When you’re booking a revenue ticket on an airline (as opposed to redeeming miles), are you better off booking directly with that airline, or through an online travel agency? In this post I wanted to address that topic, since the answer isn’t obvious to most.
For those not familiar with online travel agencies (often referred to as “OTAs”), these are websites like Expedia and Orbitz, which let you book flights, hotels, rental cars, and more. Let me start with a couple of things upfront that should be the same regardless of whether you book directly with an airline or through an online travel agency:
- The prices of flights should be the same regardless of whether you book directly or through a mainstream online travel agency; in some cases you may see slightly lower prices through online travel agencies you may have never heard of, though I’d recommend exercising caution when using them
- You generally earn points as well as elite credit for flights in the same way regardless of whether you’re booking directly or through an online travel agency (there are a limited number of exceptions, like JetBlue TrueBlue, which awards fewer points for third party bookings)
With that out of the way, let me share the pros and cons of booking through an online travel agency, and my general strategy (which I’ll say upfront is that I book directly with an airline, unless there’s a strong incentive not to).
In this post:
Downsides of booking through an online travel agency
Let me start with the downsides of booking through an online travel agency. As I said above, I generally don’t book through online travel agencies, and I consider the cons to outweigh the pros in most situations.
Online travel agencies can be a bit of a curse when things go wrong, and there are issues with your ticket. If you have a schedule change, face irregular operations, need to change your ticket, etc., the airline might tell you to contact your travel agency, while the online travel agency might tell you to contact the airline. You could end up in a never-ending loop of misinformation, and I’ve certainly had it happen before, and it couldn’t be more frustrating.
It’s a total pain when you want to get something fixed but are just getting the runaround. Nowadays so many airlines offer ticket flexibility, where you can cancel a ticket and apply a credit toward a future flight. In these situations, it’s much easier to just deal with the airline directly, since it limits how much can go wrong.
Furthermore, I find that most online travel agencies have horrible phone customer service. They all seem to use outsourced call centers with very little training, so don’t expect much of a resolution if things go wrong.
Of course there are also plenty of airlines with horrible customer service, though that’s more variable. At least some airlines offer decent self-service reservations options online, in the event of irregular operations or schedule changes.
Furthermore, sometimes it’s easier to book through an airline’s website in terms of selecting seats, entering your frequent flyer information, etc. With most airlines it doesn’t make a huge difference since technology has greatly improved, but there are some airlines that let you select seats at booking, but otherwise require you to call to select them.
Benefits of booking through an online travel agency
So, why should anyone even consider booking through an online travel agency? If you ask me, there are several potential benefits, but they’re mostly pretty niche. While airlines have a 24-cancelation policy for flights in the United States, there are some limitations to those regulations, including how far in advance you have to book to qualify for that.
In my experience, online travel agencies have much more flexible 24-hour cancelation policies, and many will allow you to cancel within 24 hours even if you’re ticketing your reservation the same day of travel. You’ll of course want to consult the website of the online travel agency (and even take screenshots), though I find this is sometimes flexibility that comes in handy.
Another potential benefit of online travel agencies is that the booking interface is easy to use, or at a minimum, familiar. If you’re booking a smaller airline you don’t often travel with, you might find that using an online travel agency is just easier.
I also find there are fewer issues with credit card payment and general website error messages through online travel agencies, compared to the website of a small airline I’ve otherwise never flown before. For that matter, in some situations, airlines may require you to present the credit card used to pay when booking directly, while that doesn’t apply when booking through an online travel agency (this is rare, and is almost always for non-US airlines).
Furthermore, when flying a small airline, it’s nice to know that you can at least reach customer service at a major online travel agency 24/7, even if they’re not necessarily that well trained.
There’s also something to be said for the fact that online travel agencies will sometimes let you book tickets you couldn’t book directly with airlines. For example, when two airlines have an interline agreement, you might not be able to book a ticket between two non-partners through an airline website, but you might be able to book that through an online travel agency.
