a white cell phone with a screen showing flight information

The internet is receiving a glamorous makeover, as companies attempt to make their products not only functional, but beautiful. Beautiful is great and all – but we’re searching for the world’s best flight deals and at the end of the day, all we desire is “easy”. Some might say Google Flights got it right the first time, and much to many users dismay, the “new” Google Flights just isn’t quite as functional. Alas, there’s a way to “run” back in time, to the older (better) version…

a plane with blue seatsThank You, Twitter…

Last week we took to the internet to lament the newish changes. There were a few features we adored which simply no longer worked as seamlessly as they used to. Taking advantage of the new mediums for complaining in the digital age, we sent out a tweet begging Google to bring back the old functionality. To our delight – Chris McGinnis of SFGate replied saying “hey, you know you can still use the old one, right”.

a white cell phone with a screen showing flight informationHow To Switch Back In One Click

At the bottom left corner of your Google Flights screen you’ll find a running man icon and a speech bubble with an exclamation point in the middle. We highly suggest using both. First – use the speech bubble exclamation point to share your feedback. Let Google Travel know what you don’t enjoy about the new interface. We hate that the new interface keeps you from being able to track flights with ease. You can only track a specific flight on a specific airline, which is far less effective. It’s also harder to input the cities to use the multiple city search feature. When you’re done with your message, just click the running man in the bottom left corner. When you do, a new window will pop up taking you back to the older and better Google Flights. For now, you’ll just have to click back to the old one every time you log on, but it’s worth it.

Here are five tricks to finding the best deals on Google Flights – the old one!

HT: TPG

Gilbert Ott is an ever curious traveler and one of the world's leading travel experts. His adventures take him all over the globe, often spanning over 200,000 miles a year and his travel exploits are regularly...

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7 Comments

  1. My biggest issue with the new version is that the map disappears after you search for your destination. However, it is aesthetically pleasing to look at.

    1. To get a map view in the new version instead of searching for a specific airport choose a geographic area instead. So, rather than CDG, put “France” in the search to box and you will get the map from where you can expand to get all airports and filter as needed.

  2. Nearly every product that Google “enhances” with a new version ultimately ends up worse for the user. Google just can’t leave things alone.

    1. You have to spend the billions somewhere! I think they have already invested in half the world. Maybe they should buy a few countries instead of companies.

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