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Search real flight prices and schedules from Google Flights via SearchAPI.io. Use when a user asks to find flights, check prices, compare options, or search...
---
name: google-flights-search
description: "Search real flight prices and schedules from Google Flights via SearchAPI.io. Use when a user asks to find flights, check prices, compare options, or search around a date range. Always pipe results through the flight-scoring skill to rank before presenting, then ALWAYS save the search via the flight-price-monitor skill for automatic price tracking. Requires SEARCHAPI_KEY in .env."
metadata: {"requires": {"env": ["SEARCHAPI_KEY"]}}
---
# Google Flights Search
Fetch live flight data from Google Flights via SearchAPI.io, then score and rank results using the `flight-scoring` skill, then ALWAYS save the search via the `flight-price-monitor` skill for automatic price tracking.
## Install
```bash
clawhub install google-flights-search
```
## Requirements
- **Python 3** — uses only stdlib (`urllib`, `json`, `argparse`). No pip installs needed.
- **SearchAPI.io account** — free tier includes 100 requests/month. [Sign up here](https://www.searchapi.io/users/sign_up).
- **SEARCHAPI_KEY** — get your API key from SearchAPI.io after registering, then add it to `.env` at the project root. OpenClaw loads it automatically.
---
## Quick Reference
| Situation | Action |
|-----------|--------|
| User asks for flights | Run `search_searchapi.py`, score results, then save via `flight-price-monitor` |
| Round-trip search | Add `--return-date` AND `--top 5` to get return flight details |
| User says "around [date]" | Use `--days 3` centered on that date |
| User says "cheapest in March" | Use `--days 3` and pick a representative start date |
| Specific date | Use `--days 1` (or `--days 3` for ±1 flexibility) |
| Direct only | Add `--stops 0` |
| Multi-passenger | Add `--adults N` |
---
## Usage
```bash
# One-way search
python {baseDir}/scripts/search_searchapi.py \
--from TLV --to LON --date 2026-03-15 --days 3 --currency USD
# Round-trip with return flight details for top 5 (RECOMMENDED for round-trips)
python {baseDir}/scripts/search_searchapi.py \
--from TLV --to BKK --date 2026-03-28 --return-date 2026-04-14 --top 5
```
### All Parameters
| Parameter | Required | Default | Description |
|-----------|----------|---------|-------------|
| `--from` | Yes | — | Origin IATA code (e.g. `TLV`) |
| `--to` | Yes | — | Destination IATA code (e.g. `LON`, `LHR`, `LGW`) |
| `--date` | Yes | — | Outbound date `YYYY-MM-DD` |
| `--return-date` | No | — | Return date `YYYY-MM-DD` (makes it a round-trip search) |
| `--days` | No | `1` | Number of days to search forward from `--date` (max: 3) |
| `--currency` | No | `USD` | Currency code (`USD`, `EUR`, `ILS`) |
| `--adults` | No | `1` | Number of adult passengers |
| `--stops` | No | any | `0` = direct only, `1` = up to 1 stop, `2` = up to 2 stops |
| `--class` | No | economy | `1`=economy, `2`=premium_economy, `3`=business, `4`=first_class |
| `--top` | No | — | Auto-fetch return flight details for top N outbound results. **Use `--top 5` for round-trips.** |
| `--departure-token` | No | — | Fetch return flights for a specific outbound (advanced, rarely needed directly) |
| `--booking-token` | No | — | Fetch booking options (real airline/OTA URLs) for a specific flight using its `booking_token` |
### Destination codes
Google Flights accepts:
- **Airport codes:** `LHR`, `CDG`, `TLV`
- **City codes:** `LON` (all London airports), `PAR` (all Paris), `NYC`
Use city codes when the user hasn't specified a preferred airport.
---
## Output Format
The script prints JSON to stdout.
### One-Way / Outbound Only
```json
{
"origin": "TLV",
"destination": "LON",
"flight_type": "one_way",
"date_range": { "from": "2026-03-15", "to": "2026-03-17", "days_searched": 3 },
"currency": "USD",
"total_results": 24,
"showing": 15,
"flights": [
{
"search_date": "2026-03-15",
"airline": "El Al",
"flight_number": "LY315",
"origin": "TLV",
"destination": "LHR",
"departure_time": "22:00",
"departure_date": "2026-03-15",
"arrival_time": "01:30",
"arrival_date": "2026-03-16",
"duration_minutes": 270,
"stops": 0,
"layovers": [],
"min_layover_minutes": null,
"price": 1850,
"overnight": true,
"booking_token": "WyJDa..."
}
]
}
```
### Round-Trip with `--top 5` (includes return flight details)
When `--top N` is used with `--return-date`, each of the top N outbound results includes a nested `return_flight` object with full return leg details:
```json
{
"origin": "TLV",
"destination": "BKK",
"flight_type": "round_trip",
"return_date": "2026-04-14",
"return_flights_fetched_for_top": 5,
"flights": [
{
"search_date": "2026-03-28",
"airline": "Etihad",
"flight_number": "EY 610",
"origin": "TLV",
"destination": "BKK",
"departure_time": "07:20",
"departure_date": "2026-03-28",
"arrival_time": "23:25",
"arrival_date": "2026-03-28",
"duration_minutes": 725,
"stops": 1,
"layovers": [{"airport": "Zayed International Airport", "duration_minutes": 185}],
"min_layover_minutes": 185,
"price": 1569,
"overnight": false,
"return_flight": {
"airline": "Etihad",
"flight_number": "EY 401",
"origin": "BKK",
"destination": "TLV",
"departure_time": "01:05",
"departure_date": "2026-04-14",
"arrival_time": "08:15",
"arrival_date": "2026-04-14",
"duration_minutes": 670,
"stops": 1,
"layovers": [{"airport": "Zayed International Airport", "duration_minutes": 150}],
"min_layover_minutes": 150,
"overnight": false,
"price": 1569,
"booking_token": "EhkIAh..."
