Part of my most recent duties are to coordiante and book all company travel from hotels, auto, flights, etc. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions at finding the very best rates out there? Especially on airfare! Any help is appreciated. Thank you.
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One of my favorite airlines for travel from Los Angeles to either New York or Washington DC is Virgin America, www.virginamerica.com. They have several non-stop flights each day and the round trip tickets are usually less than $500 with upgrades available to first class if one desires. They also fly out of Vegas and San Francisco, Boston and Orange County.
I haven't seen a lot of PR on the airline, but it is a great value and time saver from east to west or west to east. It is infrequent to find non-stop flights between these venues anymore, and to find one so inexpensive is also nice.
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Victoria Hahn on
6/4/2009 8:42:42 AM
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Hello there,
I am responding to your request for assistance with coordinating travel for your company. I use www.Kayak.com to research options for flights because I can search by price, schedules, airlines, layover duration, etc. I find the best solution for my traveler and then book through the individual airlines website (i.e. aa.com, airtran.com, etc.). Not all airlines are listed on the Kayak.com website (i.e. Allegiant Air) so you’ll have to go to those individual airline sites to compare.
You can also use Kayak.com to find the best hotels for your traveler based on location, prices, ranking, etc.
I use www.BNM.com to search the best fare for rental cars. The site compares several different rental car companies so you know who has the best deal. As with the Kayak.com, I go to the rental car company’s website (i.e. Avis.com, Hertz.com, etc.) that I choose to make the traveler’s reservations.
I have also used www.Yapta.com to search for flight options. You will need to sign up on Yapta.com but there is no cost involved. If you book a flight using any airlines website (Do not use Orbitz.com or Expedia.com, etc. to book the initial flight.) and add that information to Yapta.com, you will receive an email if the ticket price is reduced. Then you will have an option on how to receive the lower fare (i.e. voucher, credit, etc.).
I hope this helps – good luck!
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Anonymous on
5/18/2009 2:05:24 PM
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You’ll find the best price for flights if you begin looking online around 6:30 a.m. (no kidding). Keep in mind that you can book your flights as early as a year in advance. The earlier you book, the cheaper the flight.
Travelocity.com offers the variety but I find that going directly to the airline works much better.
You may also want to consider memberships with each of the travel components. Once you have a membership you also get discounted rates for rental vehicles.
As far as hotels are concerned, consider subscribing to Hotels.com. You’ll receive emails as discounts are offered. Often hotel chains offer discounts when it’s a week-day stay, rather than a weekend so your arrival or departure dates have an impact on price, too.
I hope you find this information helpful!
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Anonymous on
5/18/2009 2:04:46 PM
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Hi. I booked travel for 8 executives and I look at rates through Expedia in general. We finally signed on with a travel agent that is web based using the bestres travel system. I am always comparing prices still, and bestres offer some great discounts on hotels and cars, and the airline prices are usually less than going directly through the airline. The only down fall is that I do pay $5 to book a flight, but with the savings, it turns out that it is worth it. The best part about it is that if I need to cancel a trip (my guys cancel trips ALL the time), I can just click one button and it cancels the air, hotel and car.
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Kathy J. on
5/18/2009 12:41:51 PM
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I have found Kayak.com to be a very helpful website when making travel plans. I usually go there first but more often than not, end up booking directly with the airline once I see what the schedules are. I have found that I get a better price direct from the airline (in most cases) and don't have to worry about fees being charged by some of the travel sites. I also use Expedia, Orbitz, Cheaptickets.com and have had good success with all of them.
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SLB on
5/18/2009 11:57:56 AM
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I frequently use Sidestep.com and Kayak.com to locate travel deals. The benefit to Sidestep is that they check directly with the airlines as well, so that you can often avoid any type of booking fees that you might get with say, Travelocity. For international travel, I have found that Vayama.com is a good source. Also, travel agencies can be beneficial, depending on the deal you have with them. We have two contracted travel agencies which we pay a flat fee to ($29, I believe) and they do the work for us. For those trips that require a LOT of time to research and book, this can be VERY beneficial. $29 for their time is certainly better than hours and hours of my time. Good luck!
