Book Direct or with a 3rd Party like Expedia?
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- Опубліковано 27 гру 2022
- One of the big questions in travel is if you should buy your plane tickets or hotels direct from the provider or if you should use a third party like Expedia or Skyscanner. Well, you can find great deals on third party websites, but there may be issues if things go awry. That is why we typically buy direct from airlines or hotels for that piece of mind.
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Booking directly is always more expensive
Oh boy I could go on for an hour on this topic 😂 Always book direct! Airfare, hotels, tours, everything. Thanks for educating, Mark!
Doing my best! Thanks Rob!
Yep. But I do sometimes use Hotwire xD but yeah mostly direct…
Although booking direct is great for peace of mind and ease for changes, what about the great 5X, 10X rewards these portals (Capital One) offer?
Direct. No matter how fun, there is always a little stress with travelling. I just feel like booking 3rd party, you're upping the amount of stress and chances for there to be a problem. I want the least amount of problems possible for my trip. Sometimes problems happen but I don't want to set the scene for problems.
Same here
I used Expedia to book a trip to Australia four years ago. On the day of my departure, the plane that was supposed to take me to Dallas blew a tire upon landing. The airline (American) couldn't get the tire changed in time for us to catch our connecting flights in Dallas. I was given a toll free number to call AA. I explained the situation to the agent and gave her the itinerary number. Even though the trip was booked through Expedia, the agent was able to push everything back 24 hours so it all worked out.
Totally agree. Search on sites but ALWAYS book direct.
I get Expedia points without being loyal to an airline or hotel. I pay a cheaper rate (decent price, although bottom of the bin is an option), and I get equal points regardless of what chain of hotel / airline I take. Expedia points work with my credit card and work for every trip, so if there’s no Marriott close to my destination, I can book a Hilton and collect the same rewards.
The customer service problem is blown way out of proportion. Airline and hotels are legally obligated to fulfill their contract with you. When you buy from Expedia you still sign a contract with the provider. As for refunds, let your Credit Card company help you.
I have had the exact situation you’ve described happen to me with 3rd party bookings. Over the years I have
Watched your channel and appreciate how practically useful they are, thank you. Great job!
For me, I simply go for the best and cheapest price out there. Whether it’s direct, 3rd or even 4th party is irrelevant. I think of my pocket.
Hi Mr. Wolters, I recently saw your videos on Strasbourg, Colmar, Normandy and really enjoyed the jovial vibe, wealth of useful info and the great photography. I love Europe and your videos on Europe are some of the best! Now I've watched this video and am glad I did, because I mostly booked from 3rd parties, but will now book direct from airlines. Thank you!
Great help! I hope all these cancellations haven't affected any of your travels! Stay warm!
I'm the opposite. I always use Expedia and/or Kiwi. Of course, I don't travel as much as Wolter's World does. Not even close! But I love having my entire itinerary in one place, booked by the same third-party, so I have one place to go for customer service issues. I also like that they're so good at dealing with issues that arise. As one example, we had a connecting flight in Kyiv a few years ago that was delayed by 9 hours. Kiwi alerted me to it and contacted me directly to work with scheduling new connecting flights and setting up a hotel room in New York since this changed caused us to miss a connecting flight there. It was great that they handled everything for me and did it flawlessly. It was about as stress-free as it could be.
Hey man great videos. I just discovered your page yesterday while trying to get tips for Lisbon.
I’m from LA and when I travel in the continental US, I book direct.
Traveling to Europe is another story. I usually do multi-cities when I go and it can be a headache searching directly. I’ve been using TripMasters for a few years now and never had a problem. I get my flights, hotels and trains in one search. Happy travels!
Thank you that was very informative you definitely said some things that I wasn't aware of.
Thank you for this excellent tip!
Glad you mentioned hotels too. We booked a Hampton Inn via travelocity or expedia (can’t remember which) and had plumbing issues. We went to front desk to ask for their “if we can’t make it right, we’ll refund that portion of the bill”. They said sorry-no can do.
From then on, we always do air and hotels direct. But use the 3rd parties like you to shop.
Thanks for advice. Getting ready to book and wanted your advice! Thumbs up.
Cheers!