Lastly, while I wouldn’t consider these to be traditional online travel agencies, it’s worth keeping in mind that premium credit cards sometimes offer credits or bonus rewards for booking through their portals. So that could be an incentive to use something like the Capital One Travel Portal or Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal.
My online travel agency booking strategy
Unless I have a compelling reason not to, I’ll always book directly with an airline. That minimizes the odds of getting frustrated if any ticket changes are required, or if there are irregular operations. It also makes it easiest if I need to cancel my ticket, and want to use a credit toward a future flight.
The only time I’ll consistently book through an online travel agency is if I think I might want to cancel within 24 hours, and booking directly with an airline wouldn’t qualify for that.
Furthermore, in some situations I’ll book through an online travel agency if it’s an airline I don’t often travel with, and I’m having issues with their website. I’ll also do so in situations where a ticket can’t be booked directly through an airline, like if I’m booking an itinerary involving multiple airlines that have an interline agreement, but not a closer partnership.
Bottom line
Personally I do what I can to book directly with an airline, rather than through an online travel agency or another third party. By all means use websites like Google Flights to look up fares and schedules, but then I’d highly recommend booking directly with an airline. That’s mainly because this simplifies matters if there’s any sort of schedule change, irregular operations, the need to cancel, etc.
What’s your strategy — when do you book direct with an airline, and when do you book through an online travel agency?
Lufthansa had (/have?) a 'price match guarantee' whereby they promised to match any cheaper fare online when I booked with them a few years back, so long as you provide proof of where you found the fare cheaper. I did exactly that, provided screenshots of where the exact same flight was nearly €100 cheaper on an OTA, and all I got back was a generic 'your request does not meet the criteria' email. Turns out a guarantee with Lufthansa is no such thing.
Great article Ben. Why wasn't AmexTravel portal mentioned. Their service is excellent, with their airline partner program they meet/beat direct airline websites, particularly for International Business Class fares.
I have a lot of thoughts and stories to share, but all I'll say here is that I do generally book directly with the airline unless I can find a better price via Amex using their International Airline Program (IAP). The only exception, though, is I will NEVER book a codeshare flight via IAP because of issues with schedule changes I've encountered in the past. I once booked an Air France LP ticket via a...
I have a lot of thoughts and stories to share, but all I'll say here is that I do generally book directly with the airline unless I can find a better price via Amex using their International Airline Program (IAP). The only exception, though, is I will NEVER book a codeshare flight via IAP because of issues with schedule changes I've encountered in the past. I once booked an Air France LP ticket via a Delta codeshare ticket that I purchased through IAP. When the Air France flights changed, I had to call Amex, who had to call Delta, who had to call Air France; the entire process took hours and I was almost unable to be reaccommodated. I've also had issues with schedule changes and Amex not reissuing my ticket correctly. So yah, booking directly through the airline is great, but saving a few thousand $$'s via IAP is also great. Just don't book codeshares!
I normally book direct with the airline but I used Webjet here in Australia for a booking that I took earlier this year round trip from Adelaide to Paris on Emirates with Qantas legs connecting to Perth on the outbound and from Sydney in the inbound, primarily because at the time they had an AU$200 off promo and I am cheap.
I didn't really expect much from them, but the Monday before I was...
I normally book direct with the airline but I used Webjet here in Australia for a booking that I took earlier this year round trip from Adelaide to Paris on Emirates with Qantas legs connecting to Perth on the outbound and from Sydney in the inbound, primarily because at the time they had an AU$200 off promo and I am cheap.
I didn't really expect much from them, but the Monday before I was due to leave, Qantas cancelled the first leg of the flight from Adelaide to Perth. I was initially offered an alternative flight to Perth that left in the morning which didn't work - I had a seperate flight booked to get from my small town to Adelaide (trying to book direct from here to Paris just spat out nonsense) and there weren't any other options for that flight outside of cancelling it and driving six hours.
