Flight advice

Machito

Hello all.

I am a 48 year old UK male. I would like to go to Colombia in June this year, after leaving my rented accommodation and putting my possessions at a family member's home.

I hope to begin doing voluntary work as a means to know the country better. In August the school year starts for private schools. I'm a primary school teacher and I don't presently have a job, so assuming I like the country I would like to approach some of the international schools to see if they have any last minute vacancies. I have been reliably informed that such vacancies do come up. Alternatively I might prefer to continue doing voluntary work - Workaway has various opportunities which look really interesting and would provide me with accommodation and 3 meals a day. Alternatively I might even want to look for work in another field (in which I would be at an advantage as a native English speaker.)

Re. visas: I can stay for 90 days with no visa and for a small fee extend the visa to 180 days. Or I can pop to a nearby country for the weekend then reenter and start again. To work legally I would need an employer to organise a work visa - by all accounts if they want to employ me then they will be willing to do that.

So my plan was to get a one way ticket and ensure I have enough savings to buy a return when I need it. Obviously when I return would depend on how much I enjoy it, whether I find work etc. Using the advice on this site (and elsewhere) I have been able to find numerous direct (I would prefer to make the flight as short as possible) one way tickets in June for around 400 pounds. Not bad. So far so good.

However I then discovered that airlines have a habit of refusing to let people go on flights if they don't have a return ticket or an onward ticket. Immigration might do this too, but apparently it is far more likely that the airline will do it.

I have found a return that goes back in November that is just over 600 pounds. However I have no idea whatsoever if I will want to go back in November. If I do find work then I definitely won't. So it seems I will be paying an extra 200+ pounds for a return flight I may well never use.

Is there an alternative? I have tried to find an open ticket or a cheaper return ticket, both to no avail.

Voyager2002

Seek advice from a travel agent called Journey Latin America.

Otherwise: the standard airline requirement is actually to hold a return or onward ticket. So you could buy a one-way ticket to a neighboring country and so satisfy that requirement.

richardw

I went from Fort Lauderdale to Cartagena and they throughly checked my return tickets.
Many Venezuelans are looking for work in Colombia and Peru.
I liked Cartagena and Santa Marta. I did not like Bogota , apart from the Botero paintings.
Perhaps look at TEFL opportunities and getting a job and work visa before you go.

Machito

Getting a job and work visa whilst I am in the UK would be very difficult or more likely impossible. Once I am there it would be far easier.

Getting an onward ticket (that I have no intention of using) to a nearby country could be the cheapest solution to my dilemma.

Neil49

You should also be aware that if any flight you choose goes via a US airport then you will need a valid ESTA.

Voyager2002

richardw wrote: »

I liked Cartagena and Santa Marta. I did not like Bogota , apart from the Botero paintings.

To my surprise, I found I really liked Bogota (despite the cool climate). I spent most of my time in Cali (wow!) but have not yet made it to the Caribbean coast.

benjus

If you have a credit card you could always book a fully flexible ticket out of Colombia then cancel it once you're there.

Voyager2002

benjus wrote: »

If you have a credit card you could always book a fully flexible ticket out of Colombia then cancel it once you're there.

No: terribly bad advice.

Most air tickets are not refundable and the fact of paying by card would not help in this situation. Fully refundable tickets do exist and are very expensive: refunds are credited back to the card that was used for payment.

Machito

Thanks to all for the advice. In the end I got a return ticket for 605 pounds. I could have got one cheaper but I wanted to go direct. Partly because an 11 hour flight is already long enough for me, and partly because I don't want the risk of getting held up in US immigration, losing my luggage etc. So I'd rather pay more for a direct flight. I could have also got it for around 10 pounds cheaper by using Skyscanner (which is where I found it) but I preferred to pay slightly more to get it direct from the airline (Avianca in this case). Why? Far less risk, going on what I have read on the topic.

If I really like it out there I will try to find work, in which case I might not use the return part of the flight, but it's nice to know I have it if I need it.

benjus

Voyager2002 wrote: »

No: terribly bad advice.

Most air tickets are not refundable and the fact of paying by card would not help in this situation. Fully refundable tickets do exist and are very expensive: refunds are credited back to the card that was used for payment.

I think you misunderstood.

I was suggesting buying one of the very expensive fully refundable tickets, but putting it on a credit card so you don't need to actually pay for it with your own money. That's why I said a "fully flexible" ticket.

Not remotely suggesting anything involving Section 75, which I think is how you interpreted my post.