help with airfares :(

kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 23, 2009, 12:52:

davidyamiga says on Oct 23, 2009, 13:03:

Have you tried Avianca? Taca? LAN?

Otra vez en casa...Cali!

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babygirl says on Oct 23, 2009, 13:13:

Hey kat, another suggestion if you want to avoid the states, I don't know how you feel about the Toronto airport but Air Canada has direct flights from Toronto to Bogota. I would have checked for you but I don't know where you're flying out of.

Best quote of the week... "should I be taking this pill with wine?" Canadian Girls Kick Ass!

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 23, 2009, 13:17:

theflatline says on Oct 23, 2009, 13:18:

How old is she? Need to cut those apron strings.

Legaleez for Complete Morons - A book for gringos in Colombia for who think they understand the nature of the law in a country where they cannot speak the language.

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 23, 2009, 13:21:

theflatline says on Oct 23, 2009, 13:24:

Kat,

No one is going to harm here transitioning through the states, sometimes it can be a pain the ass, but if you are saving money, save the money.

My father used to cut deals with me all the time. For example a buddy and mine were in Aspen, and we had plane tickets back to new orleans, 500 dollars each. And my dad said that of we cashed the tickets in, he would pay for the grayhound, and we could keep the money. It was a crazy trip riding that bus across the country, 45 hours, but we made money and had an adventure.

How much would you save transitioning through the states?

Legaleez for Complete Morons - A book for gringos in Colombia for who think they understand the nature of the law in a country where they cannot speak the language.

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sanandressi says on Oct 23, 2009, 13:27:

Kitty Kat, I thought you loved American Airlines? Jejejejejejeje..........London Toronto Bogota on Air Canada? Sound thinking. (What makes you think Canadian immigration will be better than American immigration and customs?) Who flies DIRECT to Bogota from Europe these days anyway? Kat, maybe this Air Comet? www.sidestep.com but I don't know if sidestep works in merry old England then? Have the PM investigate? Maybe she could fly UNITED to Washington and then to Bogota on Avianca? I dunno kat but there has got to be a lot of choices from London town I should think? Pienso yo que una Colombiana tan inteligente, bella y completa COMO TU podria saber ya como resolver todo esto cierto? Suerte de todos modos.

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sanandressi says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:04:

So, you want her to connect in either Madrid or Paris and avoid American customs and immigration and get a good price? Well, as Mick Jagger sings "....you don't always get what you want...." but "..if you try real hard.....you get what you need"

Although you had a rather poor experience on American in Miami, have you thought of Continental through Houston and on to Bogota? There is a flight from London at 7:00 AM on the 17TH with a 3 hour layover in Houston. If for some reason she misses the 4:00 PM direct Houston to Bogota there is another at midnight. Just a thought for you. Continental is considered to be perhaps the very best United States flagship commercial carrier. Second only to the US Air Force! Jejejejejeje.....

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soylocombiano says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:10:

Kat, I agree that the trauma of passing through the iron curtain is worth extra money, but in this case it's not necessary to pay more. I just did a quick search on despegar.com and you could get a R/T flight from London to Madrid for USD 127 on Air Europa, then change to Avianca for another USD 900 or so, of course depending on dates. If you wait till closer to the date of the flight you might get lucky and find a big discount, or conversely get screwed if the flights fill, but changing airlines in Madrid should be less problem than flying through the States

Living well is the best revenge

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:13:

pedro (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:27:

bickerss says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:36:

Holy hell that is expensive; it was only a few years ago that I was paying 439 E return Paris Bogota!! What about via Italy?

Investment Strategy - buying when others are crying!! Offloading when others are gloating!!!

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nine inch nails says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:40:

I don't know Kat1 and please Im not trying to be facetious but Air France did have a little problem deep over the Atlantic earlier this year and Iberia flys the same damn type of planes (Aerobus) but it could happen to any plane. I think since Miami is the gateway to the Americas and sooooo many flights it is worth the hassle plus they have made numerous large upgrades there recently. Some of the new terminals are very nice and seems baggage claim is working a little better.

I love MIA and esp. for your daughter if any hickup to/from Colombia the so many more flights may help her get back more on time. Also I'd much rather go thru thick security layers than guessing with the weak ones. The terrorists they go for the softer easier targets.

Iberia flights to MIA if you want to avoid AA.

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:41:

theflatline says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:47:

Kat, you can save about 300 euros if you fly Continental through houston, then back from Bogota to New York, then London.

That is about 900,000 pesos, some good spending money for your kids in Colombia.

When was the last time you were in an American airport?

Legaleez for Complete Morons - A book for gringos in Colombia for who think they understand the nature of the law in a country where they cannot speak the language.

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davidyamiga says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:47:

Kat, I have a US passport so no hassle for me. I fly American all the time. No problems. Try again and see how it works.

Otra vez en casa...Cali!

