Best source for booking your own travel plans (Expedia, others?)... flight, hotel, rental car

[Dianne-TX]

I've done our plan on Expedia and have gotten a total, but before I book it I'd like to make sure there aren't other (better) sources out there.  We are not travelers at all, especially flying.  :)  What do you use to book your travel plans that include a flight (domestic flight, not international), hotel and rental car?  Thanks!

[Guest]

I have used Expedia many times and have been perfectly happy with it. I have used Travelocity before...is that still a thing? I haven’t looked at them in a long time. I have used Trip Advisor extensively for researching, but can’t remember if I have booked theough them before.

 

I think Kayak is the site that shows you comparitive sites, but I haven’t used them. Truvago does this, too.

[EmseB]

I use expedia or the like to see what my options are, then I go to the specific airline/hotel website itself to compare because sometimes (esp with hotels, I've found) they'll have a better deal.

[Ottakee]

Also check the airline website directly as sometimes they can be cheaper.

 

I just did a hotel room through hotwire but that was last minutes and I knew the area. I was pleased with the price.

[Dianne-TX]

Thanks!  I'm checking all those, too.  Also, the packages are for basic economy flights with seats chosen for us.  I'm not wanting my kids (even though they are 15 & 17) to have to sit by themselves with strangers.  :-/  Will we be able to sit together if we ask at check-in?  Do we have to ask people to move if we want to sit together?  I can't imagine that will be fun.  Advice?  Or, do they just get to experience sitting with a stranger and hopefully they aren't weird or perverted, especially for my daughter.  Sorry.  That's how this Momma thinks!  (I doubt I'm alone in feeling this way!)

Edited March 5, 2018 by Dianne-TX

[ThisIsTheDay]

I don't know about sitting together.

 

But I frequently book flights out of a smaller airport. I have found that I can get better flights (arrival/departure times) if I am booking one way tickets. Some of the airlines will mix and match, but others won't, and the price doesn't seem to be affected.

 

I like kayak.com for flights, because you can see prices for different days if you have a short 3-5 day window on when you leave/return.

 

I used to use Trip Advisor to check out hotels. Now I use Priceline, and I like Priceline for rental cars.  When booking hotels for myself/family, I always look very hard at Priceline's Hotel Express Deals. While you don't know the exact hotel, the prices are lower. I've never been unhappy with the selection.

 

I plan a dozen or so flights a year for my boss. I usually end up looking at options several different ways to book what I think they will prefer.

[Twolittleboys]

Depends on how much work you want to do. Using Expedia is probably fine. I love travel planning so use a large number/variety of websites etc. 

 

For flights I generally check on Kayak (working with various combinations of dates/airports).

 

Hotel prices I try to use a comparison website/different providers/the hotel/resort's own website. Depending on what I am looking for I may look at hotwire/priceline/ebay

 

I use TripAdvisor to check out the quality etc. of hotels

 

Depending on what kind of trip it is I may use various forums (for Disneyworld, cruises, timeshares etc.)

 

As far as sitting on their own is concerned, I wouldn't worry about it for teenagers. Maybe have a talk with them beforehand to speak up if something untoward happens (would never have occured to me)

[Ottakee]

For car rental we got a great deal before stacking AAA coupons and using Thrifty car rental. With AAA the second driver is free and I got free upgrades when I picked up the car.

 

I rented ahead of time (like months) and then as it got closer I kept checking prices and of they dropped, I called them to get the better rate. Did the same thing with a hotel and save $50.

[Lanny]

OP Expedia is probably fine. They have been around for a LONG time.  We use 2 OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) here in Colombia.  I read in a thread on WTM about FareCompare and have them checking on a trip for DD in mid-June (peak peak season) to Texas. Not sure if DD will be chosen for the camp yet, and the fare has gone up approximately USD$300 since FareCompare began sending me Fare Alerts...

 

Someone mentioned Trivago which is for hotels.  We see their commercials on U.S. TV and on Colombian TV.  So, I tried it, for a hotel in Bogotta, which is our next trip.  So possibly this was just a terrible glitch and I happened to run into it, or, possibly this was intentional deception.  I saw a rate for a hotel that looked very good, but when I clicked, for additional information, it was for a different property, much lower in quality.  That did not sit well and I will probably not use Trivago again.

 

Seating assignments for the lowest fares, probably on most or all air carriers now, either their computer will assign the seat or that will be done at the Gate.  Families can be and often are separated. Including those with toddlers...  If one pays more, one can select their seat assignments. That is one of the new ways the airlines are generating profits now. They learned that from the very low cost budget carriers.

 

I share your concern about your DD   sitting by herself.  I have that concern about my DD (17) going to TX by herself, possibly on as many as 3 different flights each way.

 

NOTE: If your plans are firm and you get a price you are happy with, click to buy at that time. If you don't, you might come back and find that the price has increased. That happened to a friend of my wife's, 2 or 3 years ago. She wanted to go with us to the reunion my wife was going to. I found seats for her, on our flights, at a good price, but by the time my wife got her on the phone, those seats were gone. She didn't go...

 

I believe the OTA (or a brick and mortar Travel Agency) will receive a higher commission, if they book a "package" (air fare plus at least a hotel) and so that may save some $, but it will also have different restrictions, with regard to cancellations and changes.  We did that once on a trip to Bogota and will consider it, if the saving is large. READ THE FINE PRINT BEFORE YOU CLICK TO BUY!

 

Check and double-check EVERYTHING you type into the form, before you click to buy. If you make a mistake, it is your problem.  I usually ask my wife or my DD to check what I enter, before I click to buy.

Edited March 5, 2018 by Lanny

[FriedClams]

I use the Booking.com app for all my hotel bookings. So easy, great prices, and many with free cancellations. (PM me if you want a referral code for $20 off a booking.) The map features are great, and their hotel reviews are great. I like that it's Hotwire prices but you know what you're getting.

 

Cars, I use Hotwire. Easy, you can see the company, great prices, most with free cancellation. I don't do the random companies, because I've been burned a few times.

[Rachel]

Thanks! I'm checking all those, too. Also, the packages are for basic economy flights with seats chosen for us. I'm not wanting my kids (even though they are 15 & 17) to have to sit by themselves with strangers. :-/ Will we be able to sit together if we ask at check-in? Do we have to ask people to move if we want to sit together? I can't imagine that will be fun. Advice? Or, do they just get to experience sitting with a stranger and hopefully they aren't weird or perverted, especially for my daughter. Sorry. That's how this Momma thinks! (I doubt I'm alone in feeling this way!)

There is not a guarantee they will sit with you or together. On some airlines you can reserve your specific seats and if you are booking far enough in advance it shouldn’t be a huge problem.

 

On a Delta flight last year they tried to sit my 4 year old by himself, no where near another family member. My husband had just barely enough frequent flier status at that time to get it straightened out but we literally did not know until 5 minutes before boarding. The desk agent had to ask people to switch seats on a full flight. Our 6 and 9 year old were about 4 rows from my husband, they sat with a lovely lady who enjoyed their company. Originally all 5 of us were stuck in different places on the plane, so I was relieved to end up in just 3 different places. Part of the problem was that we were using miles on some tickets and the flight was oversold. It was very stressful and I was ready to rent a car and drive home from Atlanta rather than let my 4 year old sit by himself.

 

While my husband has never had trouble with seats when he travels alone, traveling as a family has been a different experience. We have had better luck in the past 18 months with reserving seats ahead of time on Frontier and United.