3. The method of claim 1 wherein the given threshold is autonomously set by the search platform.
1. A method of handling travel queries, the method comprising: maintaining, by a travel search platform, a plurality of pre-computed priced travel recommendations, each pre-computed priced travel recommendation having been previously computed based on underlying data obtained from a primary data source at a time that the pre-computed priced travel recommendation was computed; associating, by the travel search platform, each pre-computed priced travel recommendation with a corresponding confidence factor that indicates a probability that the associated pre-computed priced travel recommendation is still valid, the pre-computed priced travel recommendation being valid if the underlying data in the primary data source has not changed in a time period passed since the time that the pre-computed priced travel recommendation was computed and being invalid if the underlying data in the primary data source has changed in the time period; receiving, at the travel search platform, a travel query from a client indicating at least one travel search criterion; identifying, by the travel search platform from the plurality of pre-computed priced travel recommendations, a set of pre-computed priced travel recommendations that comply with the at least one travel search criterion; evaluating the confidence factors associated with the identified set of pre-computed priced travel recommendations; validating the pre-computed priced travel recommendations for which the confidence factor is greater than a given threshold by querying the primary data source for valid database query results; returning to the client, by the travel search platform, the set of pre-computed priced travel recommendations and the validated priced travel recommendations associated with confidence factors greater than the given threshold in a response to the travel query, wherein the probability the underlying data used to compute a respective pre-computed priced travel recommendation has changed increases as a function of a duration of the time period, and the response to the travel query is returned by sending a first message conveying the set of pre-computed priced travel recommendations and a second message conveying the validated priced travel recommendations associated with confidence factors greater than the given threshold.