Booking a package or booking seperate?

[buzz182]

Hi, we were going to book with virgin on Christmas day to get the 15% discount, but started to look into booking the flights and hotel seperate. By booking the same flights and the same hotel, the package which virgin was offering, I am going to save another £350! Even after they have given the discount. So the money I save will pay for the 7 seater MPV we always get from Airline Network.

We have always booked package holidays with Virgin and was wondering if anyone experienced any problems booking holidays seperately, e.g having no holiday reps to go to if any probs arise.

Shaun & Karina

 

[magentadreamer]

I love unpackaged holidays! I've never experienced any problems while abroad done trips to DLP, Rome, New York, Brugges etc. I do take the booking agents number with me just incase I get there to find my room isn't booked -never happened yet!

Check out rooms etc if you're staying off site with BA holidays I got a great deal with them for my WDW in May. Never book direct with the hotel until you've checked out other web sites -you'll normally find it's cheaper. I look for ABTA reg as well. Happy planning

 

[kristieuk]

I can't remember the last package holiday we booked! It was definitely pre-internet days. You can save money and end up with a completely tailored holiday by doing it all yourself. Touch wood we have never experienced any problems, but we always book with reputable companies and have contact numbers should anything not work out - to be honest you manage to sort out life's day to day problems yourself and you would be equally able to do this on holiday. If you save that much money, go for it!

 

[Miffy2003]

I would do a package if it saved me money, but it never has yet!

I don't think I have ever seen a holiday rep though even when I used to do packages. In an emergency I am sure someone at your hotel would help anyway, and it goes without saying to make sure you have the necessary insurance

I would go for it



Welcome to the Dis Shaun & Karina!

When are you planning to go?

If you have any other questions please ask away - we are a friendly bunch!

Karen

 

[cheryl.UK]

Depends on the type of accomodation you're after. I priced our next holiday with the same flights and same accomodation and it came out £600 more expensive even with AAA discount! Seems to me that the cheaper the accomodation you stay at the more chance you have of a bargain going it alone. The flights were £200 cheaper including car hire but we couldn't get a good price for the accomodation, not for 3 weeks anyway.

 

[happytraveller]

Hi, i've gone for a package this year to california, but in august,for the first time i went DIY ,to Toronto.We flew zoom airlines and had a suite ,for the same price that virgin were charging for a standard room-and the difference in accomadation at the same hotel was huge.We also flew premium economy!I'd say go for it.Even when we did packages ,we never used reps anyway!

 

[Ware Bears]

I would say go for it if it is going to save you money. We have booked a Virgin package because it has saved us £££, otherwise we would not hesitate to go DIY. We always go to DLRP that way. I doubt we will see the rep unless there is a major problem. Last time he came looking for us but it was only to try and sell us tickets!

Like Karen said, the most important thing is to make sure you have sufficient insurance.

 

[jtlover]

I have booked GF and AKL separately to my flights - I have saved a fortune doing it this way - it also means I can book the dining plan with disney so that I save money on the food as well.

I dont do package holidays anymore - why when you can do it all on the internet.

I still do flights with Virgin - got really cheap flights with them too.

www.disneyworld.co.uk (hotels)
www.virginatlantic.com (flights)
www.usrentacar.co.uk (car hire)
www.insureandgo.co.uk (travel insurance)


I have also booked my meals with disney as well so that I get the reservations that we want.

 

[FloridaSam]

We presumed that booking everything ourselves would work out cheaper but the Virgin package worked out £££'s cheaper for us.

Sam xx

 

[jockey]

I have used Virgin Holidays before when travelling to the west coast of America and found them cheaper than a DIY holiday - never had to use the rep either!! However for our Florida trips we always DIY it - it has always worked out cheaper!

 

[tartangirl]

I always price package holidays vs DIY.

When I come to book I always book through the Royal Bank of Scotland as I get 10% off everything except direct holiday companies.

