Do we ever get the best prices ?

[Moemg]

Travel has become like a Mexican bizarre .You are never sure if you've gotten the absolute bargain price . I like to travel and I like to bargain so for me the hunt is almost as good as the trip . How about you ? Do the varing prices make you crazy or out for the hunt and what great deals have you gotten ?

[CuppaJoe]

The best deal I ever got was for a cross-Canada trip by VIA rail just after the Calgary Olympics. I had an open-ended block of time available and just called them up, gave the itinerary I wanted and asked for the best deal starting on any date over the next couple of weeks. I got private sleepers, some of them family size because they ran out of singles. I remember the price came in at $500 U.S., Vancouver to Quebec City and back by both the Northern and Southern routes. Great trip!

[CybrMike]

The cheapest is not usually the best. I rarely go for the cheapest thing I can find.

[MasterBlaster]

I have a story about getting the best price. It doesn't concern airfare but the principle is the same...


Years ago I went on vacation during the winter to Acapulco Mexico to enjoy the warm weather. When I arrived it was really hot and so I decided I needed a hat to protect my face from the sun. Well near the hotel that I stayed in were a number of shops selling the usual stuff to tourists. So I went in and found a (drug store variety) straw hat that I thought would do the trick. The hat was nice but simple and not worth much.

So I say to the sales clerk... How much is this hat ?

He then said - Oh that hat is very special. That is my finest hat. I will sell it to your for $40.

I then said... $40 ! That's way to much for this !... I'll give you $2 for it.

He then said - Oh no it is a very valuable hat. But since it is slow today I will give you a discount... $25

I then said... No way, $2 is it. That's all I will pay. And I began to leave the store.

He followed me out and said ... OK, OK I'll sell it for $10. You win...

I just kept walking...

He then said $5, $5 for the hat...

I just kept walking...

He then said OK, OK, You can have it for $2. So I turned around and went back into his store and bought the hat for $2.

As I wore the hat out of the shop, I couldn't help but thinking how smart I was, and what a good bargainer I was !

So back at the hotel, we went down to the pool, and after purchasing one of those frosty beverages that they have I spotted another tourist with the very same hat that I had purchased. So I strolled on over to where he was standing and said that - We have the same hat. We both must have good taste. He said that he had bought his hat in another shop down the road.

So I prodded a little... So how much did you pay for your hat ?

He then said that he had got it for $1.

In about 10 seconds I went from feeling really smug to feeling really stupid.

I had been ripped off !

That cheatin sales clerk !

[Sandy]

Master Blaster,

That is how I feel about moving prices for trip planning and other activities. I don't have the time to spend hours looking and waiting for the right window. But unlike the hat, I am always sure I have not gotten a good deal when the price is not set or I am buying something where price is not easy to compare.