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Anonymous on
5/18/2009 11:27:39 AM
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I wanted to let you know that I use Expedia as well. I also wanted to recommend Jet Blue and Southwest airlines. I just flew Jet Blue for the first time and I really liked their airline. You can upgrade you seat for more room for only $10.00 and the second bag charge was only $20.00. Staff were very nice and accommodating. I would compare them to Southwest. Both are great airlines and usually have great prices.
Hope this helps.
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Shannon on
5/18/2009 11:13:05 AM
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Our company uses a travel agency for our system-wide travel. We sent out requests for proposals to several travel agencies and had each come and give a presentation. The travel agency selected is responsible for negotiating the lowest rates for car rental, air travel, hotels, etc. They create travel profiles for our executives, make the necessary reservations, and also provide monthly, quarterly, or annual reports of cost assessment of travel and related charges.
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Anonymous on
5/18/2009 11:07:11 AM
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Trip Advisor is a good site
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Anonymous on
5/18/2009 11:06:26 AM
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Afternoon Charity, I work for a destination management company, we handle group and corporate ground transportation around the country, including airport arrivals and departures as well as dine- a-rounds and charters for meetings etc... Many of our clients use Maupin Travel which is based out Raleigh, but works closely with BCD Travel which is more global. Depending on the amount of tavel you're booking, both those companies can help you with booking flights, hotels and car rentals. But if you're only booking a few flights and such, they would be cost prohibitive. Let me know if I can help you with anything else. John
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John Malek on
5/18/2009 10:52:00 AM
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Southwest and Jet Blue have great deals as well!
Helen Boston-Summers
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Helen Boston-Summers on
5/18/2009 10:51:48 AM
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Definately Kayak.com
That is because, unlike Orbitz or Travelocity type sites, Kayak searches all airlines, hotels, etc. directly in addition to searching Orbitz and Travelocity sites.
They put all results in an easy to read list and all prices are total, including taxes, fees, etc., unlike most others.
When you click on your chosen fare, the site redirects you to the airline, hotel, car rental site directly so that you are booking direct and not through a sales agent like Orbitz. Makes doing changes, cancellations, etc. much less painless and also less in fees.
Good luck. Alexa
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Alexa McGrath on
5/18/2009 10:46:46 AM
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I’ve been responsible for very complex international and domestic flight itineraries for individuals and groups and have used travel agents (normally ones specializing in a particular international region) as well as Orbitz, Expedia and aggregators like Kayak and Side Step. At the end of the day, I still found the best rates for flights, hotels and autos on the internet, made sure the traveler understood the “change and cancellation rules”; used travel agents only when I knew that part or all of the flight would be changed/cancelled and therefore would need some help, relied on developing personal relationship with concierges at hotels and maintained a very detailed personal profile of each passenger. In other words, nowadays the assistant is THE travel agent. Yes, there are specialized corporate travel firms that will take care of a client like in the old days, but they rely on fees from the high-end accommodations, private limo services and private plane arrangements. If your travel does not include those elements, then the internet is your best bet.
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Cynthia Perez-Brown on
5/18/2009 10:46:41 AM
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Charity – I generally go to Expedia.com first and see who has the best deal. Then I’ll go directly to the airline or car rental for my bookings. For the price, Southwest is our preferred carrier. They hardly ever cancel flights, don't charge outrageous baggage fees, and you can use any credits toward other flights for anyone in your company. If you find an easier way or program that you can get via Internet, please let me know – dkerley@crossvilleinc.com. Thanks!
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DSK on
5/18/2009 10:45:17 AM
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I typically go to orbitz.com or other similar sites to find options, then once I find a flight agreeable with the traveler, I book it on the airline's websites. My boss also likes mobissimo.com. This site compares all the other sites (such as orbitz, travelocity, priceline, etc).
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Janel Veeser on
5/18/2009 10:43:01 AM
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I don't coordinate any travel for my firm, but personally I have had alot of luck with expedia.com and orbitz.com. Also, depending on where you live and the destination you can always check Allegiant Air. They always have deals on flights, hotels and rental cars. The internet is a wonderful thing. Do some comparisons and if travel days are somewhat flexible that will also help. Good luck!
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Kristie Mueller on
5/16/2009 5:20:48 AM
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