I looked at the other options from Adelaide, and found an option that connected through Melbourne instead, and asked if they could switch me to that. I got a phone call a short while later saying "we should be able to but I have to confirm with Emirates", and a short while later got a call back confirming all gone through and she made sure I got an updated itinerary.
Plus, the new outbound fare was in a higher fare class so I got free seat selection and more points - bonus!
I'd probably use them again for such a trip.
I'm team travel agent and I don't plan to change any time soon
Actually some OTAs are cheaper than booking directly, at least here in Central Europe. The drawback is, that they buy bulk ultra-light fares with even worse cancelation and rebooking possibilities as regular tickets.
@Lucky, this is the second post in a short time reading something like this:
Nowadays so many airlines offer ticket flexibility, where you can cancel a ticket and apply a credit toward a future flight.
(The other time was in that “when to book” post)
Good for you, if this is the case in the US, but it certainly does not reflect European reality.
During the pandemic and immediately afterwards, airlines had indeed been...
@Lucky, this is the second post in a short time reading something like this:
Nowadays so many airlines offer ticket flexibility, where you can cancel a ticket and apply a credit toward a future flight.
(The other time was in that “when to book” post)
Good for you, if this is the case in the US, but it certainly does not reflect European reality.
During the pandemic and immediately afterwards, airlines had indeed been much more generous about rebooking and refunding flights. These times are over and all legacies have returned to their usual restrictive rules.
Refunds are almost always out of the question again (unless you booked the most expensive flexible fare) and rebooking is often not allowed for the cheapest BASIC or LIGHT fares or otherwise attracts rebooking fees of EUR 50-100 per direction or per rebooking plus fare differential.
SOMETIMES, with an OTA, you can obtain more favourable conditions, but often this also costs extra, right from the start.
I’d never book through an OTA, unless it’s substantially cheaper, which doesn’t happen often.
Otherwise, if you want to make any changes to a European itinerary booked through an OTA, by the time they’ve tagged on all their fees and charges, you might just as well bin the ticket and buy a new one….
It's not just Europe, the tickets I have bought in Africa, the Far East, Argentina and even Mexico over the past couple of years have been all the same. Changes are only allowed with a penalty, and there are no refunds of any sort unless one buys the most expensive fare type.
Specifically in Europe, there are airlines which don't sell ANY refundable fares. I recently had that with Jet2, I know FR do...
It's not just Europe, the tickets I have bought in Africa, the Far East, Argentina and even Mexico over the past couple of years have been all the same. Changes are only allowed with a penalty, and there are no refunds of any sort unless one buys the most expensive fare type.
Specifically in Europe, there are airlines which don't sell ANY refundable fares. I recently had that with Jet2, I know FR do it too and I doubt they're the only two.
We really need the list of airlines that do follow that approach!
Another advantage of OTAs is that they are far better when booking multiple stops on a single trip. They can recommend various airlines and you can more easily choose between which times you want to fly as opposed to a direct airline website.
Totally agreed book direct with airline, having quite a bad experience with Gotogate for 2 tickets Ams-Cpt biz class in 2020 with Kenya Airways and from same cancelled due Covid and til now Gotogate not providing refund although got proof from Kenya Airways of Application refunds in their favor since May 2022, and after 4 years they still keeping my money......never again with such fraud and incompetence company.
My strategy is to book with a real live travel agent or directly with the airline.
He's a friend in our community and it's a win-win. We get good quality service and he gets commission.
I usually book all my flights through Orbitz App. Orbitz gives 2% cash back as Orbucks, which can be used as cash to book hotels at Orbitz later. Since I have a lot of business travels I need to book for myself, I can easily accumulate Orbucks and get free hotel later. It is awesome because on Orbitz I can book any hotels and use or bucks as the payment. I do not have to...
