Side-by-Side Model Context Protocol Comparison
BoostedTravel vs MCP National Rail
In-depth architectural comparison of the BoostedTravel and MCP National Rail MCP servers. Compare execution transports, security boundaries, tool capabilities, quality scores, and ready-to-paste client installation snippets for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code.
At a Glance & Executive Verdict
BoostedTravel
Travel & Transportation · Local stdio
Quality: 72/100 (Great) | Auth: API Key required
MCP National Rail
Travel & Transportation · Local stdio
Quality: 47/100 (Fair) | Auth: API Key required
Verdict Summary: Choose BoostedTravel if you need specialized Travel & Transportation tools running via a local process. Choose MCP National Rail if your workspace requires Travel & Transportation integration with local subprocess execution. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's
mcpServers manifest.Which MCP Server Should You Choose?
Choose BoostedTravel when:
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Travel & Transportation domain.
- You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
- Your security boundary fits: API Key required (Free / Open Source).
- You have access to required keys:
LETSFG_BEARER_TOKEN, LETSFG_API_KEY. - Primary tools included: search_flights, resolve_location, unlock_flight_offer.
Choose MCP National Rail when:
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Travel & Transportation domain.
- You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
- Your security boundary fits: API Key required (BYOK (Pay Provider Direct)).
- You have access to required keys:
RTT_API_USERNAME, RTT_API_PASSWORD. - Primary tools included: .
Feature & Specification Comparison
Tools & Capabilities Breakdown
BoostedTravel Tools (14)
search_flights
Search hundreds of airlines for live flight prices — completely FREE, unlimited, read-only.
Returns structured offers with prices, airlines, times, durations, and stopovers. Some offers carry `starlink` for in-flight Starlink Wi-Fi: "confirmed_all" / "confirmed_some" mean the carrier has FULLY fitted that aircraft type, "likely_all" / "likely_some" mean the rollout on that type is underway but incomplete. State only "confirmed_*" as fact; describe "likely_*" as "the airline is fitting this aircraft type, not guaranteed on your flight". Anything ending in "_some" has at least one leg WITHOUT it. An absent field means no information, NOT an absence of Wi-Fi. Covers airlines across all continents including low-cost carriers.
Search is async: this tool polls for you, including waiting out the late split-ticket merge.
Some offers are SPLIT TICKETS: two separately-issued tickets through a hub, each leg booked from whatever is cheapest for it (usually two different airlines), because no one seller offers the combination as a single ticket. They carry `split_ticket: "true"`, `combo_type: "virtual_interlining"` and `self_transfer: "unprotected"`. ALWAYS tell the user when an offer is a split ticket and what unprotected means: the tickets are not linked, so if the first flight is late and the connection is missed, the second airline owes nothing — no rebooking, no refund. Never present a split ticket as though it were one through-fare.
Requires LETSFG_BEARER_TOKEN or LETSFG_API_KEY. See letsfg://guide resource for the full authenticate->search->book workflow.
resolve_location
Convert a city/airport name to IATA codes. Always call before search_flights if you only have a city name. Read-only, safe to call multiple times.
Ready-to-Paste Client Configurations
Paste either (or both) of these JSON server blocks into your client config file (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json).
BoostedTravel Configuration
MCP National Rail Configuration
Frequently Asked Questions
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