Recently I traveled to Washington DC and NYC from California on business. I booked both air and hotels using Orbitz. I chose to use Orbitz as the advertising made it appear that they had low rates, offered one stop shopping and were convenient.
What I found was that they are a complete rip off.
First, they charge fees for their service, so any savings realized versus booking directly with hotels and airlines is off set by their charges. Checking with hotels and airlines (unfortunately after the fact) I found that I could get the same rates with the hotels and airlines directly. There were no better rates found on Orbitz.
Second, their cancellation policies are ridiculous. During my trip I had to change my plans, as I needed to go to NYC. I had to cancel my hotel in Washington. I called the hotel to see if I could cancel, they said I had to speak with Orbitz. I called Orbitz, and after waiting on hold for 30 minutes, I was transfered twice between agents in India, and finally spoke to a supervisor who advised me that there was a one night room charge penalty for canceling my one night room reservation. So I had to pay $90 cancellation charge for a $79 night room (Orbitz reservation fees included).
My associate who stayed at the same hotel, but booked directly, received the same rate, and paid no penalty, fees or anything when he canceled directly with the hotel.
Third, I needed to change my flights. So I called Orbitz non-customer service again. After waiting 45 minutes and being transfered twice between agents in India, I was told that I could only change my flights with the airline and that they could not help me. But I still paid their fees on my original reservation...
So, I filed a complaint with the BBB but got nothing but a response stating that Orbitz policy is their policy and I should be happy to be their customer.
Summary: Orbitz charges you fees to book hotels and air travel at rates that are the same or higher than you would receive directly. They lock you into unreasonable cancellation policies. They provide customer service out of India using poorly trained staff who are not empowered to solve your problems. They will not support you after they have booked your travel and taken your money, and they will direct you to the airlines and hotels to solve any problems directly.
Solution: Use Kayak to find the lowest rates and then call the hotels and airlines directly to book travel at the lowest rates with fewer restrictions and no booking fees.
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