The Internet has become an indispensable resource for all things travel-related. But the world of online booking options can be confusing, and ultimately you want to make sure that you're getting the best deal, at the best price. We're here to help.
Most travelers are already familiar with the large online reservation sites like Orbitz, Expedia and Travelocity. Priceline and Hotwire are also major players although they do function differently, providing a lower price if the purchaser is willing to pay first and get flight and hotel details later. They also have a "name your own price" option, which can be a great money-saver.
All these sites can provide an effective low-priced option to meet your traveling needs and experienced online travel shoppers will have their personal favorites. But how do you know that you are getting the cheapest deal without searching a number of different sites? How do you know whether a discount airline that may not have an affiliation with your travel site, might have a special fare that costs even less?
Wouldn't it be wonderful to have one place where you could see everything that is available, a site that didn't discriminate between large companies, small airlines and discounters? Make way for the aggregator sites, which by definition, do not sell anything, but rather they point you in the direction of sites that do. The aggregator is more like a search engine, a "Google" of travel sites, if you will. They "crawl" the Internet, searching for the best deals through airlines, agencies, consolidators and reservation sites, taking a lot of the hard work out of your online travel search. What these sites do not promise, is that they are going to do all the work for you. Certainly they are a time and money-saving tool, but it you really want to be Internet-travel savvy, you have to be willing to put a bit of effort into your travel searches.
Currently, there are only a few participants in this relatively new but rapidly growing market and each operates a little differently. These sites have the ability to bring an independent overview to what is a complex marketplace of deals and offers, often so confusing that even a travel expert can feel like a novice. I don't have any personal preference when it comes to choosing one of these sites over another, but each has its own unique and user-friendly features.
Cheapflights (www.cheapflights.com), the American cousin of the British original, is by definition, only for flights. (It does however link you to cheap accommodation and cheap car rentals.) It's the perfect site if you know where you want to go but have flexible dates. If you are searching for something far in advance then this may not be the site for you. It features a simple search mechanism and includes everything from discount airlines to consolidators and smaller travel agencies. Business class options are also included. It does not feature advertisers in its listings so you can be assured that the cheapest fares from all sources will be included. An easy to use (and print) toll-free phone directory of all airlines, agencies and consolidators is provided, which means you don't have to search around for phone numbers or web addresses. Useful travel links include cheap flight sites for flights originating from other countries and resources such as visa details, travel warnings, ecotourism information and consumer rights. This site, like many other aggregators, makes its money when you make a booking through the links they provide, so keep that in mind (rather than researching through them and then separately visiting the site they referred you to).
Mobissimo (www.mobissimo.com), still in Beta mode (meaning it's functional, but still being tested before a "final" version is released to the market), provides searches for flights (economy, business and first class) and accommodations. You'll need specific dates and destinations. It has features such as multiple currencies and can also link you to providers in the US as well as Canada and the United Kingdom, thus expanding the field for locating the cheapest fares and rates. It's not always clear whether airfare prices include tax or not, so you have to wait until the booking phase at the link provided to get the final price. Their accommodation listings are very expansive ranging from one to five-star options. Mobissimo's e-mail newsletter will also keep you up to date with the cheapest deals.
Kayak (www.kayak.com) is another site in Beta mode, but it is an effective search engine for flights if you know your dates and destinations. On the downside, you have to sign up for membership, which although free and relatively simple, means that's one more login to manage. It saves recent searches, which is a handy feature, but you do have to search by precise date and destination (although it allows you to search nearby airports for lower fares). While searching, you can see which airlines' databases the site is crawling through. This can be a little slow at times, but ultimately fares will be displayed in lowest priced order. Airline names and logos are provided, although when the fare is provided by multiple carriers, none appear.
ITA Software (www.itasoftware.com) also requires that you sign up and log in although this initial demand does allow you to include details such as seat preferences. One unique feature of this site is that it divides searches into three categories, either specific dates, weekend searches within the next 30-day period or month-long searches. It also allows you to choose one way, roundtrip of multi-segments up front, economy or business class, and to set a maximum price (in multiple currencies) so that only lower fares will be displayed. Another added extra is that it articulates if the flight is an overnighter or if there is a tight connection between sectors. It provides you a detailed summary of all costs, taxes, booking and fare codes, which you can print or e-mail to the airline or travel agency you use to make the actual booking.
Travelzoo (www.travelzoo.com) has great package vacations and special deals, mainly for short-term travel plans. It also features cruises, car rental, accommodation and the highly coveted last minute options. However this site is made up of a combination of advertising and editorial, blurring the distinction between a recommendation and a paid placement -- you can't always be sure that what you're seeing is, in fact, the cheapest option out there. The site distributes a great "Top 20" e-mail newsletter that can inspire you as you receive it each Wednesday. Searching is by region -- a bonus if you know you want to go somewhere in the Caribbean, but you're not exactly sure which island. The new resorts and spa search function is a plus. They boast seven million subscribers making it one of the most popular.
Sidestep (www.sidestep.com) requires you to download their proprietary software in order to access their links to low airfares, car rental and accommodation. Although a short process and relatively easy, some people have aversions to this requirement for a number of reasons, for example if you choose to research from work, your office system may not allow you to download software online, and some virus scanning systems still consider the program to be a Trojan horse (it's not). That being said, membership does allow you to set up preferences such as your home airport, hotel star-ratings, smoking and preferred class of car for rental. Search results (including those for alternate airports) display quickly and in lowest-price order.
Farechase (www.farechase.com), in Beta mode since being purchased by Yahoo, features search capabilities for flights, accommodation and car rental. It has a simple front page where you need to input your destination and travel dates and is quite similar to Mobissimo in its layout. Like Cheapflights, it includes a handy toll-free telephone directory for airlines.
Smarter Living (www.smarterliving.com) provides information on flights, hotels, car rental, vacations and cruises. It has a more graphical front page, enticing you with photos of exotic destinations and special deals. It also lets you search in slightly different categories like weekend escapes, frequent fliers, seniors, student or family travel and the popular last minute. It is upfront in declaring that taxes and fees are additional. Smarter Living lets you find all flights between two US cities on any given day, by choosing your departure and arrival cities, and your preferred departure date. Flight detail such as mileage, meals, and trip times will be included. They have an e-mail newsletter for specials but also include advertisers/sponsors on their site (however they do let you know that a particular deal or company is a sponsor). As a member, you a privy to additional discounts with certain companies and providers, however membership is not required to use the site.
Aggregator sites represent the future of online travel as they cater to the needs of the customer by supplying information rather than selling (in most cases). Ultimately it is a matter of convenience and personal preference. Next time you're considering purchasing travel online, visit one or more of these travel search engines and take the plunge.
If you want some additional guidelines to ensure that you are getting a good deal on domestic flights, visit www.farereport.com, an advisory site that acts as an unbiased consumer report. It indicates benchmarks fares and provides travelers with average fare prices for over 6000 travel routes. Another interesting site for researching online travel and is Bob Cowen's 100 Most Useful Sites (http://home.netcom.com/~rcowen/most_useful.htm).
Have you used these aggregators? Tell us what you think about them on our Message Boards today.