I usually book all my flights through Orbitz App. Orbitz gives 2% cash back as Orbucks, which can be used as cash to book hotels at Orbitz later. Since I have a lot of business travels I need to book for myself, I can easily accumulate Orbucks and get free hotel later. It is awesome because on Orbitz I can book any hotels and use or bucks as the payment. I do not have to be limited to certain hotel brands.
I am quite satisfied with the customer service of Orbitz because I can chat with the customer service. I usually prefer chatting on the website to making phone calls because I can have a record of the chat for future reference. I found their service is pretty good.
Recently, I noticed that even I made the AA flight ticket purchase through Orbitz I still can make flight change on aa.com directly. It is quite interesting because usually the flight change has to be made through the ticketing agent. However, now I can make flight change on AA.com directly and then I will receive an email from Orbitz notifying me AA has changed my flight. That is even more convenient.
There was a time if you had a good travel agent they could truly be helpful.
My wonderful travel agent had to turn to corporate customers instead of individuals.
Eventually our business together faded and I began booking direct.
It was a nice time while it lasted. They did many extras, rearranging on a phone call. Miss those days.
As a travel advisor for a luxury travel/concierge services agency, "the time" still exists and has never been more needed (or busy).
You left out the potential huge discounts for International Premium class tickets using the American Express IAP (International Air Program).
Is Expedia the preferred OTA? I have used Travelocity before and it is a terrible OTA with poor customer service. Anyone who can recommend the ‘best’ OTA?
Expedia Group owns pretty much every travel website that you have ever heard of...Expedia, Orbitz, Traveloity, Hotels.com, VRBO, Hotwire, CheapTickets, and more. Each brand subtly attracts different types of consumers. So anyways, hard to not use an Expedia Group brand. Expedia Group also "white labels" their booking engines and product portfolio to other entities such as airline vacations division (some, not all).
However, for hotels I also find Booking.com to be great, great selection...
Expedia Group owns pretty much every travel website that you have ever heard of...Expedia, Orbitz, Traveloity, Hotels.com, VRBO, Hotwire, CheapTickets, and more. Each brand subtly attracts different types of consumers. So anyways, hard to not use an Expedia Group brand. Expedia Group also "white labels" their booking engines and product portfolio to other entities such as airline vacations division (some, not all).
However, for hotels I also find Booking.com to be great, great selection of independent properties (Netherlands based), and for air I also like Kayak.com (not sure where they are based). In terms of ease of response for hotel issues (especially independent properties), love ya Expedia, but Booking.com is always quick to solve any problem. Just because of their buying power, the Expedia Group usually receives good support from their airline partners for any issues not otherwise restricted by the T&C's of your airfare.
Happy Travel!
Thank you very much. I appreciate your reply, Leigh. I will definitely think about using booking.com as an OTA option.
One other benefit with agency like expedia is that their 24 hour cancellation usually applies to next business day. Often I can make a booking on Friday and have Monday midnight as the 24 hour fully refundable cancellation deadline. This is really helpful when the trip implicates others as I can reach out and make sure the schedule works for them as well.
@Lune makes an excellent point about the incompleteness of this post by not including brick and mortar travel agents. Yes, generally I book direct with the airline, but I still use my trusty travel agent (as opposed to sites like Expedia) at times when I simply couldn't be bothered to build the itinerary myself (usually because it's complicated). Having an agent deal with the airline to make changes is also a real plus. And it...
@Lune makes an excellent point about the incompleteness of this post by not including brick and mortar travel agents. Yes, generally I book direct with the airline, but I still use my trusty travel agent (as opposed to sites like Expedia) at times when I simply couldn't be bothered to build the itinerary myself (usually because it's complicated). Having an agent deal with the airline to make changes is also a real plus. And it costs me nothing extra. I save valuable time and money, and get no stress. Even literally last minute changes are no problem when dealing with trusted agent. Try doing that with a chatbot! The thing is, you have to cultivate that relationship. Then, there is no problem that can't be solved.