}
}
]
}
```
**Important:** The `price` is the combined round-trip price (same on both outbound and return_flight). The `return_flight` object has its own airline, flight number, times, layovers, and stops — use all of these when formatting results.
### Booking Token Lookup (`--booking-token`)
After scoring, use the `booking_token` from each top result to fetch real booking URLs.
**You must pass the same `--from`, `--to`, `--date` used in the original search. For round-trips, also pass `--return-date`.**
```bash
# One-way booking lookup
python {baseDir}/scripts/search_searchapi.py \
--from TLV --to LON --date 2026-03-15 \
--booking-token "WyJDa..."
# Round-trip booking lookup — MUST include --return-date
python {baseDir}/scripts/search_searchapi.py \
--from TLV --to SGN --date 2026-03-29 --return-date 2026-04-14 \
--booking-token "WyJDa..."
```
Returns:
```json
{
"mode": "booking_lookup",
"total_options": 3,
"booking_options": [
{
"book_with": "El Al",
"price": 1850,
"url": "https://www.elal.com/..."
},
{
"book_with": "Kiwi.com",
"price": 1820,
"url": "https://www.kiwi.com/..."
}
]
}
```
**Use the first option whose `book_with` matches the airline (direct airline link).** If no airline match, use the first option. If `--booking-token` fails or returns no options, fall back to `vendor-booking-link`.
---
## Full Workflow
```
1. User requests flights
↓
2. Extract: origin, destination, date(s), passengers
↓
3. Run search_searchapi.py with --top 5 for round-trips
→ each result includes outbound + nested return_flight details + booking_token
↓
4. Apply flight-scoring rules to each result:
- Calculate price score (0–50)
- Calculate direct score (0–30)
- Calculate convenience score (0–20)
- Sum → total score
↓
5. Assign tags (Best overall, Cheapest, Direct, Night flight, +1 not a working day)
↓
6. Get booking links for each top result:
a. Use booking_token → run search_searchapi.py --booking-token TOKEN → real airline/OTA URLs
b. Fallback: if booking_token missing or fetch fails → use vendor-booking-link skill
↓
7. Format results using flight-results-formatter → table with both legs per option
↓
8. Present the formatted table to user
↓
9. Run save_monitor.py → save search for price tracking (MANDATORY)
```
**Always score before presenting.** Never dump raw JSON to the user.
**Always include booking links.** Prefer `booking_token` for real URLs; fall back to `vendor-booking-link` if unavailable. Never link to Google Flights or aggregators.
**Round-trips MUST use `--top 5`** to get return flight details. Without `--top`, only outbound info is returned.
### Step 8: Save Price Monitor (MANDATORY)
After presenting results, ALWAYS save the search for price monitoring. Build a compact snapshot from the top 10-15 flights as `"Airline|FlightNum|DepTime": price` pairs, then run:
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/../flight-price-monitor/scripts/save_monitor.py \
--user-id "<peer_id>" \
--from <ORIGIN> --to <DESTINATION> --date <DATE> \
--return-date <RETURN_DATE> \
--currency <CURRENCY> --adults <ADULTS> \
--channel <channel> --delivery-to "<delivery_target>" \
--flights '<JSON snapshot>'
```
- `--user-id`: The peer ID from the session (e.g. `whatsapp:+972523866782`). If unknown, use the user's name.
- `--channel`: The channel the user is on (`whatsapp`, `telegram`, etc.)
- `--delivery-to`: The user's address on that channel. Use `last` if unknown.
- `--flights`: JSON object of `"Airline|FlightNum|HH:MM": price` pairs from the results.
- Omit `--return-date` if it was a one-way search.
This overwrites any previous monitor for this user. A cron job checks every 2 hours and notifies the user of price changes.
---
## Mapping Script Output → Scoring Inputs
| Scoring field | Script field |
|---------------|-------------|
| Price | `price` |
| Stops | `stops` |
| Departure time | `departure_time` (extract HH:MM) |
| Arrival time | `arrival_time` (extract HH:MM) |
| Overnight flag | `overnight` |
| Duration | `duration_minutes` |
| Risky layover | `min_layover_minutes < 60` |
| Airline | `airline` |
| Flight number | `flight_number` |
| Route | `origin` → `destination` (IATA codes) |
---
## Error Handling
| Error | Cause | Fix |
|-------|-------|-----|
| `SEARCHAPI_KEY not set` | Missing `.env` entry | Add `SEARCHAPI_KEY=your_key` to `.env` |
| `HTTP 401` | Invalid API key | Check key at searchapi.io |
| `HTTP 429` | Rate limit hit | Wait and retry, or use `--days` in smaller batches |
| No results for a date | Route not available | Try adjacent dates or different destination airport code |
---
## Notes
- **El Al does not fly on Shabbat** — Friday evening and Saturday flights from TLV won't appear for El Al.
- **Secondary airports:** Wizz/Ryanair use `LTN`, `STN`, `BGY` etc. — when the script returns results from these, mention the airport to the user.
- **Prices are per-person** unless `--adults` is set. For groups, multiply accordingly and note total.
- **Round-trip:** Use `--return-date YYYY-MM-DD --top 5` to search round-trip and auto-fetch return flight details for the top 5 results.
don't have the plugin yet? install it then click "run inline in claude" again.