Thinking of booking a trip using Travelocity, should I have any concerns?

[traces7]

We are hoping to go on a vacation sometime this year (we haven't been on a vacation in over 10 years!!) We are thinking of maybe the Cayman Islands. I've been researching on Travelocity and the prices don't seem too bad. Is it too good to be true? Should I have any concerns about booking a trip through them?

I see that they have 2 separate flights through 2 different airlines, should I be concerned about not having a round-trip flight? Also they offer some kind of trip insurance, should I get theirs, or go through another company? Or are their packages not even refundable? This is all so confusing to me!! Mostly because I haven't traveled much.

Does anyone have any other suggestions where to look for trips? I have tried Orbitz and Expedia. Travelocity seemed to have the best prices. Are there any others worth checking? I may even check with a travel agent, just because I feel safer booking through them.

It's just me and my 18 year old DD traveling, hoping to do it before she starts college in the fall. We're not 100% set on Cayman Islands. Anyone have any other inexpensive, maybe tropical vacation suggestions?

Also, any advice on Travelocity or planning trips in general would be helpful. Thanks so much!!

 

[loves to dive]

I've booked airlines through them before and had no problems. I tend to use Kayak for airfares then compare to the airlines site as well, sometimes it's better to go through them. As far as round trip, we have always had round trip. The only problem I can see is prices could change between now and when you return home. You can always book the travel and back as separate trips, we do that but book book legs during one session. We have never gotten trip insurance, we just pay our nickle and take our chances. It depends on what kind of ticket you buy as to if it non-refundable, it will say in the fine print on the site. We have been to Little Cayman and Big Cayman on dive trips and they were o.k. nothing to do on Little Cayman except dive but Big Cayman has all the regular tourist spots on the side of the island the cruise ships go to. We tend to stay away from that side and stay on the east side, which is where most of the natives live. Turks and Caicos is a good place to go as well.

 

[ronandannette]

My guess is that the OP is a bit confused about the flights. Travelocity (or Expedia or probably other sites too) will absolutely be including a return flight in the package price. The flight segments though, may be on a combination of different airlines. A search-result will have any number of flight choices and it can be a little daunting if you're not used to researching travel.

@traces7 - when you buy insurance it will cover all components of your travel (if of course that's the kind of policy you get). But a refund will depend on a loss of some kind. You would likely not be able to just cancel if you change your mind and get your money back.

 

[bellebud]

I always use the sites of the actual airline, hotel, car rental company, etc. I've read stories when people get to the hotel, there's a problem with room type and things like that from booking through those travel sites. BUT, tons and tons of people obviously use these sites every day and must not have problems or they wouldn't continue to be so popular.

Whatever airport I plan on using, I check what airlines fly from there, then see if I can get a direct flight to where I want to go through any of them, and decide that way which airline to use.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Okay... Here is the deal.
There are no real problems with booking thru most of these reputable agencies!
That is okay. As long as you are using a reputable, major, online agency... it will be fine.
They will usually complete your bookings and you can even get the confirmation numbers with the airline and the resort, so that you can check, or make changes to, your reservations.
(With cruises, the line will not work with you directly, once you have booked thru a third party.. so the online agency would always be a middle-man)

If you have Miles for your flights, then do them directly.
Sometimes you can save on a hotel booking thru these online agencies, like Orbitz, Travelocity, etc...
Usually have to wait until the coupon codes for your travel dates come out... Like three months in advance?
They are usually always forthcoming, at around 15%.

If you need your flights and your resort, then yes, there is usually a good savings there by booking a package thru the online agencies.
So, that might be the way to go.

Check several of the agencies...
Check the Resort and Airline for prices...
Crunch the numbers...
Then book your trip, and ENJOY!

 

[Wishing on a star]

About the flights.... YES, this will be full round trip.

OP, what you will initially see when you look at these online agencies is the price that their computer comes up with, for the LOWEST priced flights...
No, you don't want an overnight layover, or have to fly thru Tim-Buk-Tu.

YOU get to choose the flights, as you go thru the booking.
it can be surprising how much that 'low' price goes up, when you choose the best flights/times.

If budget is a factor, you can save on the cost of the trip by considering flying out on a Tuesday, for example, instead of a Saturday. Fares vary greatly, due to date, demand, etc.... And they can change fairly often, too.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Also....
DO NOT take the trip insurance thru the agency, airline, resort....
Go to insuremytrip, and look at the coverages and costs offered by several reputable companies.
This will get you the full coverage for your entire trip, that you want.

