

Hope a solution finds you soon. I have only ever flown into Madrid once- our options of airlines to get directly there seem quite limited from this end of the world. All the best!
Margaret

 

[Kanga]

Its the pits isn't it? I find telephoning the airlines direct finishes up by being easiest.

 

[Kiwi-family]

Just when we weren't expecting it, my phone beeped and there was a confirmation message. Tickets have now successfully been booked for Daddy and Grandpa to join us too! Via de la Plata, here we come!

 

[Linda Johnson]

Love this thanks for posting