There's an old adage in the travel industry: “There's more than one Sydney in the world, so double check your tickets.”
It's not an old saying, but it should be.
Kingsley Barnett, 62, a New Yorker, learned this the hard way. He got an incredibly cheap ticket to Sydney, Australia, and packed his bags.
Barnett boarded the plane, and after a shorter-than-expected flight, he realized he had made a big mistake. Instead of landing in Sydney, Australia, where they were scheduled to take the cruise, the small Cape Air jet landed in Billings, Montana, where it was waiting for a connecting flight to Sydney, Montana.
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“I saw a small plane with about nine people on board and wondered, 'How is this going to get me to Australia?'” Barnett said. new york post. “That's when I realized the mistake I had made.”
It's a mistake that's easier to make than you think.
The airport in Sydney, Montana is displayed as SDY, while Sydney, Australia is displayed as SYD. Mr. Burnett turned to Carol Castellano, an American Airlines ticket agent in Billings, who was able to book him a round-trip ticket to New York and a room at the Boot Hill Inn for the night. Hotel manager Sherry Mann told the Post that this is the second time an unscheduled guest has made the same mistake.
Despite the flight disruptions and cruise cancellations, Barnett remained surprisingly upbeat about everything. “There were no kangaroos in Montana. There were carols. That was enough for me,” he told the Post. He has rescheduled his trip to Australia for June and thinks it might be a good idea to use a travel agent this time. According to Geotargit, there are 21 Sidneys in the United States, 3 Sidneys in Canada, and 7 Sidneys worldwide.
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Barnett posted photos of himself and Carol on Facebook and GoFundMe, presumably to help with the costs of the mix-up.
