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Being Your Own Internet Travel Agent

By Tim Vandehey

It's safe to say the Web is the best thing to happen to travel (unless you're a travel agent, but that's another article). Whether you love to rough it from hostel to hostel along the European rail system with a backpack or lounge by the pool on a luxury Caribbean cruise, you can find incredible deals and amenity packages on a huge variety of Web sites. But.where do you go to get what you need? Here are a few places, depending on how you like to travel, followed by some smart tips.

Luxury Travel

If your idea of a vacation is staying at a three-star hotel overlooking the Jardin de Tuileries in Paris and eating at fine Michelin-listed restaurants, then money is probably not your major concern when booking travel. But you do want value for your dollars, as well as impeccable service.

Some very useful sites:

  • Classic Custom Vacations - luxury travel site specializes in booking custom trips to Hawaii, Mexico and the Caribbean. Their selection of unique properties and their personal travel specialists make them ideal if you know you want to go somewhere, but are looking for inspiration.
  • Abercrombie & Kent - This travel firm has been around since 1962, specializing in small group tours to destinations ranging from Antarctica to the Galapagos Islands.
  • Cruise Professionals - A site dedicated to helping you find the right cruise for your budget, interests and activity level.

Backpacker/Student Travel

Backpacking and staying in hostels isn't just for students anymore; you'll find retirees strapping on their Tevas and money belts and hitting the capitals of Europe and Asia in the summers. So, if you're more the make-your-own-meals-and-drink-with-the-locals type:

  • Eurotrip - A great, comprehensive site dedicated to the grand idea of seeing the Continent by rucksack and rail. You'll find virtually all the resources you need here, from hostel reservations to rail pass purchases.
  • Hostelling International - No longer just for youths, hostels are the cheap, communal way to see countries at ground level. Here you'll find information about hostels in every country, from bare-bones dormitories to hostels with private rooms for families.
  • Lonely Planet - The Web home for the famous Lonely Planet series of guidebooks, this is a wonderful place to learn about foreign destinations, from security tips to key phrases to where to eat.

General

  • Hotwire - A fantastic place to save money if you're flexible in your flight times. Great deals on fly/drive/stay packages.
  • Orbitz - Hotwire's more mainstream cousin gives you more control but usually higher prices.
  • Travelocity - One of the best of the big travel sites.
  • Expedia - The other major travel brand, neck and neck with Travelocity as far as effectiveness. Choose whichever suits you personally.
  • OneTravel - A dark-horse site with some good options.
  • Cheap Tickets - Usually comes back with the same fares as Orbitz, but not always. A great place to try if some of the other sites fail you, and not run by the airlines, like Hotwire and Orbitz.
  • Priceline - Forget Shatner's hairpiece. This "name your own price" site can save you some serious jack if you know how to work it.

Things to Watch Out For

  • Secure credit card transactions. Be sure your transaction is secure before sending any credit card information. Look for SSL encryption indicated in the fine print on an order page. If you're not sure, don't do business with them.
  • Invasion of privacy. Know how these travel sites are using your personal information. If you don't want e-mail offers, be sure to opt out of them. And read the privacy policy. If it's not sufficient (Lonely Planet has an excellent one, if you want to use it as an example), take your business elsewhere.
  • "Too good to be true" offers. Some low prices are just scams. Beware of $100 round trip flights to London. Use your common sense and walk away from deals that look like ripoffs.
  • Confirmation e-mails. Every travel site will send you an e-mail confirming your reservation. Watch for it. If you don't get it, call the site and confirm verbally, but still get confirmation by e-mail or fax. Never assume. Orbitz is very good at this.