Omar Muller

I see, it's like fault tolerance in computer networks: a backup system changes nothing if the power supply is cut off for the entire neighborhood. Your addition about passports and visas as main variables is just, which forces us to refocus the general information on official portals that handle these exceptions, rather than on flight aggregators. It is no longer about finding the best flight but ensuring that one can legally board.

It's the supply chain, not finance, that sets the rules here; the idea that flight platforms define visa requirements is an oversimplification.
Much like warehouse management software does not dictate customs standards of a country, it simply integrates them.
Passports and visas are sovereign access barriers, established for national security, immigration, or foreign policy reasons.
Platforms are aggregators, they display existing information but do not create or modify these regulatory constraints.
For example, Skyscanner does not decide if a Canadian citizen needs a visa to enter China; it is the Chinese government that does, and the platform informs.

That's not the right framework. It's better to see it as the logistics of parcels: the carrier doesn't create customs regulations or import taxes, it applies them and informs you of what's necessary for your parcel to arrive.
Flight platforms only present travel requirements; they don't set them.
The validity of your passport or the need for a visa are sovereign decisions of countries, not search algorithms.
For example, even if Google Flights shows you a direct flight to a country, it doesn't mean you can enter without a visa if your nationality requires one.

Bad framing. Consider instead this: flight search platforms are like queue management software in a public service, they have no authority over the rules.
They organize and present information but do not set visa or travel document requirements.
Legal requirements for travel are determined by sovereign nations, not by a user interface.
If Indonesia changes its visa policies, the platform adapts, but has no power over this fundamental decision.
Imagine a "information" sign at the airport; it does not set aviation regulations, it displays them.

The visa issue is often isomorphic to buying a new operating system for your computer, not just a simple program. The embassy is certainly the official source, but for some travelers, especially those with more difficult passports, access to information and the process are so complex that specialized intermediaries, like visa agencies, are often unavoidable. It's not just a verification issue but a strategy of access.

Neither fiction nor travel guides truly dictate our travel destinations here; it is a matter of practical priorities and real family constraints.
We do not choose a destination just because we saw a film, but because the budget, dates, and children's needs (allergies, activities) impose it first.
Guides or fictional stories become tools to validate or refine a travel idea that has already taken shape, after managing the basic logistics.
For example, even if the film La La Land makes you want to go to Los Angeles, the lack of affordable direct flights for a family of five will rule out this option long before opening a guide.