SkyTeam member KLM is selling cheap tickets for its new route to the Caribbean, flying to Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago. Prices start at only £316 (~€368), and you can fly from either Southampton, Manchester, or London for similar prices. Luggage is only included for SkyTeam status holders. Otherwise, you’ll have to pay £60 (~€70) more.
All Air France and KLM tickets issued for flights until December 2021 are fully refundable. You’d receive a voucher which can be refunded to your bank account. You can read more about this here. Flights in 2022 are not refundable.
To Bridgetown, Barbados:
- Southampton: £316 (~€368)
- Manchester: £324 (~€377)
- London: £329 (~€383)
To Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago:
- Southampton: £351 (~€408)
- Manchester: £360 (~€419)
- London: £365 (~€425)
After flying to Amsterdam, you’ll get on an Airbus A330, which flies to Bridgetown, then continues to Port of Spain, and then returns to Amsterdam. This means that, depending on your destination, you will either have a short stop on your outbound or inbound flight. You won’t have to leave the plane, though.
Search & Book
This deal expires on October 3, 2021. You can fly between September 1 and December 14, 2021, or in 2022. You need to respect a minimum stay requirement of 4 days (or a Sunday), though.
Google Flights shows all available dates, as does our own calendar above, which will redirect you to KLM’s website.
Why is booking with an airline better than with an online travel agency?
More often than not, online travel agencies offer lower fares than airlines do. We still recommend booking with the airlines directly. There are two main reasons for that:
Better Customer Service
In case any problems like delays, cancellations or missed connections arise, you can communicate directly with the airline. The airline has to take care of you because you have a contract with them.
If a travel agency issues your ticket, you may have to reach out to them first. You also depend on your OTA to forward information like flight changes instead of receiving them directly from the airline. In many cases, you may get a prime exhibition of responsibility shifting rather than problem-solving.
This especially applies to premium tickets. You don’t want to spend more than €1,000 to wind up with some budget OTA’s telephone hotline in case anything goes wrong.
Baggage and Other Fees
Economy fares not including hold luggage are industry standard by now. In most cases, travel agencies charge much higher baggage fees than the airlines themselves. If bags are not included in your fare, airlines are often the cheaper alternative.
This also applies to other things like food services, insurances or priority treatment. In almost all cases, you pay less for additional amenities when booking on the airlines’ website.
Mileage
The flights between the UK and Amsterdam are issued in booking class L, while the long-haul flights are issued in booking class G. Starting in London, you can expect the following number of miles:
- 4,062 Miles on Czech Airlines OK Plus
- 3,280 Kilometers on China Southern Sky Pearl Club
- 3,012 Miles on Aeromexico Club Premier
- 2,890 Miles on Aeroflot Bonus
- 2,617 Miles on Xiamen Airlines Egret Club
- 2,548 Award Miles + 10,562 MQM on Delta SkyMiles
- 2,548 Miles on MEA Cedar Miles
- 2,412 Miles on Aerolineas Argentinas Plus
- 2,412 Miles on China Airlines Dynasty Flyer
- 2,084 Miles on Saudia Alfursan
- 2,084 Miles on Vietnam Golden Lotus Plus
- 2,084 Miles on Garuda Indonesia GarudaMiles
- 2,084 Miles on GOL Aéreos Smiles
- 2,084 Miles on Malaysia Airlines Enrich
- 2,084 Miles on Air Europa Club
- 2,084 Miles on Korean Air Skypass
- 600 Miles on Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- 552 Award Miles + 35 XP on FlyingBlue
- 370 Kilometers on China Eastern Eastern Miles
As usual, Delta SkyMiles and Flying Blue are probably the best options to credit these flights, though the number of miles is not exactly impressive.
Cover Picture: Simon Dannhauer