Awesome and informative video
Thanks Mark. Food for thought. I used Expedia in January for a flight from Tbilisi, Georgia, to Prague in late February. As you know this was a chaotic time for airline bookings. I lost $200 through multiple (3) cancellations and general insanity. And I never could recover this because Air France wasn't even answering their phone. So even if I had booked through Air France I would have lost the money. I am putting this down to the times. Expedia was actually good for finding me an alternative flight home when I had to reroute my trip. I was scheduled for a layover in Kiev on March 6th. I got a feeling 3 days before February 24th that I really should reschedule. I got a Pegasus Airlines flight through Istanbul, packed with Russians fleeing Russia on their way to Tbilisi.
My location makes things odd, especially at that time. I took another flight to Germany through Expedia later in August. Things went smoothly. But due to the airline choices I have in Tbilisi, I am debating how I will book my flight back to Alaska to visit next year. The problem is booking multiple airlines, when there are no airline miles connections between Tbilisi and Paris. But I'm sure it will at least be interesting booking three or four flights to get there. Thanks again.
I always buy direct
Amen!
Vamos con más videos me gusta tu contenido 🎉
True that re mileage. Google Flights is great for pricing things out, though. Glad you mentioned that they sometimes have deals. Airline pricing is so tricky!! / Video suggestion: what to do with travel emergencies like losing a passport, getting sick, etc. I guess consulates can help in some cases. Happy 2023 Wolter!!
Agreed! I had the worst experience with Hopper trying to get my money back when covid hit. Month after month trying to get a refund and finally opened a case with the BBB (Better Business Bureau, US) Only then did they give me my money. I learned my lesson and make sure to book direct. As you suggested I use Expedia to search for flights but no longer would book 3rd party.
Thank you !!!!
Wow great job dear friend 💐
I would love to recommend Hopper for keeping track of your flights usually give you a good time when to buy and will give you notification when it's cheap and when it's expensive.
Totally agree. I know that sometimes it could be cheaper with a third party, but I always book directly, flights and hotels.
For airlines miles and any problem that might occur, if you need to change your flight or hotel reservation, ect...
Good advice, especially with all the recent flight delays and cancellations. I have booked both ways in the past and never had any issues, 3rd Party is sometimes cheaper for hotel and flight packages….
I work for an airline and if you book with a third party you’ll always have to got through the third party if anything goes wrong with the flight
My first international flight ever was to visit my wife's family in China; we booked a round-trip through Expidia and were screwed when our first flight arrived too late for our connecting flight. Turns out if you have to cancel a connecting flight as part of your ticket package, you cancel the return portion for your round trip.
Yeah, I'm same with you
I love the way you put things in perspective! It all depended on you at the end of the day, right?
I have a degree in Tourism (not hospitality as the under-graduation is treated in America, more specifically in planning of destinations) and I like booking hotels and rental properties from third parties. For airfare I do all my research online (incognito), I call my travel agent and I would get his best airfare price for some pre selected routes and flights. Usually I book airfare using a travel agent or directly with the airline.
When I’m traveling abroad always directly with the airline company. However, I read all the details on the airfare! It takes me so much time to do all my research that some days I give up and call my travel agent!😂
I never, ever buy last minute tickets! I’m a planner, it does not suit my style of traveling, but it may work for someone and it’s fine!
I agree with booking directly with the airline/hotel for the reasons mentioned (issues, refunds, points). Plus one time when I booked with a 3rd party I was involuntarily bumped off a flight. That was pretty much the last time I used 3rd party.
Thank you,,
I exactly do what you described. I look on 3rd party website to get an idea as to what airline has the better deal/route for my family then I book directly from the airline for as you said peace of mind if anything goes wrong.
I always book direct with airlines as I've never seen a discount big enough to tempt me but I don't book direct with hotels unless their price is listed lower or the same on the hotel's direct booking site for the same cancellation conditions.
I've tried asking over the phone to price match agoda/booking/expedia a few times when the hotel's online price was higher but its never worked. I even stood at a hotel counter without a booking for a room that night and asked to price match, been told they couldn't and they waited while I booked the hotel room on agoda!
Thank you for recommending me. 1:45
About 15 years ago I booked a flight from Melbourne (Australia) to NYC via Flight Centre. When we got into LA we were told the East Coast was snowed in and we were stuck in LA for a few days. Flight Centre was able to organise a refund from the NYC hotel for days not spent there, so in that respect a third party provider was worthwhile.