Absolutely! A trusted travel agent can make all the difference, especially for those complex trips where you just want everything to go smoothly. It's great to have someone who knows your preferences and can handle any issues that come up, saving you time and stress. Do you have any upcoming travel plans where you might use your agent's services?Absolutely! A trusted travel agent can make all the difference, especially for those complex trips where you...
Absolutely! A trusted travel agent can make all the difference, especially for those complex trips where you just want everything to go smoothly. It's great to have someone who knows your preferences and can handle any issues that come up, saving you time and stress. Do you have any upcoming travel plans where you might use your agent's services?Absolutely! A trusted travel agent can make all the difference, especially for those complex trips where you just want everything to go smoothly. It's great to have someone who knows your preferences and can handle any issues that come up, saving you time and stress. Do you have any upcoming travel plans where you might use your agent's services?
Peace of Mind: Knowing that a professional is handling your travel arrangements can provide peace of mind, allowing you to relax and enjoy your trip.
I think this article is incomplete without mentioning two more classes of travel agents: brick-and-mortar agents, and consolidators (sometimes agents are both).
For decades, I had a great relationship with a local travel agent who went above and beyond with my tickets, including in one memorable instance, having one of his employees literally drive to the airport to hand-deliver a paper ticket to me that the airline was demanding (this was in those days when...
I think this article is incomplete without mentioning two more classes of travel agents: brick-and-mortar agents, and consolidators (sometimes agents are both).
For decades, I had a great relationship with a local travel agent who went above and beyond with my tickets, including in one memorable instance, having one of his employees literally drive to the airport to hand-deliver a paper ticket to me that the airline was demanding (this was in those days when airlines -- aka some agents -- would sometimes not accept e-tickets; when I got back, I gave him an extra hundred dollars just for saving our trip from an idiot check-in agent). Sadly, our agent closed up shop, but if you can still find one and develop a good relationship, their customer service and ability to fix problems far outweighs anything some random airline agent will do for you.
Second, consolidators -- as opposed to mileage brokers -- are perfectly legal and often have cheaper prices than the airlines themselves. I used an online business class consolidator once for our family trip and they were great: personalized service, presented several different options on different airlines all with prices below what i could find myself, and the trip went off without a hitch (granted, there were no irrops issues that needed to be fixed), including getting my full mileage credited.
I agree that the large general-purpose online OTAs like Expedia don't really do much. They're just presenting the same tickets that everyone else has and hoping to collect that $5 ticketing fee the airlines will pay them. But there are several niches out there where using an agent can give you better service and better prices than just booking directly can get you.
You can't compare the travel agencies such as Expedia to the travel agencies that are part of the credit card system such as through Chase or Amex cards. They are very different. Those travel agencies with the credit card do give real benefits and real service and provide reasonable timing on updates. Further the customer is not on hold for very long. There can be a great return depending on which card you use to...
You can't compare the travel agencies such as Expedia to the travel agencies that are part of the credit card system such as through Chase or Amex cards. They are very different. Those travel agencies with the credit card do give real benefits and real service and provide reasonable timing on updates. Further the customer is not on hold for very long. There can be a great return depending on which card you use to pay and/or temporary card offers. Those agencies such as Expedia have very few pros to use them. I agree the drawbacks outweigh the benefits.
OTA show you all the various options like split tickets that obviously you can't get direct. Furthermore I have traveled internationally on American and look at Expedia, Google and CheapOAir. I find what I want and then go on American and they either do not show the flights or far more expensive. So I book on whatever OTA and then go to American website with locater code and pick my seats and enter frequent flyer info.
Yes, that's actually included in the Expedia Group strategic plan. They know that's how people shop...so what do they do? They make substantial revenue from selling adverts on their site, as any savvy industry partner knows (airline, hotel, car, destinations, etc). I think they still call that division Expedia Media Solutions, they are very very creative with how they can bundle their amazing technology for all the various sectors of the industry. It's also referenced...
