I'm a veteran traveler, but a rookie flight-booking mistake cost me $3,000 — and taught me 4 lessons I'll never forget

One flight-booking mistake cost my family nearly $3,000 and a day of travel. Natalie Becerra I booked two separate flight itineraries on different airlines for a family trip to Ireland. I realized this was a mistake after the first airline diverted, and the second left without us. The fix cost my family nearly $3,000 in new tickets and a day's worth of touring. I'm a veteran traveler who has booked more long-haul flights than I can count. But earlier this year, I made a very expensive rookie mistake. While planning a trip, I came across a deal I couldn't pass up: a $317 one-way flight on Icelandair to Ireland with a multi-day layover in Reykjavik. It was essentially a way to take a trip within a trip without paying extra airfare. The catch? The flight departed from New York, not our home airport in Florida.