I do exactly as WW recommends - shop around using 3rd parties but always book direct. My prefered Airline is United, and I always try to book a direct non-stop flight when I can. However, one exception - I use Costco to book car rentals. I have NOT found a better site for cars than Costco either in the US or in Europe.
For lodging, I almost exclusively use AirBnB or VRBO vs. hotels. The exception is if I need a room near an airport before my flights.
When we do fly its direct from the airline, for us trains are different, as I'm a railway employee, I buy eurostar and high speed/long distance trainsvia a travel agent as we get a discount, local trains its from the station if a reservation is required, on local trains without reservation our relevant passes are turn up and go
Always clear your browser history & cookies. Some sites have been known to offer good deals on the first hit, but the deals 'go away' if they find you are comparison shopping. Also beware of 'trickle charging' where 'fees' are added at each screen of the purchase process, so the 'bargain' flight ends up costing a hundred or hundreds of dollars extra when the charge is forwarded to your card company. Both of these have come up at official enquiries in Australia into air fare scams.
I find that hard to do. Book a good flight deal...then pay for two seats...on all four legs...then pay for bags. Opos, no more good deal. Every flight.
What I found is when things go wrong, it gets complicated having a middle man involved. Call hotel "You need to talk to Expedia". Call Expedia and they say "Oh you need to call the propety!" Same with rental cars. This comes up a lot when flights are delayed and you show up a day late. Asking for refunds and rescheduling can be huge headache. We got nailed hard by this a week back resulting in hours of phone calls trying to save a vacation.
I always book direct for business and personal travel!
I work in a hotel. ALWAYS book direct. It’s easier for both you and me if you have a problem, or want to make a change etc. And don’t get pissy with hotel staff when we can’t help. You made the booking with the third party after all!
I totally agree with booking with direct, but I do look around like you said to find the best deal. Usually I go between direct and chase travel. I had a bad experience with Philippine airlines when the pandemic hit and it took almost a year to get my full refund back of calling back and forth with them. When I dealt with Chase travel and always got my refund back with no problems so far, they even told me upfront it will take this many days and they kept their word so far. I hope they continue to working with people that way because they are my go to if the direct airline is more. I did however had a bad experience with orbitz with a room booked in Venice Italy, still to this day have not got my refund back from them, never got to make the trip due to the pandemic and not able to use the credit therefore that coupon expired also with a hotel in France
I make the same with hotels, I find hotel in booking and then book directly from the hotel by the way its even cheaper
While I look on flights on google, I always book them via the airline website. Plus it’s easier to change plans if buying from them compare to 3rd party (like Expedia)
Air, hotels and even car rentals all direct for me for all the reasons you mention. There are some airlines that can be jerks and I just try to avoid them. BONUS: When booking your seat on a plane it is a good idea to go to Seat Guru to find out the best and worst seats and why. Not 100% of the seat maps are accurate but pretty close.
I always book flights direct with the airline, but for accommodation I use a third party site, but only ones that I trust.
After Covid was slowing down and travel demand began to pick up again, Lufthansa had dismissed so many people they were not able to uphold customer service. In this rare circumstance you were better off had you been through 3rd party. But generally I agree, that searching with 3rd party tools and booking direct is the best option.
Always buy national tickets direct and international tickets through a travel agent.
As a long time airline employee I can tell you direct is the way to go!! Use sites like Expedia to find the flights you want and then go directly to the airline and book. 3rd parties don’t save you any money so you’ll get the same fare from the airline. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to tell a customer that they have to call orbitz or cheapoair and it’s a nightmare.
I might be willing to book 3rd party if I saw a great deal and I was travelling solo. But when travelling with my wife and/or kids I would definitely stick with direct. Low stress is best.
I book with my chase card to get extra points and it was a headache when my flight got canceled last year. Thinking about just getting a card with American and/or delta and only booking with those airlines.
%100 Agree, 3rd party good for research and book direct for best service and peace of mind! If you read any of the travel problem websites most often the letters start " I booked my airplane, car, hotel etc through (insert 3rd party here)!"
As someone who worked in the hospitality industry for years, it is ALWAYS better to book directly with your hotel. I can’t even tell you how many times we had issues with third party reservations
I usually do 3rd party and lately it’s been a nightmare. To make a modification is such a hassle, you depend on the 3rd party to call the company and make it work
For hotels I use Booking but all transportation are always direct from them.
