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Today just for fun I searched for the best deals on airfare from SLC to MIA sometime in May. The dates I specifically checked were rated as the best deal around this time. May 12th 2009 – May 19th 2009 was my example for these results (round-trip per-person including all taxes/fees rounded to the nearest dollar):

kayak.com = 229
priceline.com = 229
cheapair.com = 229
fly.com = 229
tripadvisor.com = 229
ITA Software = 229
sidestep.com = 229
hotwire.com = 229

yahootravel = 234
farecast.live.com = 235
cheaptickets.com = 236
mobissimo.com = 236
farecompare.com = 236
orbitz.com = 236
travelocity.com = 236
expedia.com = 236

cheapoair.com = 253
onetravel.com = 253
easyclicktravel.com = 254
airlinegateway.com = 254
smartfares.com = 254

Not always will this be the case, but use this information when deciding where to search first.

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Today I’m trying to wrap my head around all the travel searching websites out there and how they all differ. I’m putting a list on mandymandy.com so that in the coming months I can keep track of airfare, cruise and hotel prices from SLC to MIA. Today I’ve found some interesting information which I don’t want to forget.

First of all, Kayak.com apparently is the mother of all search sites. They search Orbitz.com and CheapTickets.com, so there isn’t any reason to visit those directly. Yahoo travel ALSO searches orbitz and cheaptickets.

Therefore, Kayak > Orbitz.com, CheapTickets.com, Yahoo Farechase.

Then there is a system called ITA. This is the system that Kayak, Orbitz, CheapTickets and Farecast uses. So, no need to use ITA or Farecast, right? Just use Kayak since it covers all 3. I do have to say though, I like the farecast history report — assuming its truthful.

Bookingbuddy.com

Therefore, Kayak > Orbitz.com, CheapTickets.com, Yahoo Farechase, Farecast, ITA.

Sidestep.com is actually owned by kayak, so cross sidestep off your list also.

Therefore, Kayak > Orbitz.com, CheapTickets.com, Yahoo Farechase, Farecast, ITA, Sidestep.

The top 3 websites are Kayak, Farecast, and Mobissimo.com (never heard of it??).

Searching on the Mobissimo website, I find that they search orbitz, CheapSeats, Cheaptickets, oneTravel.com, Opodo and a bunch of airlines like AA, Jetblue, Spirit, Virgin, etc.

Hmmm, sounds like they use the ITA system? Maybe thats just me. I again refer to the above and now add Mobissimo….

Therefore, Kayak > Orbitz.com, CheapTickets.com, Yahoo Farechase, Farecast, ITA, Sidestep, Mobissimo.

So what are you missing out on if you ONLY use kayak.com? One thing I found is Southwest doesn’t like to be part of any metasearch site, so you should always check southwest.com directly. If you have time after checking Kayak, I would go down the list and check Farecast and Mobissimo.

Other Notes:

For last minute deals, it looks like the best sites are Kayak, Hotwire, Travelzoo, Expedia and Bestfares.

For flexible searching, try Kayak, Travelocity and CheapFlights

Something else to know, besides flying on Sat, Tues or Weds, also try to book at least 2-3 weeks in advance for the best price.

I should stress that you may still be able to get a better deal from some of these websites I’ve disregarded. PLUS they might have a coupon code you can use. Check retailmenot.com for any possible coupons.

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This week we were supposed to go on a short vacation to California with my brother-in-law Nathan and his wife. They had been given free hotel stay in San Diego and invited us to share it with them. Something happened though and they didn’t get the vouchers or something. Mandy and I are bummed and really wanted to go. We were even looking at booking a cruise after the hotel stay. After our cruise earlier this summer we can’t resist.

Yesterday I was online at travelocity and found a great deal for the two of us to go back to South Beach. Hotel and air from SLC to MIA was only $909 total!. By the time I went back to show Mandy, the deal was dead and it was twice as much. So today I keep looking for something somewhere for less than $1k where we can relax for a week before going back to school at the new UVU.

We work up early today, around 7am and just kinda rolled over and went back to bed. Our flight leaves at 1:30pm, so we don’t have to worry about catching the free shuttle just yet. Around 8am I phoned the front desk and asked at what times the shuttle leaves today. When we arrived to this hotel, we were told that the shuttle runs every 2 hours, but one of the vans was broken down. Apparently today was the same story, shuttles were only running at 8am and noon. With our flight leaving at 1:30, we definitely didn’t want to push our luck, so we leaped out of bed and scrambled to get all of our remaining items packed.

