lessons-learned
Mandatory pre-flight-search reference. Contains the Seats.aero workflow (pull ALL programs first), source accuracy hierarchy, Southwest/Companion Pass specifics, small-market caveats, and Duffel limitations.
Profile →npx skills add borski/travel-hacking-toolkit --skill lessons-learned --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
# Lessons Learned Hard-won knowledge from actual searches. Reference these before making the same mistakes. ## Seats.aero: Search ALL Sources, Show ALL Results When searching Seats.aero, **NEVER filter by source on the initial search.** Always pull ALL programs first. ### The Mandatory Workflow For any route: 1. **Search Seats.aero with NO source filter.** Pull ALL programs. Show full results sorted by cheapest. 2. **For EVERY program in results, trace the full reachability chain:** a. Direct balance? (Check AwardWallet if connected) b. Transfer path? (Check `data/transfer-partners.json` for EVERY currency: Amex MR, Chase UR, Bilt, Capital One) c. Alliance chain? Identify the operating airline's alliance (`data/alliances.json`), then find ALL programs in that alliance or with bilateral partnerships (`data/partner-awards.json`), then check which of THOSE programs are reachable via transfer. d. Cross-alliance? Check `data/partner-awards.json` `cross_alliance_highlights` and bilateral partners. 3. **For reachable programs with NO cached Seats.aero data,** check the program's website directly (airfrance.com, united.com, etc.) 4. **Present the COMPLETE picture:** every option, reachable
- Seats.aero: Search ALL Sources, Show ALL Results
- The Mandatory Workflow
- Common Failure Mode
- "No Cached Availability" Is Not the Final Word
- Never Trust Data Files Over Reality
- Source Accuracy Hierarchy
- Southwest Is Special
- Companion Pass CPP Math
- Small Market Airports
- Layover and Time Preferences
- Duffel Limitations
- Related Reference Skills (Load When Relevant)
What does the lessons-learned skill do?
Mandatory pre-flight-search reference. Contains the Seats.aero workflow (pull ALL programs first), source accuracy hierarchy, Southwest/Companion Pass specifics, small-market caveats, and Duffel limitations.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add borski/travel-hacking-toolkit --skill lessons-learned --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From borski/travel-hacking-toolkit, a repository with 611 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.