package vs separate bookings

[donkthemagicllama]

Anyone done much research on comparing whether it's better to use a package vacation (through Westjet vacations or Air Canada vacations or the like) vs booking yourself?

I've usually gone the separate route, and tried to get the best discount (AP, AAA, etc) possible on a room. However, I've usually used airline points of some type, so I've never compared.

We recently went to Aulani, and I found it was much cheaper to book a package vacation through WestJet vacations including Aulani than to book the best available discount and best available airfare separately. Just wondering if anyone else has done much thinking on the subject and what they've come up with.

I'm coming from Calgary, so we don't have the option of driving to Buffalo or Seattle like you lucky Vancouver or TO types.. ;(

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

We did the comparison for our upcoming August trip. We had already decided where we wanted to stay (Sheraton Vistana Resort) and we knew we wanted our flights through Jetblue (our preferred airline).

We price shopped for SVR using every imaginable discount, from CAA to advance purchace to Expedia to the Dreams Unlimited promo. Then we shopped for flights from both Buffalo and Syracuse.

With all the individual prices listed out, we then went to the Jetblue Getaways and Southwest Vacations sites and priced out the flights + hotel as a package. With Jetblue, it came up more than $300 cheaper than our lowest possible combination of the SVR accomodations and flights if secured separately (with the exact flight times we were hoping for). PLUS, as an added bonus, we get True Blue points for both the flight and accomodations portion of the trip, rather than just on the flight alone .

As long as we are getting exactly what we originally wanted when booking the package, then I have no problem with purchasing both together via the airline.

 

[alc571]

When booking at Disney, we book all the Disney stuff direct with Disney (hotel, tickets, etc) and then we try to book the flight and car together through Westjet, Expedia, etc. I like booking the Disney stuff directly because of the flexibility with being able to change the reservation if you need to.

 

[CdnCarrie]

I don't think there is a set answer. It depends on what the current offer is and if the dining plan is a good value for your family, etc.

We often book seperate as we use air miles for a passes and stuff. Or I book with Marlin and pay off the pacakge with air miles.

 

[donkthemagicllama]

When booking at Disney, we book all the Disney stuff direct with Disney (hotel, tickets, etc) and then we try to book the flight and car together through Westjet, Expedia, etc. I like booking the Disney stuff directly because of the flexibility with being able to change the reservation if you need to.

that's what I've done, and never really considered it... for our trip to Aulani though, the hotel price was the same through westjet vacations, but the airfare went from nearly 1000 a person to 700 a person by booking the package (have i mentioned how expensive flying out of calgary is?). Just wondering if this is typical or not... I think the dining plan (even free dining when it's available) is usually bookable through the package operator. The only drawback I found with Aulani was not being able to do online checkin, but that's pretty minor. What sort of changes do you have to make that you couldn't do through a tour operator?

 

[Fivers]

I just booked a WDW trip this morning, also leaving from Calgary For the time that we're going, there's an annual pass hotel discount of 30% for the hotel we wanted, because of this booking separately saved about $500 over the Westjet packages. That being said, there were some pretty good package prices out there, and without the big hotel discount I don't know if you could beat that price, at least for the week we are going. We don't get the dining plan either, so that might affect things. There were some pretty cheap flights on Westjet if you don't mind a layover in Toronto, just over $200 without tax. I was really surprised!

Going to DLR we've always booked separately, and after comparing prices for our last trip they come out pretty close. Usually we end up finding a really cheap flight which makes it cheaper to book separately, but with an average flight cost it would probably be pretty close to the same.

 

[alc571]

What sort of changes do you have to make that you couldn't do through a tour operator?

None...this time. However, our last trip with Disney I ended up receiving 2 PIN codes in the mail, and Free Dining was released after we initially booked. To get the PIN deals we had to switch resorts and move up a level for the room (std to garden view). I would not have wanted to have to try and make those changes through someone at Expedia - not sure we could have either. Also, I like getting Mickey mail before the trip and we never received it when we booked through an agent.

 

[seashoreCM]

Are we talking about the same departure times for your flights, or close to it? (For the package versus separate bookins)

Also what happens if the airline cancels you flights and reschedules you? As a general rule it is easier to reselect flights of your own choosing when you book the trip components separately. Check the terms and conditions that go with the package.

 

[CdnCarrie]

I find with the packages like with Air Transit they have some great deals like kids fly free but they only fly on Fridays from Winnipeg. We often do a 8-10 day trip. I find a week too short and yet we can't always take two weeks off work. By the time we pay the extra hotel/food/entertainment for 4 people for an extra 4-6 days any savings on the kids fly free is lost.

It would be great if they had any packages where you can leave on a Wednesday and come home on a Friday or vice versa. Maybe they do from Toronto but not Winnipeg.