I see he's in New York City. I hope there's going videos about visiting New York cause I'm thinking of taking a trip there.
I always book through a travel agency. Flights and hotel
Plus may sound
strange. But I always
get the digital pass on
my phone and print it out.
maybe it's just the flights or hotels i pick, but i've never seen a difference of more than a few dollars. i look at those few extra dollars as insurance and always book direct. even tours. find the tour co. online and book with them.
could you maybe do a video about getting into Cuba in 2023? thinking of going in March at the end of a South America trip, but it looks like a big PITA. thanks! love the channel.
Yes always book direct as you might not get you money back thru third party or get run around when issues starts with flight.
Bingo
Flights always direct whereas hotels it depends ..But even when I book with a 3rd party I email the hotel right after to have a confirmation and to ask something I want to ask
I have always booked directly from the airlines.
Not financial advisor, but you can easily sign up for programs linking a frequent flier account so you can start building miles. You cannot do that easily with 3rd parties.
I always use expedia for hotels as its easier with cancelling should you need to. It's always better.
Book direct!
Same here :)
When I booked through a third party this summer, my flight was cancelled and I was never notified of the cancellation.
Oh that would burn my biscuits!
When I buy flights 3rd party, I still check the flight status via the airlines direct website. Third party sites do not keep track of those details.
You usually have to check in online in advance on the airlines website.
I had a problem with Opodo going from London to Sarajevo with wizzair. On Opodo site said everything was booked but when I got to Wizzair check-in desk I found out I wasn't on the system and I had repay for a flight then and there. Massive hassle trying to get the money back from Opodo
Like Wolter said book direct with airline to avoid trouble.
I always book directly no matter the cost if i need to get to my destination. I like no stress with peace of mind. Screw 3rd party apps.
I've always ordered my tickets through Travelocity and never had any problems.
Can you do a cheap family vacation video and how to find flights for a family
Unless there is like a $200+ difference I don't use the 3rd party. If you have a tight schedule and travelling with family, try not to book 3rd party, as they don't give out hotels, meals etc. if you got delayed for some reason. When travelling alone and you don't have a time crunch, you can use the 3rd party (cheap options and save). For example The filight got cancelled and they rebooked the next day flight, however they would not give the hotel, as I did not book directly from the airline. But it only happened once on the international flight out of 20 I took, so it does pay off. Also take a close look at the baggage options - Direct booking can give 2 pices of checking luggage 50lbs each, where as booking with 3rd party could have 1 piece of checked luggage. So you need to weigh out these options.
Travelling alone (no time crunch and plenty of connection time / not carrying much baggage) - you can use the 3rd party
Travelling with Family (older kids and no time crunch) - you can save $$$ by booking thru 3rd party options.
Same as you use the 3rd party to research and book direct. That goes for Air and Hotel. The third parties can give local or regional small hotels them go direct. Working in hospitality field and have seen many many times people book with third party and need to cxl or change etc and call hotel and it’s always. You need to the third party and figure it out.
We ALWAYS book air & hotels directly with their companies. We wouldn’t do it any other way. Saving $50 and getting a $200 headache isn’t worth it.
Exactly my thoughts too.
Agree with you BUT in SE Asia things are different, esp. with hotels. When traveling SE Asia (Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia) many hotels are three times higher (yikes!) going direct versus 3rd party. That said...your hotel is also going to be just 20 or 30 USD regardless unless you are staying in an exclusive area in Bangkok or some place like that.
What about using the cruise line for booking airline tickets? Cruise lines say they save you money. I had a bad experience going through the cruise line.
Is buying flights through credit cards (say Capitol One) considered third party? Would your advice be the same through credit card companies as well?
well, I agree in most cases, but I have to mention two things...
1/ sometimes the third party resellers are a lot cheaper and it pays off...
2/ whenever you travel with Qatar Aiirway - buy with whoever else offers... they still haven't discovered the miracle of e-mail and you have to call them (to Qatar) in order to manage your flight which is extremely annoying... and some of the agencies really can do miracles for you when you have an issue.. i bought tickets to Nairobi with QA in 2020 and needed to change the dates and after x days trying to reach them, I just sent an e-mail to our Norwegian agency that bought the tickets for us and the changes were done in a matter of hours...