Yes, that's actually included in the Expedia Group strategic plan. They know that's how people shop...so what do they do? They make substantial revenue from selling adverts on their site, as any savvy industry partner knows (airline, hotel, car, destinations, etc). I think they still call that division Expedia Media Solutions, they are very very creative with how they can bundle their amazing technology for all the various sectors of the industry. It's also referenced as the "Billboard Affect"...Expedia spends far more money consumer advertising than almost any industry partner can, usually in the many multiples, so it's standard strategy for industry to buy the adverts to get in front of Expedia's consumer eyes, knowing that the consumer is likely to then directly make the purchase....Expedia Group monetizes itself in the consumer purchase path...though click-offs usually happen at a higher percentage for airlines.
Ben, I love the shade with the TAAG photo.
Although I most often book directly with the carrier concerned, I have had good success several times with a certain OTA. Advantages have been their ability to discount J or F class fares by hundreds of dollars on long-hauls (in my case, to Europe and Asia) no doubt thanks to either being or using a consolidator. On another occasion they applied their own points (however that works) to discount an AF J-class ticket by half....
Although I most often book directly with the carrier concerned, I have had good success several times with a certain OTA. Advantages have been their ability to discount J or F class fares by hundreds of dollars on long-hauls (in my case, to Europe and Asia) no doubt thanks to either being or using a consolidator. On another occasion they applied their own points (however that works) to discount an AF J-class ticket by half. 24-hour phone access, clear refund and re-credit policies, etc. And when not using their own points, interline multi-city routings and full loyalty point credits to my accounts.
It would be really helpful if you could share the name? Thank you.
Ben, sometimes when using Google Flights, especially with multiple legs, they will suggest buying from an OTA, since no airline or combination of airlines can book the itinerary at the low price. For instance, I'm flying from Singapore to Kona, Hawaii in March. My itinerary includes flying to Tokyo on ANA and then flying on to Kona on Hawaiian Airlines. That was by far the best routing for me, but Google Flights offered only OTAs...
Ben, sometimes when using Google Flights, especially with multiple legs, they will suggest buying from an OTA, since no airline or combination of airlines can book the itinerary at the low price. For instance, I'm flying from Singapore to Kona, Hawaii in March. My itinerary includes flying to Tokyo on ANA and then flying on to Kona on Hawaiian Airlines. That was by far the best routing for me, but Google Flights offered only OTAs (that I never heard of) to book the tickets. I have status on both airlines, so I wasn't concerned once I got the actual booking reference. Was I wrong to trust an unknown OTA from Google Flights?
"...So that could be an incentive to use something like the Capital One Travel Portal or Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal."
Yes, and another is if you're an Amex Platinum *Business* card holder - to get the 5x points for airline and hotel purchases, the purchases must be made via the Amex. travel portal or via phone with one of the Amex agents (which I've found to be uniformly good). That said, there *are* limitations,...
"...So that could be an incentive to use something like the Capital One Travel Portal or Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal."
Yes, and another is if you're an Amex Platinum *Business* card holder - to get the 5x points for airline and hotel purchases, the purchases must be made via the Amex. travel portal or via phone with one of the Amex agents (which I've found to be uniformly good). That said, there *are* limitations, e.g., I just booked an ticket from DC to Johannesburg with Amex, and they were only able to see one connecting flight in Dubai with Emirates, not all four possible connections Emirates flies.
Also agree about using bricks-and-mortar travel agents and how helpful they can be. I've used the same agent/agency in Cape Town for 22 years for all Africa-related travel, and my agent does the yeoman's work, from booking extremely complex, multi-destination safari trips, to straight-forward car rentals, and even checking me in for flights, etc.
This was a helpful piece, Ben, and the comments are also quite helpful, so thanks for this.