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pedro (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:48:

theflatline says on Oct 23, 2009, 14:51:

Pedro,

I had Avianca employees steal clothes out of my luggage and I saw a guy walking down the street wearing them in Manizales.

Because you know, a Dallas Cowboy cap and a Penn State Jersey are sooooooooooo common in Colombia.

Legaleez for Complete Morons - A book for gringos in Colombia for who think they understand the nature of the law in a country where they cannot speak the language.

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thepieman says on Oct 23, 2009, 15:06:

Kat1.. what city do you want to go to in Colombia?? Iberia are doing £ 894 return from heathrow via madrid to bogota
Dep 16 dec returning 4 january.. i use kayak
hope this helps

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thepieman says on Oct 23, 2009, 15:09:

i just noticed you have 13 hour stopover in madrid.. might not want that... Lovely airport though :)

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panthdave says on Oct 23, 2009, 15:11:

Kat your problem is leaving on January 3rd or 4th....The 4th is the first Monday after New Years Eve and Weekend....I bet ya if you picked the 2nd week of January to come back you would get a better price but leaving on the 3rd or 4th of January your going to pay premium price...no way around that..

panthdave Miami

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manINred says on Oct 23, 2009, 15:25:

Air Canada is not an option, the flights are extremely expensive for that time. you'll be wasting in the area of 2500-3000 pounds.

The longer you wait, the higher prices will be.

Tell your daughter to come home a few days later... as panthdave explains, the date she wants to come back is high in demand. The first few days of school don't matter anyway, so she shouldn't worry about missing a couple of days.

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Rocco81 says on Oct 23, 2009, 15:25:

If you fly here to Dulles we have some great rates.

Flatline is correct...our airports now are on super high security and she will be just fine.

Sic semper tyrannis

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panthdave says on Oct 23, 2009, 16:28:

My flight coming back on the 4th is now sold out..You can't even buy a ticket...I fly 12/24-01/04 bought that ticket in July for 800.00...MDE-MIA Direct..They still have seats on the 12/24 flight..

panthdave Miami

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BUSHWICK-BILL says on Oct 23, 2009, 16:44:

Kat 1 are you really from Russia? So why you dont need the flight from Russia? I was travelling with British Airways from Heathrow to Miami and from there with American to Bogota... I payed like 700 Euro...

CARDIFF SOUL CREW.......

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thepieman says on Oct 23, 2009, 16:52:

Huskie i found madrid quiet and efficient.. also Barcelona same on return

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SiV says on Oct 23, 2009, 17:54:

Try http://www.vuelosbaratos.com.co/

Saw some around £850 - £950 on there for around those dates.

You could also try the cheap AirComet, which flies out of Heathrow and doesn't pass through the US.

Stultórum númere infinitum est.

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David Pristupa says on Oct 23, 2009, 18:06:

Try getting a ticket to Kennedy then from there to Bogota. A split ticket on
busy routes will bring down the price. A one
way from San Antonio to Bogota is $850
during winter season. From Kennedy is was
quoted $425. If she is going straight through I don't see why she would have problems with customs. London to Kennedy
??$400?? add on $425 equals $825 Tuesday night travel is lower than other times.

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theflatline says on Oct 23, 2009, 18:17:

I know Johnny 2009 scored a ticket for $550 rountrip recently from bogota to london, had to pass through customs, and he had no problem, and trust, I would have heard it.

Legaleez for Complete Morons - A book for gringos in Colombia for who think they understand the nature of the law in a country where they cannot speak the language.

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jimmymcc says on Oct 23, 2009, 19:55:

When I came here, I did London, New York, Bogota,
Kennedy airport is so good now compared to the 80-90th, when it was so unorganised,
Now it’s just a matter of checking in and taking your bags to the baggage area, but you then have to pay a tax before you are allowed to go through customs, or was that just for me,
I booked my ticket 4 months ago and got it for £553.00. RTN not much help I know, but it’s through Miami this time, that was with Expedia.
We need Ryanair,

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jinkssick says on Oct 23, 2009, 21:18:

Are you flying from England, seeing as you quoted in £.

My flights for Dec were £450 from london to medellin return. Split ticketeted. London-Miami --- Miami-Medellin.

Kayak dot co dot uk is an unbelieveable site. it took me ages but its worth it for the price, heres some very helpful links.

DESPEGAR.COM
FARECOMPARE.COM
CHEAPAIR.COM
COSTAMAR.COM
http://www.edreams.es
http://www.flylowcostairlines.org




spirit
fly from fort lauderdale only to medellin and bogota


JETBLUE
fly from orlando and nyc to bogota

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babygirl says on Oct 23, 2009, 21:24:

Well good luck with that, I can see you have a ton of suggestions here. I know how you feel I would probably be a little bit stressed in your circumstances and would most likely end up spending the extra money to make things more convenient too. I think Man in Red was right, the Air Canada flights at that time will be very expensive due to the holiday season. I did the Toronto / Bogota flight once on Air Canada and ran in to a ton of Colombians that lived in the UK on my flight.