Sometimes we have gotten trip insurance...
(Possible health issues with immediate family, Tropical Storm/Hurricane season, etc... make this a''must')
Sometimes we have not.

 

[sam_gordon]

I would NOT book any flight segments through 3rd party. If some issue does arise during your trip, there will be a lot of finger pointing going on. I have no problems using Travelocity, Orbitz, Expedia, etc for price comparison, but will go to the airline site for booking. At least some major airlines offer "low price guarantee" so they should match what is found elsewhere.

 

[longboard55]

If you use a outside site, always bring your paperwork to the hotel, a slight misspelling can mean you are lost for good. Also be aware their price of "fees and taxes" is not just required hotel or airline taxes, it also includes their fee which can be any number they want. Often their room price will be less, but when you add "fees and taxes" it ends up more

 

[AnnaFloridaLover]

I would NOT book any flight segments through 3rd party. If some issue does arise during your trip, there will be a lot of finger pointing going on. I have no problems using Travelocity, Orbitz, Expedia, etc for price comparison, but will go to the airline site for booking. At least some major airlines offer "low price guarantee" so they should match what is found elsewhere.

I agree with this opinion for booking flights. If you book flights through a third party and you need to change your flights for non insured reasons, of which are many, you will almost always have to pay both the airline and the agency change fees. I learned this the hard way.

I do book car rentals through Travelocity and Expedia, which I believe are now basically one and the same. I've had excellent customer service for issues that have arisen.

 

[J'aime Paris]

We just went to Grand Cayman for a week over Easter. It was for my DD's last high school Spring Break.

Not sure where you are traveling from, but Cayman Airways has direct flights from some US cities. We flew direct from Chicago, and it took just over 3 hours.

I'd also check VRBO, Airbnb or something similar for lodging. We rented a 2 bed/2.5 bath condo right on 7Mile Beach. Fantastic!
Grand Cayman isn't an all-inclusive type destination like Mexico or Jamaica.

We also found a car to be essential. We were all over that island.... from the East End blowholes, to the Turtle Farm, to Rum Point, to Hell(Yes, Hell!),
Cemetery Beach, shopping in Georgetown and so much more! Make sure to book a jet ski tour to see the stingrays and the starfish!! We also did a night time Bioluminescent tour, unbelievably cool!!!

Was an incredible trip, and I'm missing it so much just thinking about it!

Please feel free to PM me with any specific questions.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

We just went to Grand Cayman for a week over Easter. It was for my DD's last high school Spring Break.

Not sure where you are traveling from, but Cayman Airways has direct flights from some US cities. We flew direct from Chicago, and it took just over 3 hours.

I'd also check VRBO, Airbnb or something similar for lodging. We rented a 2 bed/2.5 bath condo right on 7Mile Beach. Fantastic!
Grand Cayman isn't an all-inclusive type destination like Mexico or Jamaica.

We also found a car to be essential. We were all over that island.... from the East End blowholes, to the Turtle Farm, to Rum Point, to Hell(Yes, Hell!),
Cemetery Beach, shopping in Georgetown and so much more! Make sure to book a jet ski tour to see the stingrays and the starfish!! We also did a night time Bioluminescent tour, unbelievably cool!!!

Was an incredible trip, and I'm missing it so much just thinking about it!

Please feel free to PM me with any specific questions.

You sold me! We love Jet skiing.

 

[Kathy D]

I would use an actual travel agent. Support a local business if you don't have one, you can search TripAdvisor reviews for Cayman Islands and see who others recommend!!!

 

[bcla]

In general I've never had a problem with a well-known third-party online travel agency like Priceline, Expedia, or Travelocity. Occasionally the prices are better, even if it's an open booking. Once I got a freebie with an open booking on Priceline, but it sort of disappeared later. I had saved my receipt, showed it at the desk, and got the freebie later after a manager was consulted.

Some of the rental car prices I've seen are much better. I certainly agree that if you get the same price and amenities, no middleman can mean less chance of something being screwed up. However, I've heard of cases where a booking went straight through a corporate website, but there was a problem anyways such as the reservation being lost on the way to a franchisee or perhaps a listed amenity not being provided by the franchisee. If I get a better price, I'm going with the online travel agency.

