Planning the Baltics, Part 1: The flights
I'm very excited to share that I'll be going to the Baltics in only a few weeks! I'll of course be posting about my adventures here on the blog, so be sure to follow by email on the right-hand side of this page.
Why the Baltics? Because I had vacation days to spend, and I used the ole' Google Flights finder to find the best place to go for cheap on the dates I wanted to travel. Seriously, if you haven't already used this feature, try it now. On google.flights.com, you can search for specific dates and a price range, but leave the destination blank.
I did the Google thing for my desired dates and Riga, Copenhagen, and Stockholm were among the destinations that provided me with one-stopover (that's my limit) options for less than $750 round trip. That alone was a good deal, but I still watched and watched and watched my options until they dropped to $722 and so I pounced. I was going to fly to Riga and home from Copenhagen, and I was ready to book. I was going to have nights in Copenhagen, Helsinki, Stockholm, Oslo, Riga, and Tallinn! It would be AWESOME!
But Google Flights failed me (somewhat) by leading me to a false fare. Several clicks and a phone call later, American Airlines informed me that they weren't seeing the ticketing code that I was seeing. So all was lost...I had to book my flight at $1200 for the destinations/dates I wanted.
BUT WAIT!
I didn't book it because, hello, that was almost twice the price. I waited and waited until I didn't see the price go down. Then I thought "hmm...what if I reversed my entire itinerary and just booked to Copenhagen and out of Riga!" But then I realized all flights home from Riga were a nightmare (multiple stopovers, or 6 hours in London with an airport change). So I was back to square one, doing my original search again: "Where can I go for these dates for cheap?" Now, along with the original responses of Riga, Copenhagen and Stockholm, Tallinn was added to the list. I was originally planning to go to Tallinn! What if I went to Copenhagen and back from Tallinn?
And something magical happened. It's a magical moment that makes your wanderlust growl deep in your tummy and your wallet sing with joy. It's a moment when you see an airfare price to Copenhagen and back home from Tallinn, with your preferred airlines, round trip FOR UNDER $580. What is this? Did I do just the right amount of good deeds this week to provide me with the ultimate positive karmic vibes?
Apparently, yes. And so I booked: I will be traveling to the Baltics for eleven days. And I'm going to attempt to make the whole trip cost less than $2000.
More info about the trip to come soon...
Why the Baltics? Because I had vacation days to spend, and I used the ole' Google Flights finder to find the best place to go for cheap on the dates I wanted to travel. Seriously, if you haven't already used this feature, try it now. On google.flights.com, you can search for specific dates and a price range, but leave the destination blank.
I did the Google thing for my desired dates and Riga, Copenhagen, and Stockholm were among the destinations that provided me with one-stopover (that's my limit) options for less than $750 round trip. That alone was a good deal, but I still watched and watched and watched my options until they dropped to $722 and so I pounced. I was going to fly to Riga and home from Copenhagen, and I was ready to book. I was going to have nights in Copenhagen, Helsinki, Stockholm, Oslo, Riga, and Tallinn! It would be AWESOME!
But Google Flights failed me (somewhat) by leading me to a false fare. Several clicks and a phone call later, American Airlines informed me that they weren't seeing the ticketing code that I was seeing. So all was lost...I had to book my flight at $1200 for the destinations/dates I wanted.
BUT WAIT!
I didn't book it because, hello, that was almost twice the price. I waited and waited until I didn't see the price go down. Then I thought "hmm...what if I reversed my entire itinerary and just booked to Copenhagen and out of Riga!" But then I realized all flights home from Riga were a nightmare (multiple stopovers, or 6 hours in London with an airport change). So I was back to square one, doing my original search again: "Where can I go for these dates for cheap?" Now, along with the original responses of Riga, Copenhagen and Stockholm, Tallinn was added to the list. I was originally planning to go to Tallinn! What if I went to Copenhagen and back from Tallinn?
And something magical happened. It's a magical moment that makes your wanderlust growl deep in your tummy and your wallet sing with joy. It's a moment when you see an airfare price to Copenhagen and back home from Tallinn, with your preferred airlines, round trip FOR UNDER $580. What is this? Did I do just the right amount of good deeds this week to provide me with the ultimate positive karmic vibes?
Apparently, yes. And so I booked: I will be traveling to the Baltics for eleven days. And I'm going to attempt to make the whole trip cost less than $2000.
More info about the trip to come soon...
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