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New Tool Helps You Book Flight Options Found on ITA Matrix

June 29, 2016
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3 min read
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New Tool Helps You Book Flight Options Found on ITA Matrix
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Google Flights is great for general airfare searches, but sometimes you need a more powerful flight search engine. Maybe you want to route through a particular city, fly on a particular aircraft or extend a layover to spend it in a particular lounge. In these cases, many of us turn to ITA Matrix to find the perfect itinerary.

The problem with ITA Matrix is that — once you find that perfect itinerary — you can't book it on the site! You have to try to creatively trick Google Flights or an airline's flight search tool into giving you the same flight results. Even then, sometimes you still can't find a way to book the itinerary you want.

This is such a prevalent problem that flyers have banded together on FlyerTalk to build a script to try solve this problem. However, despite a helpful instruction guide on FlyerTalk, installing this script requires extensive technical knowledge and a couple of hours to figure out and install.

Now there's a much easier way.

Enter BookWithMatrix to save the day!

We were thrilled to recently find out about a new tool called BookWithMatrix that solves this problem. In just seconds, you can go from an ITA Matrix itinerary page to a flight-booking page.

Although we found some bugs when we initially tested the website, the creators have worked quickly to effectively solve the bugs we found. The tool's now in great shape, and I've already begun using it extensively.

How to Use the Tool

Google Flights doesn't show this itinerary featuring a transatlantic flight on the excellent British Airways A380.

1. Find your flights in ITA Matrix

2. Use Ctrl-A or ⌘-A to highlight the entire itinerary detail page, then Ctrl-C or ⌘-C to copy the page.

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Immediately upon pasting your ITA Matrix itinerary, BookWithMatrix will load a page with your itinerary.

3. Use Ctrl-V or ⌘-V to paste the itinerary into BookWithMatrix. The website will automatically load a page confirming your itinerary.

4. Select an Online Travel Agency (OTA) or American Airlines link at the bottom to complete your flight booking.

And that's it! It's a very simple but incredibly useful tool that will hopefully help a lot of travelers book the flights they want.

Limitations

While the creators have fixed the bugs that we discovered, there are some limitations to the tool to be mindful of:

  • Not all OTA links will work for all flights. This is especially true on stopover (24+ hour layover) and open-jaw flights. That said, all of the itineraries we have tested so far will work on at least one of the OTA links.
  • The link to American Airlines is still a little buggy. You'll get a "The fare for this itinerary has changed since you selected your flight(s)" error on AA.com, but the flights have still been bookable at the same price.
  • Since Southwest Airlines flight results don't appear in ITA Matrix, you won't be able to use BookWithMatrix to book Southwest flights.

Have you tested out this tool? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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  • Intro Offer

    As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.

  • Annual Fee

    $325

  • Recommended Credit

    Excellent to Good

Why We Chose It

There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)

Pros

  • 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
  • 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
  • Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
  • Solid welcome bonus

Cons

  • Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
  • Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
  • You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
  • $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
  • $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
  • $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
  • $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
  • Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fees.
  • Annual Fee is $325.
  • Terms Apply.