Traveling on a budget

[Divadiver 0]

Has anyone here used Priceline.com for travel?

I guess I'm a little leery of putting my credit card number in and without even looking at the choices of flights, they charge your card for the best price for the destination that you choose. I need to be in Miami for a party and I don't want a flight that's going to be arriving at 2:00 a.m. (Hell, I might miss something!)

Anyone have any idea for traveling and saving $$'s?

Uhhm, (clearing throat) I need a place to stay for two nights, Uhhhmmm.

Diva

[skymama 35]

I've used it before, and I did get a good price. But, I had to have such a round about way of getting to my destination, and the times of arrival wern't that good. So, I decided next time it just wasn't worth it, and I'd cough up for a direct connection.

She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

[scottbre 0]

I've used it before, but probably won't anymore. The main reason is that you can't be very specific about what time of the day you want your flight to be. That's why I usually check Southwest. They are pretty cheap.

Of course if you have the luxury of being able to catch a flight anytime during the day, then do your research and make a low offer, you'd be surprised how low you can get tickets for.

"Your mother's full of stupidjuice!"
My Art Project

[PhillyKev 0]

Priceline sucks. Used them once. You have to agree to at least 1 layover and can't pick the time of day you're flying, just the day. And they charge you before you know what flight you'll be on. They booked me on a flight at 7 am that with layovers would take me 8 hours to get to Toronto (it takes about that long to drive it). And it only saved me like $30.

I usually use Travelocity. I get good deals and can pick what flights I want.

[hohonukai 0]

I've always had good experiences with travel agencies, and stressed to them I am looking for cheap. Sometimes they have the hookup, moreso than going directly through the airlines. PLUS, if you keep going to the same agent and get buddy-buddy, they'll work even harder to get you the cheapest rates.

[Sassy 0]

Be careful with internet travel stuff. And I don't just say that because I own a travel agency. I can tell you horror stories of reservations and flights getting screwed up and even reservations not existing even though credit cards have been charged by these internet sites. I get calls almost daily from people wanting me to fix the mess and I can't. And people with tickets bought on the cheap internet sites are the ones that get reacommodated last if there are any problems such as flight cancellations or mechanicals. My clients know to call me from the airport instead of having to stand in a line to get these types of situations fixed.
Try a local travel agency. They may charge a small fee on an airline ticket as most of us are doing since we no longer get paid by the airlines, but you'll know who you are dealing with and you'll know your schedule ahead of time. 98% of the time we can match or beat the internet. I, personally, watch my clients reservation for schedule changes and notify them of these changes in addition to other services.
But at the same time if a client has found a really low fare on the internet that I can't touch I tell them to go for it. I'm all for people saving money just as long as they are aware that I can't help if there's a mess.
I'm not totally sure of the rules in this forum and I don't want this to sound like advertising, but just want people to be careful and not have their vacation plans ruined.
Sassy

[hohonukai 0]

Won't you be my neighbor?

Since you've jumped, do you offer low airfare to jumpers? C'mon, give us the hookup!

[Sassy 0]

I LOVE skydivers and I'll work hard for anyone who needs help. I have a clientbase of over 600 people that can vouch for thatI do have lots of connections for bulk air and packages and such. I'm all for saving people money any way I can.
I also give clients my home number so if there is a weekend or evening emergency they can reach me.
Oops..starting to sound like advertising...better stop now

[Remster 24]

I use expedia all the time for personal travel.

When doing business travel, I have to use coorporate travel agents, and no offence Sassy, all the misbooked and FUBARed reservations I've ever had were with those (both with Carslon and Amex).

I would rather book my own flights, thank you very much.

Remster

[Sassy 0]

Sorry to hear that. Definitely no offense taken, to each his own.
There are definitely bad travel agents out there and corporate agents tend to be the worse. They are just order takers for the most part and have no real interest in their clients. Alot of my clients have become some of the best friends I have since I have been doing their travel arrangements for many years.
Sassy

[Jessica 0]

I've probably bought a dozen sets of tickets on Travelocity through my Yahoo account. I've never been able to find anything cheaper where you get to pick your own flight. That Priceline/Hotwire gimmick scares me. I don't wanna fly at 2 a.m.

Skydiving is for cool people only

[PhreeZone 15]

>I don't wanna fly at 2 a.m.

What... stumbling into a city at 2 am your time does'nt sound like a smashing good time?

I use Orbitz.com a lot of the time to travel. I use Amex at work and they are flakey sometimes.

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[megscott73 0]

Yeah, I agree with Expedia. I've had good results with them.

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"What I want is what I've not got ,but what I need is all around me"-DMB
Meghan

[tadbad 0]

I find Travelocity is best with airfares and Expedia is best with hotels and rental cars.

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When you're going to extremes...you taste adrenaline!!

[Remster 24]

If your travels take you to Europe / the UK, then look ino the budget airlines: Easyjet, RyanAir, Buzz. their website is the best way to get the prices (mid week, overweekend for chepest rates, 50 pounds London Barcelona one way is not unusual, with cheaper rates around)

Remster

[DTOXX 0]

While this may not work for anyone who is not a student, I find www.studentuniverse.com just blows everyone away. The eligabiity is fairly straight forward. You must be in college. I am 36 and a part time student. (1 class this semester, Accounting at that) and I am still able to use them.

On the upside, it may make going back to school worthwhile.

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D.T. Holder
SIMstudy

[wildblue 4]

expedia works well for me. that's where I got the $105 round trip Indy - Tampa earlier this year.

it's like incest - you're substituting convenience for quality

[megscott73 0]

I also flew Eastwind Airlines once- a discount airline. It was only $89 each way. This is most likely only good if you're flying one way only.

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"What I want is what I've not got ,but what I need is all around me"-DMB
Meghan

[WFFC 1]

I've used priceline.com for airfare, hotels and cars. If you are ok with not knowing your schedule to fly and are ok with flying at goofy times, priceline is the way to go. If not, try the other other travel sites
www.travelocity.com, expedia.com, cheapseats.com, orbitz.com and sometimes even the specific airline sites have better deals than these. For cars, shop before bidding and start by cutting your bid in half of the best rate found. If it doesn't get accepted, up it a few dollars and this should do it.
As for hotel rooms, best deal I ever got was a 2 bedroom courtyard by marriott for 35$ per night for 3 nights.

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~~~Michael