OTAs can be much cheaper in parts of the world where discounted fares are sold only through the prominent OTAs in that region.
Book direct or through a US OTA like Expedia with those airlines and you'll pay full fare.
Was going to say the same thing, which is the main reason I mostly book through an OTA. I live in Singapore and flights are usually cheaper on an OTA than with the carrier directly.
YOU SHOULD ONLY BOOK FLIGHTS ON DELTA, DIRECTLY WITH DELTA!
I've started reporting these BS comments as spam.
I love that with United you can generally go and make changed directly on the United website for a ticket without having to contact the OTA. Other than that booking with an OTA unless you're certain about the dates/route you're taking is a complete faff.
I'll stick to our bricks-and-mortar agent with decades of experience and a 24/7/365 emergency contact number that gets answered by someone who actually knows what they're doing.
Great idea...BUT.... I live in one of the larger world capital (MEX) and I would be unlikely to find the needle (the kind of brick and mortar travel agency that you use) in the haystack of small, possibly inept travel agencies out there. Don't know either if such a TA in the Us would sell to foreign clients.
sorry..... "capitals" and "US"
The luxury consortia Virtuoso has a very nice network of trustworthy agents in MEX. Check out their website to find an agent.
You need to be clearer abiut what an "online travel agency" is. Back in the day I used an independent travel agent, and these have largely disappeared but some still exist.
I wouldn't book with Expedia (or similar) but if I. had an independent travel agent I might use their services.
As a Corporate Travel Agent, I could write a book on the many nightmares my travelers have encountered over a span of 35 years. There is nothing compared to the personal service provided by an experienced travel agent when chaos ensues at an airport...never ending lines and the impossibility to get through to the airlines and forget personal service from an online agency. Anyone reading this who have traveled internationally on multiple airlines with multiple...
As a Corporate Travel Agent, I could write a book on the many nightmares my travelers have encountered over a span of 35 years. There is nothing compared to the personal service provided by an experienced travel agent when chaos ensues at an airport...never ending lines and the impossibility to get through to the airlines and forget personal service from an online agency. Anyone reading this who have traveled internationally on multiple airlines with multiple plane changes are going to have more Pros than Cons working with an experienced agent.
One more reason to add to the list: I booked a United ticket through Amex Travel to take advantage of the 35% rebate in MR points on my Amex Biz Platinum card. The cost was $438. When I later had to cancel the ticket and tried to rebook a different one for $300 using the resultant flight credit, United told me that tickets bought through third party agencies don't allow residual credit when the price...
One more reason to add to the list: I booked a United ticket through Amex Travel to take advantage of the 35% rebate in MR points on my Amex Biz Platinum card. The cost was $438. When I later had to cancel the ticket and tried to rebook a different one for $300 using the resultant flight credit, United told me that tickets bought through third party agencies don't allow residual credit when the price of the new ticket is less than the cost of the original - you have to buy directly from United to get the difference back. That could be a deal breaker for many.
I use Google Flights generally to shop and then book direct through the airline. I spent enough time working for an airline to have seen most worst case scenarios of OTA bookings and many cases where I wanted my staff to help the customer but because of the OTA we were limited in what we could do face-to-face.
I use OTAs more for non-chain hotels. I will with airline tickets under limited circumstances, that...
I use Google Flights generally to shop and then book direct through the airline. I spent enough time working for an airline to have seen most worst case scenarios of OTA bookings and many cases where I wanted my staff to help the customer but because of the OTA we were limited in what we could do face-to-face.
I use OTAs more for non-chain hotels. I will with airline tickets under limited circumstances, that I think you Lucky would probably operate under as well.... if I don't trust the small airline (usually a non-US or non-European) carrier's payment processing or if they don't have a real secure way to handle it (I would prefer not reading my CC over the phone or typing in a Whatsapp message). Or if there is a language barrier that I cannot find a way to conquer on my own, I'll book via OTA. Or as you mentioned if there's some specific deal or bonus to be had. I've only done one OTA booking recently and it was on a small regional carrier in the US who wouldn't sell connections through their website but Expedia would do a same PNR connection.