I was wondering would you go through a travel agent to book whole trip if doing multiple city in Europe planning to go to Spain (Madrid and Barcelona) and they to Italy (Rome and Florence). First time traveler to Europe. Thanks.
I've had bad experiences booking direct but that was with British Airlines, so... maybe it was that. I normally book with expedia. Usually its fine easy and cheap, but I've had a few problems. I've had a car scheduled to pick me up and take me to airline in Tokyo and it ended up scheduled the day before I arrived, which I didn't notice, and ended up taking a Taxi which ripped me off. There has been a few other small problems, but otherwise its been ok. I just booked via expedia a trip to Batumi in the country of Georgia, and it appear to be much cheaper going via expedia, than direct.
Make sure you are on the company web site. We thought we were dealing direct with hotel but we were on a clone of the site and paid a nonrefundable service of $150.00. We are working with the credit card company but it's probably going to be an expensive lesion.
I once booked a hotel on Expedia and I ended up needing to cancel… turns out the hotel had already cancelled the booking on me weeks prior and neither they or Expedia let me know. Good thing I didn’t end up going! For that reason I really avoid 3rd party booking sites as much as possible, I don’t trust them.
Comments to help
I've had small problem with both booking direct or third party; however, they were managed quite quickly. BUT...that was before 2020. Now, especially with AirB...they're a nightmare to deal with, so I've stopped using them all together.
Now, this entire debacle with SWA. This might be a good topic...can they survive this? I would have to think that the board of directors are already prepping departure packages for more than a few suits as a business-saving move. But even given that, their reputation is...let's just say Spirit rebranded their motto to say, "Hey we may suck, but we're not Southwest!" Is this something SWA can recover from or has this gotten to the point of an uncontrolled spin right into the ground?
A friend recently booked travel on 13 hr flight and Expedia never issued ticket to airline. He couldn’t fly for 4 days as it was getting sorted and Expedia blamed airline and airline blamed Expedia.
Sounds about right. That sucked for them 😞
Hey Mark, First time in 30 years had to use a bricks and mortar travel agent, Vietnam Air web site would not accept my credit card to fly PHN to SGN. probably cost me an extra $200 NZD. See you soon cheers M
Definitely book flights directly with the airlines. I had an issue getting a refund with a flight to Israel. I also like you want my miles.
I usually book 3rd party because I usually use affirm so I can make payments. I love traveling and that’s one of the ways I can do it. Using affirm I’ve been able to take my daughter to several different countries 😊
What websites do you do this with?
@@cjkavy2299 I use affirm or before that it was Airfordable but that was for flight only
@@sugarskullchick6239 oh I’m sorry I meant what website allow you to use affirm as a payment method?
@@cjkavy2299 I did with priceline before the pandemic. Not sure if you still can.
@Ren-P Priceline uses non-opaque booking, lets say you want a hotel room in NYC, you might find a hotel room for $60 a night, oh boy, $60 a night vs $200. The thing is they don't tell you what that hotel is, or it's address till after booking and paying. So instead of staying at the Hilton, that $60 room may be at Super 8 in a bad neighborhood.
I always book direct.
does vacation insurance compensate for the 3rd party risk?
What about all inclusive resorts ?
Booked once thru 3rd party and they put my son and I two diff places on the plane. We had no clout. Never again.
That sucks
I always book directly with my airline
Expedia really did a number on me. Will definitely deal directly with airlines now.
what exactly happened? Have you ever used oojo or wowfare?
I run onto problems , when I don't book direct. Like refunds, lost bookings or no record of booking. No promotions excepted through 3 parties etc
Exactly
Thanks, I feel the same. I don't want to take the risk getting cancelled on flights or hotels and then I have to talk with the App if there's an actual person to talk to?! :)
Bingo! Same here
What about hotels? I travel for work and have to be budget conscious
Direct!
Amen!
Flying via a third party to Leipzig and got bumped. Granted Lufthansa gave me a hotel/cash and dinner voucher but the experience was daunting. Never again! Buy direct!
That sucked. Glad they at least gave you a hotel
I love you Mark you are so on point, l got scammed by eDreams l booked a flight with them and couldn't travel at the check in counter in the airport l was told by the airlines staffs that they have never received any money from third party eDreams that's why my name isn't on their passenger sheet. so l lost 400$ l agree with Mark it's better to purchase a ticket from the airlines the difference in fare isn't that big,