GUWonder

I don't know that this was an "error fare". It was a decent deal, but I've seen way better deals than this that had more promotional material out there and where I didn't even always know that there was promotional material out there about the deals. When I see a decent deal, I don't immediately go hunting to find out if there is published/printed promotional material to measure the validity of the offer -- hunting for whether or not a price is "too good to be true" is generally not how the market works when it comes to a decent deal. But this isn't such a spectacular deal to even get me to take vacation time to use it. So go figure, but I don't know that this was an "error fare" or not. Whether or not BA has seller's remorse, it's BA's problem; much the same goes for whether or not ticket purchasers have buyer's remorse.

And by the way, under the UK and US legal systems: customers who book related non-refundable reservations on the basis of having relied upon the airline's representations (after having legally contracted the airline by paying for a ticket and having the consideration accepted) means the airline faces being liable for making the customer whole for those affiliated reservations being spoiled were the airline to unilaterally cancel the tickets/contract.

subject2load

Perhaps (?) you're speaking largely in jest but ..... Have your "friends and loved ones" expressed such views on the basis that you are indeed in the habit of flying for six hours 'the wrong way' before beginning your holiday proper
I myself don't know personally anyone who does that !

BUT I do know people who are more than happy to begin their holiday from the UK by flying initially to any number of European points in Western Europe, before continuing a day or so later in the same westerly direction (to say Asia, or Australasia).

They are motivated to do this partly because it gives the opportunity to enjoy a short stay in an attractive, interesting city - a stay which can actually enhance, and broaden, the overall holiday experience rather than detract from it. Plus, the main benefit is that the cost of the air travel component can produce a saving of many hundreds (or, sometimes, even thousands) of pounds : more money to spend (perhaps on better hotels/restaurants) during the time overseas !

IAN-UK

hmmmm .... if you don't think it's an error fare, why the concern ?


BTW Love the way a first-class fare get referred to as a premium fare in this type of post. Coyly lumping together the regular business class promotional offerings (loads of them) with first-class ones (hens' teeth).

in the big hoo-hah over the Burma first-class fares, Swiss at one stage made it clear opportunists paying $500 for a first-class ticket would never be welcome on board: they insist on maintaining a level of exclusivity in the forward cabin.

IAN-UK

That sounds like rationalisation We have people in this thread flying across the Atlantic to spend one night at cheap Heathrow hotel before flying back across the Atlantic in first-class.

Now, I can grasp why they're doing that, but my sainted friends and family would just shake their heads in disbelief.

I couldn't even convince them to fly to Dublin to start a journey to HNL by flying back to London before setting off for Philadelphia and Phoenix before hitting Hawaii. Nor would any of them agree to fly to Mexico in economy to get the LAN J fare to Easter Island: miserable sods!

When i'm organising a trip, and there's a big one every year, friends are clear where they want to go: it's the first thing we agree. I'm authorised to play around with one connection to get us there, so they will accept some measure of inconvenience to get in comfort class . Transit time can't be overnight amd total travel time must be kept to a minimum. Otrherwise its a much shorter trip in Y that gets the vote.

This fare I could sell to them because they're in London and probably would love to do the Galapagos. But it's too late

mster

Can everyone cool it with the generic cheap fare question spamming? There are dozens if not hundreds of guides floating around the web relating to heavily discounted fares like these. If you are in unfamiliar waters relating to making plans around this fare then a simple Google search will absolutely be your best friend!

Remember you want folks who can add valuable insights to this thread to avoid unsubscribing

subject2load

Well, I think we're broadly agreed on that.

The GYE fare seems an odd one to have gone for if you actually need to cross the Atlantic to actually make use of it and then crossing back & forth again. That said, I believe some folk have used points to cover the 'positioning flights' - although others might equally see that as a waste of points anyway !

Chacun à son goût is the phrase (IIRC ?)

ermis177

Guys i checked my bank account today. I used visa debit and i have been charged. It was pending yesterday. Also to the guy who argues about the LHR hotel. Mate, i live in London i can host you for free if you cant deal with the situation

Edgerfly

QR has so many fares and their “business class” is as good it is first class just ask their CEO.

Croupier

Aren't you just being a tad melodramatic. You want to fly first class on a beer budget, ball out on some 5* digs or book a YHA ;-)

danger

I'm confused.

But then you say:

And:

You're really doing yourself - and everyone else - no favors by continually calling it an error or a mistake.

When I brought action against an airline for cancelling a fare it said it was an error, it cost me zip. The airline was represented by one of the five largest law firms in the world. I suspect their expenses were somewhat higher than mine.

And a final point. It took Iberia seven weeks to cancel one of my RGN fares.

Edgerfly

Yes, my opinions and beliefs have evolved as time has gone by. You could do yourself a lot of favors by looking at the time stamps and dates. Right after the fare, it appeared to be a mistake, but now I don’t think so. BA has honored the fare for many individuals already, all while not canceling any tickets.

joetraveler99

This fare is a great deal from the airline and nothing more than that. We should all be grateful if it’s honoured, and leave it at that (my Amex was charged the $1093 last night). The more chatter that this might have been something other than a terrific flash sale, the more likely the airline will revoke it, as we know they read these posts. Let’s move on.

kodawg9

Then you should book your non refundable hotel tickets and stop asking people when it's safe to start booking those non refundable plans since you've determined this to be good to go. The general observation from everyone else in this thread following your posts is that you've been too wound up -- just take it easy and enjoy the trip planning and enjoy the thoughts of a nice trip. Whatever happens happens, life isn't meant to be taken so seriously. If you're jumping on this fare, some little extra costs or hurdles shouldn't be all that material financially to make much of an impact on your decisions.

Rowyourboat

So what are people's plans in Guayaquil? From what I read the city does not seem that safe. Is the move to fly to the Galapagos islands and check it out?

kodawg9

if you have at least 5 days before turning back around, I’d check out the Galapagos. Anything less will be tough just due to the fact that flights to/from GYE to the Galapagos is in the mornings so you probably have to spend a day on both the front and back end in GYE.

Common sense should cover things from a safety perspective. It’s mainly petty theft you’re dealing with in the city and at hotel rooms, which isn’t all that different from some major European cities. I wouldn’t travel at night alone either. Overall, I wouldn’t be concerned about safety as long as you’re aware of your surroundings.