Best quote of the week... "should I be taking this pill with wine?" Canadian Girls Kick Ass!

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tabla says on Oct 24, 2009, 00:01:

Tell your daughter how much it costs to fly on date x and date y. Then let her decide how many £ a missed class is worth. The key to this dilemma, funnily enough, is putting a monetary value on each missed class. This will be good lesson in business thinking, itself worth more than the odd missed class. It's easy to catch up on a class - just borrow the notes of a friend who's a great note-taker. Or three.

I also write for the archive.

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johnny2009 says on Oct 24, 2009, 03:31:

OK Kat1

If you force the ticket to go through Madrid then I have found you a flight for GBP971.90 (and your daughter also gets three hours in Barcelona on the way home)

You can book it via iberia.com but be sure to pick the same flight numbers otherwise you are paying 1300 quids.





Ticketing code construction is thus LON IB X/MAD IB BOG 614.39MHPX3GB IB X/BCN IB LON 448.63NHAP0GB NUC 1063.02 END ROE 0.60629 FARE GBP 645.00 XT 50.00GB 21.20UB 12.00JD 3.40QV 20.20CO 6.10JS 214.00YQ

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johnny2009 says on Oct 24, 2009, 03:34:

Ok and if you book those same flight numbers but departing on the 16th and coming back on the 4th then it is £878.90

But you get a 26 hour layover in Madrid!

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johnny2009 says on Oct 24, 2009, 03:53:

Flatline, going through Europe is always better than going through the USA, but I guess Americans wouldn't appreciate that because they get all the bullshit too when they go home. Took me 90 minutes to queue and get through immigration at Houston. Not like I was about to miss my flight, but it made my knees sore and I was missing valuable smoking time.

If Kat's daughter were to pitch up in Madrid airport with a British passport, then they actually act like they are pleased you came back to Euroland and just wave you through. Kat's daughter can be outside T4 within 20 minutes of touching down smoking her L&M azules, then she can dip back inside for una caña, bocadillo de queso y jamon serrano and porción de tortilla de patatas.

She might even pick up a few words of proper Castillian Spanish and be able to teach her mother a thing or two about how to speak properly when they are both back in Wales together.

Grathias!

The only foreseeable downside of flying through Madrid airport is that the Spanish dislike Colombians as much as I do, expect them to point at you and laugh then refuse to serve you at the bar until after all the civilised people have been attended to.

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thepieman says on Oct 24, 2009, 05:17:

Johnny i was able to smoke inside T4 at Madrid as they have small ventilated areas.... I couldnt find any at Barcelona though
cant seem to pm you either.. my email is thepieman01atyahoodotcodotuk

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johnny2009 says on Oct 24, 2009, 05:23:

Another reason to go through madrid, they have glass smoking pens, there is even one in the baggage hall at T4. One thing that irks me though is the bilingual bathrooms which say "automatic faucet" you is in Europe, they is feckin "taps" dammit.

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 24, 2009, 09:54:

sanandressi says on Oct 24, 2009, 11:11:

Kat1 I was just thiinking about the times I have left El Dorado Airport in Bogota. You know, going through 3 metal detectors and opening my carry on luggage for the soldier and being patted down not to mention the long lines to get my passport stamped by DAS. I stopped to get a burger at Wimpy once and I just managed to slide through Avianca's 757 door as they were closing the thing. OK you had a bad experience on AA but that is life. If you were Shakira maybe you could fly private leer jet? Leaving El Dorado is no more fun then making a connection in Miami. Airplanes break, weather delays...maybe the lads working the tarmac in London will go on strike? Asi es la vida!

It is simple really. Either suck it up and pay Air France or Iberia and avoid the US airports or save a few bucks maybe by going via US airports? I think Avianca is going to fly direct to London from Bogota in the future but if BA does not match the service then the fare will be cheaper via Paris and Madrid. Probably? Lack of competition mind you. Did you try Delta/Avianca via Atlanta? They codeshare and maybe have a better fare for you? London Atlanta Bogota. Fares are always high at Christmas. Supply and demand.

Just make a decision and buy the ticket and be happy with it Kat!

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 24, 2009, 11:30:

SiV says on Oct 24, 2009, 13:24:

Erm. . . thankyou for everybody's help, or something. . . ?

Stultórum númere infinitum est.

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thepieman says on Oct 24, 2009, 14:59:

your welcome lol

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 25, 2009, 05:39:

davidyamiga says on Oct 25, 2009, 06:11:

R u coming to Cali?

Otra vez en casa...Cali!

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 25, 2009, 10:43:

johnny2009 says on Oct 25, 2009, 10:46:

Kat are you taking me to crepes y waffles for a tentacion?

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Oct 25, 2009, 11:55:

johnny2009 says on Oct 25, 2009, 16:59:

Yes I will be back next weekend

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NiceMangos says on Oct 26, 2009, 08:58:

jajajaja pointless post

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