We checked out quickly and proceeded to the front of the hotel with about 3 other couples waiting for the same shuttle. Quickly we realized what was going on. The free shuttle was delayed, delayed again, and then canceled all together. The employee curbside was more than happy to call a taxi for anyone who needed a ride to the airport. I honestly wonder if he received some sort of perk for calling a cab for them as I watched several cabs pass by, and one even come to a halt in front of the hotel looking for passengers. It was not the same company as the ones he was calling.

Another man who worked for the transportation company came over to me to apologize sincerely regarding the free shuttle. He wasn’t really sincere, and I simply acknowledged and moved on. Why in the world would he care? He doesn’t work for the hotel? I’m so confused. Again the hotel rep asked me if he could hail a cab for me, which I explained to him that we don’t have the money to be paying for something that was included with our hotel. We would be happy to wait for the next shuttle. He pressed me to give up the shuttle and just take a cab, as there may never be another shuttle. !?!?! I was frustrated and it wasn’t getting any better. Why was he so quick to explain this now? I just watched a single person jump into a cab alone. Why couldn’t he have just suggested then that we share the cost with them?

I wondered back inside to the front desk and tried very hard to remain calm. The lady at the front desk didn’t really blink an eye, I could tell she has seen this before. She asked my room number and picked up the phone. The information she provided next confused me even more. Apparently since the driver didn’t make the 8am stop, he was going to come back at 10am. The front desk clerk said if the shuttle didn’t come at 10am, that the hotel management would pay for our taxi to the airport. I was grateful for her calmness and resolution to the issue. All I can say is it is a good thing we started all of this 5.5 hours before our flight was to leave. Others we had been standing with weren’t as lucky, one I heard only had 45 minutes left. All I can say is good luck.

The shuttle was packed, the hotel clerk chucked our luggage into the back of a full size van. I hesitated, but did give him a $1 tip. His attitude was argumentative and defensive, I’m sure he has had this battle more than a few times.

During the 20 min ride to MIA I noticed the highest price for gasoline so far, $4.16 for regular unleaded. Arriving as the airport, we wondered into the check-in area and again our large suitcase was over 50 pounds. It was 62 this time, so we at least did a little better. We removed our scuba gear and towels from the suitcase and got it to exactly 50 lbs. Sheesh. This time I noticed that not only is it a $50 charge for bags over 50 pounds, but the max allowed is 70. Next time we are definitely going to take our 2 largest suitcases, and not the largest and smallest one.

Now with just our backpacks and scuba packs we sat in some chairs by the security area. Both of us forgot we couldn’t enjoy our 20oz pop inside the terminal. Not wanting to waste any precious mountain dew, Mandy and I chugged our drinks until my tummy felt ill.

Going through security was very quick. We walked right up to the ID inspector where they checked our tickets and passports. Next we proceeded to place our valuables in the plastic bins, removing the laptop, cell phones, wallets, etc. This time was a bit different than before as we got to walk into a scanner of some sort which blows air at you. The sound reminds me of the optometrist when they check you for cataracts. Mandy got right though, but I had to stand there for about 30 seconds. It was starting to freak me out a bit.

Don’t forget your belt. I did. I was still wearing it and had to remove it before I could walk through the metal detector. I’m sure everyone got a nice view of my 4th of July boxers. With 2 hours remaining before our flight, Mandy enjoyed reading her Moby-Dick book and I am typing this while listening to CNN Headline news and their coverage about how Obama is now the Democratic nominee and how airline prices are going up and jobs and flights are being eliminated.

12:55pm flight 573 2:21pm delayed due to late arrival.

Mandy talked to desk and got us a backup flight just in case for 920pm MNN to SLC. We will have 24 minutes to walk 10 minutes in MNN to our next flight.

Today we skipped eating at McDonald’s all day long. For breakfast we just ate granola bars and fruit snacks. Then we waited for a long time before eating lunch, so it would really count for dinner as well. For our dinner we wondered down Washington ave into a Spanish side street restaurant area. Before we found the food place, we found several bums and weirdos. Mandy witnessed at least 2 drug deals going down, and another that seemed suspicious. She actually saw the little baggie of green organic plant matter. We were pretty certain that this isn’t how Miami folks buy cilantro.

For nearly the entire day we relaxed on south beach in the area of about 17th street. The water was warm, and the crowds light. We enjoyed just spending time together and not having anything on our to do list.