An empty leg is not a discounted flight. It is a flight that was going to happen anyway, empty, and which you can join if it happens to suit you. The difference matters.
Why they exist
An aircraft that carries passengers from San José to Drake Bay has to come back. If nobody has booked the return, that sector is flown empty to return the aeroplane to base or take it to the next client.
That repositioning sector already has its cost committed. Selling it below the normal fare beats flying it empty.
That is the entire mechanism. There is no more magic to it, and understanding that avoids the commonest frustration: hunting for empty legs on a specific route and date, which is precisely what cannot be done.
We work with empty legs: they arise from operations already confirmed, are listed at short notice and are not guaranteed. Ask us what is available that day.
The trade-off, stated plainly
You do not choose the timing. The sector goes when the original flight dictates.
You do not choose the route. It exists only between the two points the repositioning connects.
And it can vanish. If the original flight changes or is cancelled, the empty leg goes with it. That is not us letting you down: it is the nature of the product.
Our specific policy — what is guaranteed, what is not, and what happens if the sector falls through — is here: We work with empty legs: they arise from operations already confirmed, are listed at short notice and are not guaranteed. Ask us what is available that day.
Settle it before booking non-refundable lodging. A cancelled empty leg is annoying; a cancelled empty leg plus a non-refundable lodge at the other end is expensive.
Who they genuinely suit
Anyone with total date flexibility. If Tuesday or Thursday are equally fine, your odds multiply.
Anyone travelling light in a small group. The aircraft is whatever it is; you do not pick it. Anyone travelling with tanks, boards or rods is effectively out: the hold is not on offer.
Anyone heading somewhere with frequent traffic. Repositioning concentrates on the routes that get flown most, so a sector towards Quepos or Tamarindo is markedly likelier than one towards Guanaja.
Who they do not
Anyone with a fixed date and time. A retreat starting Friday, an international connection, a pre-dawn fishing departure: none of that fits a product that does not control its own schedule.
Anyone heading to a chained-access destination. If your lodge has a boat at three, you cannot afford a flight that goes when it goes.
Anyone confusing empty legs with last-minute booking. They are different things, and we repeat it because it is the commonest misunderstanding: booking late does not make a flight cheaper. A last-minute flight is a new flight at normal rates.
How to hear about them
You do not search for them: they are announced when they appear. And they appear at short notice, because until the original flight is confirmed nobody knows there will be an empty sector.
The practical approach is to give us your pair of points and your flexible date range, then wait. Asking weekly about one specific route accelerates nothing.
A word about the industry while we are here: any website publishing a permanent catalogue of empty legs at fixed prices is describing something else. A real repositioning sector exists for days, sometimes hours, and disappears the moment the flight that generates it changes.
Frequently asked questions
What is an empty leg?
A repositioning sector the aircraft was going to fly empty anyway, which can be sold below the normal fare.
Can I choose the timing?
No. The sector goes when the original flight dictates. You do not choose the route or the aircraft either.
Can it be cancelled?
Yes. If the original flight changes or is cancelled, the empty leg goes with it. That is the nature of the product. We work with empty legs: they arise from operations already confirmed, are listed at short notice and are not guaranteed. Ask us what is available that day.
Who do they suit?
Anyone with total date flexibility, travelling light in a small group, heading somewhere with frequent traffic.
Who do they not suit?
Anyone with a fixed date and time, and anyone whose destination has a final leg depending on a boat or transfer with its own schedule.
Is it the same as booking last minute?
No. A last-minute flight is a new flight at normal rates. Booking late makes nothing cheaper.