Airfare too good to be true? Can anyone tell me about Expedia?

[DonnaDavid]

I've been searching the airfares for almost a month now trying to get my family of five from Boise to Orlando in September. Today, all of my favorite sites are still reporting $550 or so per person round trip except Expedia. I just booked a trip for $180 round trip per person ($130 for the baby). I've looked over the reservation carefully and can't figure out the catch. However, I do believe that if it's too good to be true, it probably isn't. I went back to Expedia this afternoon and the fare is now $560. If I have a piece of paper from Expedia saying that my e-ticket has been confirmed by the airline and my credit card has been charged, is there any possibility that this isn't real? I don't know whether to be happy or scared that they're going to realize their mistake.

 

[TravelSheryl]

There are a small number of cases that a travel agency can come back to you even after they have provided the confirmation number and itinerary and tell you they made a mistake. It's rare but it does happen.

All you need to do is just call the airline and tell them you want to re-confirm. They'll tell you if there's a problem.

Hopefully everything will be just fine. What could have happened is that you were just at the right place at the right time when one particular airline had a very short-lived special available. This is not uncommon, and they can sometimes be gone in under an hour.

 

[CarolA]

If you are worried about Expedia, they are a reputable web site not a fly by night operation if that helps!

 

[bexareaglecheryl]

Last year I got a rate on Continental of $134 per person round trip. I just happened to be on the internet one Saturday afternoon looking for good rates (this was about 6 months ahead of our trip). I charged those tickets so fast my credit card was smoking. Yes, there are good rates out there - you just have to have really good luck. That Pixie Dust really comes in handy, doesn't it?

Congratulations and enjoy your trip. We were just there the first week in December and already we are BURNING to go back. This Disney Addiction is a serious affliction. I am looking for a better job right now just so I can get my "fix"!

 

[Beverly Lynn]

when you got it at the lower fare you got it at a good time. the fares fluctuate faster than kids eating a bag of mcdonalds fries. if you have the confirmation of the lower fare and thats what your CC was charged then thats the fare you got it at. and if TA's make a mistake then they are to eat it not charge you more. and in that instance you take it to the top if they fight you on it. one of our agents made a mistake and the agency had to eat it. when I was working in res and one of the res agents madea mistake usair had to honor it. remember the biggie from UA not too long ago the 29 round trip to paris or something? I can remember plenty of TA's calling cause they made a mistake on a clients tkts and depending on who the agent was and how nice they were to me said whether or not I honored their mistake and gave it to them or if I documented it and they got no breaks. (at least I'm honest about it) the nicer you are the more you get.
I have alos noticed too that if I book a flight between 1-4 am I get the best prices...this is because things are loaded into the system after midnight.

 

[Disneyfun1]

Good internet airfares are out there. When you see them, you have to act fast. Last year we got Phx to orlando for 89/RT.......yes.......89/RT!!!! That was through travelocity.com on Delta. Then Delta changed our flight around to leave a little earlier, and I e-mailed them and they sent us 4-$60 Vouchers. This year, I used them on Delta.com and got phx to Orlando for $244, minus my vouchers for 184/rt. It went on sale for 185 and they sent me vouchers for the difference from the 244, so they sent us 4-$59 vouchers for next years trip!! You have to keep looking, i still look at delta.com daily in case it goes on sale even lower!!

 

[markey]

I started looking for our tickets right after we booked our trip. Nothing good until about a month ago. 4 tickets at $640 total on Expedia. Now again the same flights are priced at $1050. I keep watching to see if the price goes down, but for now I am happy.

 

[DonnaDavid]

Thanks, everyone. I called and confirmed with Delta and my credit card was charged. I'm thinking I just saved over $1400 on our airfare. The airfare is up to over $600 per person now!

 

[MinnieMe2]

I was lucky enough to get seats for DS and friends to go to the World next week when USAir had a sale. Round trip from Boston to Orlando is $93.50, taxes included. Last week the same flights were $450 each. I booked thru USAir's web site, but I've used Expedia in the past and they are great. Congratulations on your wonderful deal!

 

[TravelSheryl]

I became aware of a situation with Travelocity (an online travel agency just like Expedia) that is pertinent to this discussion. I received the following by email:

"I just wanted to let you know that I got my tickets on Travelocity at an incredible price :
2 roundtrip BWI - LAS @ $ 69.9 each !!! (taxes included).
In fact, two days ago, there was a bug in Travelocity system, and their website was giving wrong rates (really too low). I just booked at that time. When arriving at the travel agency here in Belgium, they refused to issue the tickets because the rate was not in Delta database. I asked them to call Travelocity and after some discussion, Travelocity accepted to pay the
difference between the right rate and the one I got on Travelocity website. That was a great surprise and a great deal."

But it doesn't always work out that way. Here's a post that was recently made to the message board I administer to discuss Priceline bidding:

"I had booked a room through Travelocity at an independent hotel in the area. Several hours later I received a call from Travelocity saying that the hotel can't book that rate but can put me in their "renovated rooms" for an extra $30.

The same rates are showing up even today... so there has been no attempt to remove the low-rates from the SABRE system."

The difference between the two examples here is that airfare displays are regulated by the U.S. government (not the same way they were pre-airline deregulation, but still regulated to some extent). Hotel rates are not regulated by the U.S. government. That being said, if Travelocity or Expedia or any airline can prove a malfunction in their system (i.e., their was no intent to deceive), they are not obligated to honor these mistakes. That being said, this is not the same thing as what DonnaDavid experienced. She was able to take advantage of a short-lived valid airfare.