We have been TH hosts and sitters for 3 years with good experiences. Usually, if sitters are not local, they make their flight plans within a week or two of confirming a sit. I understand folks wouldn’t want to buy tickets before confirming a place to stay. We confirmed a first time sitter a couple weeks ago. She good experience and reviews on Rover, but has not traveled to petsit until now. We offered a guest room the night before we leave for the 3.5 week sit, so she can get a tour and settle in before we leave. Since it’s been a couple if weeks from confirmation, I checked in with her regarding flights and timing. She said she has a flight tracker and the prices are high right now. Fair enough, we are budget conscious travelers too. The sit is not until July, but since it is a long sit and we are traveling overseas I like to settle things early. I requested that she get her flights confirmed by the end of March and she did not reply. The sit is confirmed, but doesn’t feel truly set without flight / arrival plans. Like I said, the sit is not until July. How have people handled confirmation of flights / arrival plans? What is a reasonable amount if time from sit confirmation to flight purchase? Or how late into the Spring should I give her to confirm plans. Right now the sit is hers and not open to other applicants. Thank you!
This is a really tricky situation considering everything that’s going on in the world right now. I understand the sitters attempts to save money and your concerns over confirmation. In these situations I think it’s best to have a video chat and work through the timings. Face to face (virtually) you will get a better sense of the situation. Aside from that all you can do is have a plan B and trust your gut. Good luck.
I usually state that I will book my flights within the next day and send confirmation of such to the HO after confirmation of the sit.
However travel is all over the place at the moment due to the Middle East situation. I guess from your point of view there needs to be a date when your sitter can confirm flights are booked.
I think you need to address this with the sitter asap due to the current situation. I have had to cancel my plans going forward due to the worldwide situation, despite having already paid for my flights three months ago. (My sit is sooner than your dates though). I am also a long term traveller that has no fear of much whatsoever. But if choosing a sitter from OS, at this particular point in time, I feel this is not the wrong thing to do. It’s extremely difficult at present for both homeowners and sitters to commit 100% without having a degree of concern as worldwide events are just so volatile and can change in an instant. But please understand the sitters situation to, it’s all heartbreaking. I also must say that sometimes it’s the HO who cancels due to unforeseen circumstances such as what is happening now e.g. or otherwise, so that would leave the sitter in a really bad financial and logistical situation. It happens, trust me. Personally I don’t think it takes blind Freddy to see world events are heading in the wrong direction for international travel for the foreseeable future. I think I need to find a psychic.
I am a frequent cross-continental traveler and typically book my flights no earlier than three weeks prior to departure, more likely two or even one week prior. We are currently in the middle of March, your sit is scheduled for July, which is four months away. I personally would never book a flight four months in advance, especially during such uncertain times.
As a side note, it is quite ironic that on two occasions I booked flights nearly two months in advance (not THS related), I lost the tickets due to a change of plans. Fortunately, they were inexpensive so I didn´t care
I would suggest that you have a friendly catch up / conversation with your sitter - perhaps suggest a video call, as @Oztravels recommended. You might say that you understand booking flights might be difficult right now, and ask what their plan would be if prices don’t come down. For example, would they still plan to buy the tickets and go ahead with the sit?
This can be a tactful way to gauge the sitter’s level of commitment and whether they have the resources to manage higher ticket prices.
It’s also worth acknowledging that the arrangement should be a mutually beneficial exchange. If prices have risen unexpectedly due to world events, that could be considered an extraordinary circumstance where you might both agree that it’s best for both parties to cancel.
There’s no single right or wrong way to approach the conversation, but it’s sensible to check in early so you’re not left scrambling to find a sitter at the last minute if travel ends up being too expensive for them. It may also help to work together to agree on a date by which a decision needs to be made, rather than unilaterally setting a deadline or ultimatum.
All the best and please report back on the outcome .
Flights in July are always expensive as its peak holiday season. Is she coming a long way? Give her a set date to buy her flights. I would be tempted to go with a more local sitter given the current situation.
I think Silversitters has an excellent question to pose to the sitter. What are their plans if air prices do not come down. Will they still go ahead with the sit. You don’t want to be surprised two weeks before the sit if they cancel because the cost was outside their budget. I would also ask them do they have other sits scheduled in your country. I am assuming they are flying from another country. If they say no then it is easier to cancel one PP. if they have several sits planned in your part of the world they are more likely to pay the higher prices, IMHO
Think that’s the sensible thing to do. If you watch many experts saying that while airlines buy 2-3 months in advance their jet fuel costs will likely rise significantly for them unless supply issues ease soon and as of today that looks less likely.
As I watch airlines closely these days, most airlines have already advertised that as from now the fuel charge will be rising on all flights. This will not be a temporary thing for months to come
No from my understanding there’s a worldwide shortage of oil (in all forms) and gas. Even if everything went back to ‘normal’ tomorrow it could take a long time for supply to catch up.
After the other thread going off today, I would be concerned the sitters comment about flight prices might be a way of seeing if you might pay the airfare
From my POV, though more expensive, it seems wise for all travelers to bite the bullet and pay the higher price for refundable tickets or buy travel insurance. Or not travel. That’s just my opinion bc we are all rolling the dice here with travel plans. Getting the most affordable tickets is a huge gamble - Everyone needs a plan B - both sitters and HO’s.
I bought tickets a few days ago for a flight in May. I’ve had summer sits booked for months. I’m never buying a flight for just one sit. The sit is part of a longer trip of 3-6 months. There is a lot of planning involved. I can’t typically book sits in chronological order so if I book a sit in August, I may be looking for earlier sits or making other non-sit travel plans in the area and haven’t finalized the itinerary enough to purchase a ticket. If someone gave me a deadline to buy a ticket (especially this far out), I would tell them to find another sitter. HOs don’t get to dictate my travel planning. If I wait and end up paying more, that’s on me. However, in my case, I’m an extremely experienced traveler, as well as a very experienced sitter and have done many international sits. I guess HOs trust me to get there since I’ve never had an HO even ask about my flights. So, I do understand if someone is flying specifically for that one sit or is inexperienced you might want more confirmation that they will get there.
Right now things are really unpredictable, no one really knows how things are going to go. The flight I bought a few days ago, I probably would not have bought this early in normal times. At this point both sitters and HOs are taking more risk in planning to travel than we normally are. At this point I’m going to continue to live my life as I normally do and continue with my travel plans and if things change and/or get cancelled, I will roll with it as needed. Personally, I’m trying to avoid being in the US as much as possible, but I worry other countries may become less inclined to want Americans there.
Hi @jollyfolks I know it may feel reassuring to get firm plans in place, but in the current climate, it may actually be better to leave things until the last minute.
In your situation, I would probably be looking into local sitters, or at least those based within your geographical area, rather than placing all of my faith in a sitter who needs to fly to you, and may not be able to even if she wants to.
Sorry to sound like the voice of doom, but I learnt my lesson when I booked flights in Feb 2020 for a trip a couple of months later - blind optimism leading me to believe that covid would have blown over by then!
The one point in OP’s post that gives me pause is the sitter didn’t respond to your last message, so they may not have appreciated the deadline imposed on them.
It can be unnerving to not have the sitters plans locked in, but it’s not unreasonable on their part either. However as others have pointed out it’s unlikely that airfares will drop from here so a frank discussion about whether the sitter is comfortable moving forward with the sit given the high (and likely to go higher) prices is in order.
In any case you should have a Plan B in the event this sitter doesn’t pull the trigger on a plane ticket.
