What is the best way to book trip?

[goobylal]

I am interested in the Southwest ABD trip and was wondering what would be the best way to book the trip? Should we go directly through ABD, or use a TA? How about airfare? Should that be booked separately or via Disney? Any information will be helpful. Thanks.

 

[tjeagle]

Just subscribing! We are currently holding a date for April 08...great questions!!

 

[vick1s]

You can put down 300 to reserve spot for next year for next year through ABD or an agent like me who knows about ABD. Flights need to hold off until dates are firmed up by Disney (they aren[t yet) Disney will refund 300 if not working with schedule. Offer only good through August. I would not work with Disney for air, as they do not always have access to southwest, etc.
As to booking through Disney or TA, I would consider TA to be less biased, and hopefully knowledgeable to be your better bet. After experiencing and ABD last week, I have a whole new concept about what its about/
Just my thoughts and info\
Vicky

 

[ga9497]

Like Vicky above I am going to try out the Southwest adventure in September to become more familiar with the product on a first hand basis. I am familiar with all the ins and outs of what it has to offer and the locations since I have booked a few of them and also have visited many of the locations on my own like London, Paris, all the places in Italy, Germany and others. having first hand experience will be definitely be best. I wanted to try a U.S. one at a location I haven't been to

As to airfare you can book the airfare through ABD or if you find one on your own that is better ABD will still book it for you as long as it is still available when they pull up the information. Example is that going out of Grand Junction to my home airport was going to cost me close to $700. I decided instead to fly home from Denver and the airfare is only costing me $240 roundtrip (into Phoenix out of Denver). Yes it is a 4hr drive from Grand Junction to Denver but the flights / times / price worked out much better. We are renting a car for the day to drive to Denver. ABD still booked the airfare once I gave them the flight information. The only time they can't is if you are using miles for the flight or to upgrade to business / first

Ultimately you have to feel comfortable with whom you book your vacation through

 

[Cippers]

I booked through ABD in May because I was not sure that travel agents were any more familiar with the trips than I had become at that point. I had ABD research the airfare for me and was pleasantly surprised that the fares were the same as or better than I could find for myself at the time. So I just booked with them. (The way that it works is that ABD works up a quote for airfare, but it is not guaranteed--I called back 24 hours later and the fares were slightly higher; so it works best if you do your research first and commit to them on the spot if their price is better) I did not, however, do as another poster indicated (finding another airport which was cheaper but required some driving)---I just did a straightforward flight and didn't try to get too creative.

As far as the trip itself, unless the TA can get some sort of discount or incentives, I don't see that there should be any reason to use a TA. The process took about 45 minutes on the phone, however. I guess you could avoid that with an agent

 

[ronny1]

I booked with Dreams Unlimited, with Kevin...he went above and beyond. I would definitely recommend him. By talking to other people, I know I got a great deal. Go check out Dreams Unlimited Travel!

 

[InstImpres]

As far as the trip itself, unless the TA can get some sort of discount or incentives, I don't see that there should be any reason to use a TA. The process took about 45 minutes on the phone, however. I guess you could avoid that with an agent

There are deals to be had that are agent/agency specific in addition to whatever ABD offers may come up during the year.

 

[wdwsos]

As far as the trip itself, unless the TA can get some sort of discount or incentives, I don't see that there should be any reason to use a TA. The process took about 45 minutes on the phone, however. I guess you could avoid that with an agent

Well, of course I'm a little biased being a TA, but the advantages would be:

1) Many of us have experienced AbDs already (booking my third!) and have had feedback from many of our clients, so can offer helpful suggestions.
2) If the agent is a Disney specialist, he or she will often know of any discounts or promotions that can be applied to your trip.
3) We're available pretty much 24/7 for questions and concerns, and you'd have an email address to contact us when things pop into your mind at 3am.
4) I give really good gifts (as do many other agencies!) - lol!
5) We need the money more than Disney does. ;-)

I have a friend/client who's very anal about booking her own trips, and does three or four AbD reservations each year. She normally will call AbD for the initial booking and then tell them to have me handle the details from then on in. It's saves her all the time-consuming follow-up work (airline details, missing birthdates, passport numbers, etc.) and we get to talk more than we would otherwise -- a bonus for me.

As with everything, it's a personal choice. I never used a TA until I became one.

Dotti