Error fares are the easiest way to fly cheaper without playing the more labor intensive game with air miles. So if you ever dreamed of booking an affordable business class or a crazy cheap economy ticket today (yes!) then keep on reading.
Make sure to read part 1 to know more about airline and airport abbreviations and checkout part 2 to learn about cheap open jaw and circle fares.
What is an error fare?
An error fare is an unusual low price for a flight ticket.
These fares are not only limited to economy class, there are also business class error fares. So this might be the perfect opportunity to enjoy business with an economy budget.
How are error fares born?
The price you pay for a flight is the result of a complex calculation based on business logic. There is a fee for the OTA, fuel taxes, airport taxes, fee for airline, …. On top of that you might have currency conversion involved. Each step in this calculation opens up the possibility of a calculation error. We can’t just blame systems, also humans make mistakes: entering 75 instead of 750 in the price system is a huge difference.
Can I book an error fare right now?
Yes you can! i added a list of sites where you can book them, just keep reading.
Before you start dreaming, keep this in mind:
- Be flexible. You can’t choose your dates and destinations, you just pick from a list of flights that have an error fare Dates and destinations are very limited.
- Only book hotels once you get your e-ticket. First you will receive a confirmation from the booing site, typically 1 minute after booking. This confirmation does not mean your flight is booked. Only the e-ticket guarantees your booking. You should receive your e-ticket within 24 hours. You will not receive an e-ticket if the airline or OTA see and fix the error and therefore you will only have the confirmation and no e-ticket. Don’t worry about the money you will get a refund.
- Be impulsive, book fast. Error fares only last for maximum a couple of days. Once the OTA or airline notices the bug they will fix it as soon as possible and you can say bye bye to the cheap fare.
- Do not limit yourself to the airports close to you, you can always book a flight (normal price) to the airport where your error fare flight starts.
Ok now just tell me where I can book these error fares
- Twitter search for #errorfare
- Secret Flying Facebook page
- Secretflying.com
- Cheap Flights Lab Facebook page
- … google “error fare” or check the accounts on twitter that post using #errorfare
Leave a comment if you managed to book a crazy cheap deal 🙂
I got the Orlando to Santo Domingo first class error fare for $110!!! Still can’t believe it and I booked DIRECTLY on Aeromexico. So I got the eticket immediately!!! I’m so excited!!!
That’s awesome, enjoy your trip!
Looking forward to Part 4.
Hi! I just read your blog about “error fare” so does this mean that airlines websites were being hacked and air fare are being tampered with temporarily? Are those websites, Secret Flying etc, are they actually safe and secure when booking?
No the airline websites were not hacked, no worries 🙂 What usually happens is that an employee from the airline enters a . instead of , when entering prices or another typo. Sometimes there are also too many complex business rules applied to a price and it results in an unusual low price. So it’s a mistake from the airline or from a travel website.
Sites like secret flying and fly4free just come across those mistakes on forums like flyertalk or they use bots to find low prices and post them with some extra info and links. They earn money because they link to booking sites and get a commission for every ticket sold.