 

[sam_gordon]

In general I've never had a problem with a well-known third-party online travel agency like Priceline, Expedia, or Travelocity. Occasionally the prices are better, even if it's an open booking. Once I got a freebie with an open booking on Priceline, but it sort of disappeared later. I had saved my receipt, showed it at the desk, and got the freebie later after a manager was consulted.

Some of the rental car prices I've seen are much better. I certainly agree that if you get the same price and amenities, no middleman can mean less chance of something being screwed up. However, I've heard of cases where a booking went straight through a corporate website, but there was a problem anyways such as the reservation being lost on the way to a franchisee or perhaps a listed amenity not being provided by the franchisee. If I get a better price, I'm going with the online travel agency.

OK, lets say you book with Holiday Inn. They send you a confirmation email. You show up at the hotel and there's no room. You show them the email (sent by them).
You book with Expedia. They send you a confirmation email. You show up at the hotel and there's no room. You show them the email. They say "that's from Expedia, we never got a booking." Now what do you do?

I'm not saying it happens often. Is the price savings worth the possible hassle? Don't get me wrong. I've used Travelocity and Priceline both for hotels. However, I won't use them for air.

 

[bcla]

OK, lets say you book with Holiday Inn. They send you a confirmation email. You show up at the hotel and there's no room. You show them the email (sent by them).
You book with Expedia. They send you a confirmation email. You show up at the hotel and there's no room. You show them the email. They say "that's from Expedia, we never got a booking." Now what do you do?

I'm not saying it happens often. Is the price savings worth the possible hassle? Don't get me wrong. I've used Travelocity and Priceline both for hotels. However, I won't use them for air.

Never had that happen. Ever.

However, if you're really worried about it, I've yet to encounter a hotel that couldn't confirm a reservation made through a 3rd party. I mentioned the freebie that I saw in a graphic but called it in. The hotel directly confirmed my reservation but couldn't confirm the freebie. Any airline should also be able to confirm a reservation through a 3rd party. Sometimes that was the only way I could select a seat.

On top of that, most hotels try to be helpful. I remember this crazy case where we were tired and skipped something on our package tour and took a taxi directly to what we thought was our hotel. Our tour guide didn't tell us that they had changed the hotel, but the hotel we thought was ours was extremely helpful. They let us use their phone and even made sure we got a cab.

 

[traces7]

Thanks for all the advice. I guess I'm more confused than ever though! I think I will call a travel agent and see what prices they have.
The trip I was looking at on Travelocity was 2 one way trips, but booked in one session. One was with Cayman Airways and the other with American Airlines.
We would probably only go for 3 or 4 nights. (that's all we can afford at this time, or maybe we'd wait until we could go for a week).
So I'm pretty sure when I was looking at the airfare, it said no cancellations. So, even if you bought trip insurance, you couldn't cancel. Not that we would, I'm just thinking of in case of sickness or something.

 

[sam_gordon]

Trip insurance (depending on the type you buy) doesn't allow you to cancel the airfare, but reimburses you the cost of the airfare.

 

[luvsJack]

OK, lets say you book with Holiday Inn. They send you a confirmation email. You show up at the hotel and there's no room. You show them the email (sent by them).
You book with Expedia. They send you a confirmation email. You show up at the hotel and there's no room. You show them the email. They say "that's from Expedia, we never got a booking." Now what do you do?

I'm not saying it happens often. Is the price savings worth the possible hassle? Don't get me wrong. I've used Travelocity and Priceline both for hotels. However, I won't use them for air.

I book with Travelocity and with Booking.com for every trip. I have never had a problem like you describe. And if there is ever an issue like, I need to change a date or extend the trip or we are going to be late that night arriving, I always call the hotel that I have booked. Once I have the booking, I never, ever deal with the third party again. Used Travelocity for our stay at Cabana Bay last spring. We had to change the trip from March to May. I made all changes with Cabana Bay. And the confirmation email of the change came from Cabana Bay not Travelocity. So if you were concerned, I would say get the price savings and then call and confirm the reservation with the hotel itself.


I don't fly so can't begin to answer about flying but would never hesitate to use them for hotels.

 

[Wishing on a star]

I agree with luvsjack...
companies like Travelocity, Orbits, Expedia, etc... have been around a long time, and are now reputable and safe....
Just don't even look at other lessor web-sites with names like IsandDiscounts4U......