Everyone seems to have their own system when it comes to booking travel on line. I am always a little surprised that there is such a variance between people who always use Kayak, those steadfastly sticking with Travelocity, those who are venturing in to new booking platforms like TripAdvisor, and the newest entry, Google Flights. Like everyone’s personal screen saver, and personal internet routines, favorite sites, etc, it’s all so unique…and people have never before done so much traveling. The recession has surely been lifted in the US, and the full planes that traverse the skies overhead are proof of that.
Recently, we discovered a new entry into this wide world of airfare and hotel booking sites, Justfly.com. Amy Whitely, who runs the site Pit Stops for Kids out of her Oregon office, provided a fascinating and detailed story (see link) that explained how she booked tickets for her whole family for a European adventure using Justfly. Here is a snip of her tips on booking air on a third-party site.
“In the airfare pricing industry, there are 4-5 big aggregators of the price and available data called global distribution systems. According to Hopper.com (which is not a third-party site selling airfare, but rather an airfare prediction app), when you go to a third-party site and search for flights, that site will make a request from those four systems. They’ll send it back, with the trips you could buy, and what they cost. Much like hotel booking sites, third-party booking sites can block out seats in bulk, bringing the price down for you.
Essentially, you’re bringing in a middle-man when using third-party sites, which could–but does not always–complicate your travel day. For these reasons, I do recommend booking travel directly through your airline when possible. However, I understand that sometimes, getting the lowest fare is essential to your travel plans. We, personally, have used third-party booking sites for this reason. Here’s what you need to know.”
Jim Ferri, of Coral Gables Florida, is the publisher of Never Stop Traveling.com and calls him self an incurable traveler, he can’t help but travel and so, he spends a lot of time booking flights as he travels and writes. Here is some of his advice about booking trips also using third party sites.
While third-party booking websites such as such as Expedia,Orbitz, and Travelocity are well-known and popular Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), don’t overlook newer sites that may also save you money.
One of the newer third-party sites is JustFly.com, which receives high ratings and offers savings on both flights and hotels. In a quick check of the four sites for an upcoming trip to Rome, JustFly provided the lowest rate. It also offers a “best purchase guarantee” and will alert you if the price of your ticket drops.