The key for me is getting the flights. If I can get a fly-drive or just flights at a decent price the overall package will be cheaper - even getting 10% off the complete package. This is usually because of a silly under occupancy supplement.

Over the last few years I have always gone with a fly drive to Florida and the accomodation seperate. The last 3 years I have booked my fly drive through Virgin holidays (not sure if that gives me access to a holiday rep) as that is bookable before the VA flights can be booked and at the time of year we go (school holidays) the earlier I book the better the deal. I have stopped taking the Virgin car and just go with the 7 days free economy car and book the car elsewhere. Booking the villa seperately also has the advantage that we can get a villa exactly as required (we always get one with a covered lanai by the pool as we prefer sitting in the shade than direct sun). Although the villas allocated as part of a package are probably nice there is are no guarantees as to exactly what you'll get.

We also go to Cyprus each year and I have always gone package as that works out cheaper for us (even with a huge under occupancy supplement). We could probably hold off and get a late deal on flights but I've never been brave enough to do that.

As to not having holiday representatives. We have only once used them and that was because we were allocated the wrong type of room as part of a BA package holiday - mainly because BA hadn't told the apartments we were coming . Other than that we have never used them on our package holidays and have never missed them booking direct.

 

[Frances999]

It isn't just the cheaper prices I prefer about booking independently, but also the freedom of choice for us to make our own holiday tailored to our exact requirements. Few travel agents could compose the same holiday. The internet has opened up a whole new window of opportunity and I doubt we will ever use a traditional high-street travel agent ever again.

 

[jdybnsn]

We always do DIY to Florida and Europe - we have 2 kids (ages 4 and 8) and we noticed that package companies often make quite big margins on top of the child flight seat price for the kids' accommodation , when many hotels either charge very little, or do not charge for them at all.
It would seem to me that the more people in your party (especially kids), the more likely that you would achieve savings DIY (especially if you are looking at villa/condo holidays)

We always price up both package and DIY options (not least to see how good a deal the DIY really is). From experience sometimes there is little to be saved if you are just two adults, between the two methods, but we have experienced 4 years now of saving up to £500 as a family - mainly due to this over-inflated kids' margin,and stayed at top class hotels which otherwise we would not have afforded.

We also generally like to hire a car on our holidays which fits in nicely with DIY ...no more hanging around the airport with a coach with a protracted journey to the hotel while everyone else gets dropped off first........then we make a point of beating the coaches back to the airport to check in before the crowds. Also the added advantage of doing your own excursions using the hire car at your own pace, on the day you want to, and without the rip-off prices.

Personally we see it as a plus not having a rep....I've never met one that was any use if we had a complaint, and besides which, we have recently had freinds that had a package holiday from hell....do you think their tour operators are forthcoming with compensation ? Hell No !
I'm not saying they are all the same but going with a package for reasons of having a fall guy if things go wrong is not high on my list.

To be fair you CAN get some bagain packages if you go last minute and are prepared to be flexible where you go, and where you stay (and I can appreciate that this does appeal to many people too) ...but I would rather have the exact holiday I want, and the enjoyment of the planning and looking forward to it.

Viva la DIY !!!

 

[cazzie]

Both times we have travelled to the US we booked a package and both times there was no rep at the airport or hotel. We had been going to the Algarve for the last 10 years or so previous to this and had never booked it as a package as it would have been too expensive (booking a villa for 2 people from a package company hits you with mega under occupancy charges) so we would always book the flights, car hire and villa seperately and never had any problems. We are booking this holiday seperately as we think we can get better accommodation cheaper than if we book a package. I just make sure I take all the necessary phone numbers etc should we have any problems.

 

[disneyholic family]

i don't like packaged holidays since i like to have the flexibility to change plans....like change our return flight, change hotels, etc...

 

[buzz182]

Thank you to everyone who replied to our post! All your comments were much appreciated!

We are definately going to book separately as the savings are too good to miss!

Again, thank you for all your help.

Shaun & Karina