But I'll only stick to the sort of big ones that you would see advertise on TV. Their post-sale service is normally fairly solid.
There are also "offline travel agencies" like ours :)
We book flights directly for our clients, ensuring they never have to deal with airline customer service. A major benefit is that if a flight is canceled, we immediately refund their credit card, even before we receive the refund from the airline, saving them the trouble of waiting.
I have successfully used an "offline travel agency" to book multi-airline itineraries which could not be booked directly any of the relevant airlines. Admittedly, I have to provide the itinerary details from ITA Matrix to the agent, but it works.
Why would you want to book with an OTA as opposed to a traditional travel agent who knows what they are doing? For anyone who travels with any frequency, it shouldn't be that hard to develop a decent working relationship with one. OTAs usually are a complete pain. It's not just unusual itineraries, it might be needing a longer connection or choosing a higher booking class so that you maximise mileage/status earnings, very few airline...
Why would you want to book with an OTA as opposed to a traditional travel agent who knows what they are doing? For anyone who travels with any frequency, it shouldn't be that hard to develop a decent working relationship with one. OTAs usually are a complete pain. It's not just unusual itineraries, it might be needing a longer connection or choosing a higher booking class so that you maximise mileage/status earnings, very few airline websites can do that.
Could you compile a list of the 'so many airlines' which offer ticket flexibility and refunds in travel credits? I am not aware of ANY airline outside of North America doing that- though Aegean come close as they allow free changes to routings as well as dates.
I ran into a big problem using European ota Edreams. I couldn't book a domestic vietnam flight on the vietjet website. Edreams did not give me the flight number or via jet booking number until a week before my flight. That is when I found out the flight I booked on Edreams didn't exist on the vietjet schedule. Vietjet
had an 0800 flight not a 1400 but eDreams did not tell me about it....
I ran into a big problem using European ota Edreams. I couldn't book a domestic vietnam flight on the vietjet website. Edreams did not give me the flight number or via jet booking number until a week before my flight. That is when I found out the flight I booked on Edreams didn't exist on the vietjet schedule. Vietjet
had an 0800 flight not a 1400 but eDreams did not tell me about it. Even the day of the flight edreams kept notifying me of the original 1400 flight. Had I not checked the vietjet website I would've shown up for a flight that didn't exist/ left 6 hours earlier
In a word. Don’t. Always book directly with the airline. Edreams is a disaster. Most agents could care less once the ticket is issued as they are all serviced by third parties in India ( for the English language).
Sites like Edreams, gotogate, Triviago, etc. are total scams.
If you book with them and run into issues, that is totally on you.
Online Travel agencies are fine if nothing goes wrong and a pain in the rear end when something does. Booked justfly on AA business, flight 292 got cancelled few days ago and coming back home was a real pain in the ass for my parents.
I have a flight later this summer, I went out on a limb going thru google flights to book with the cheapest website, Ovago. They presented an even better...
Online Travel agencies are fine if nothing goes wrong and a pain in the rear end when something does. Booked justfly on AA business, flight 292 got cancelled few days ago and coming back home was a real pain in the ass for my parents.
I have a flight later this summer, I went out on a limb going thru google flights to book with the cheapest website, Ovago. They presented an even better discount (500 less than Delta). Go to book it and they said that fare class has been completely sold out and wanted me to shell out 1600 more than the original quote. I went back to the drawing board, decided to book directly with Delta. They still showed the Z class fare I decided to book it and it got ticketed. Few days later the Ovago agent reaches out to do a transaction, and I just sent her the screen shot of the Z class fare that she claimed was SOLD out.
My advice to those out there is if you use a third party agency, book with a carrier thats known to be facilitating when Irregular operations happen otherwise book directly with airline.