Buying Travel Online

Many consumers are unsure of whether to use the Internet for researching or buying travel - and if so, when and how. The Internet can be a powerful tool for researching travel. But when you're ready to buy, the Internet can't replace the expertise of a trusted travel counselor. Ed Perkins, the consumer advocate for the American Society of Travel Agents and former editor of Consumer Reports Travel Letter, answers some of the more common questions about researching and buying travel on- and offline.
 

The travel website is great for facts and figures: Thousands of destinations - regions, countries, states and provinces, cities, and park systems - maintain websites. Those sites are great sources for information you need: main features, activities, climate and weather, local transportation, and much more. In fact, your problem is likely to be information overload rather than too little.

Most tourist attractions maintain Websites with complete schedule and price information in website, as do sports teams, theaters and arenas, cultural programs, and such. Newspaper sites let you access such local details as movie schedules, restaurant reviews, church services times, and much more.

But the website is seldom able to supply enough depth and detail to allow you to prepare a complete travel plan. You will still probably need good guidebooks and maps (which you can buy online). And you should always speak with a professional travel agent before making a travel purchase.

In general, however, the online price is about the same as you'd pay if you buy from a conventional agency. And some sites that claim to search for the "lowest" fares don't include those discount tickets in their searches, which means they won't really get you the lowest fare.

If you're accustomed to making all your own travel arrangements, the Internet can be a powerful tool. It can increase the scope and reach of all your efforts, and allow you to check hundreds of options. But to make the Internet work for you effectively, you have to know what to ask and where to ask it. If you don't, you can spend endless fruitless hours that ultimately produce unsatisfactory results.

Even if you know what you want, Internet research can be time-consuming. But just because you prefer some outside assistance and counsel with your travel arrangements, you needn't ignore the Internet. It can be a good place to do your homework - along with the more traditional guidebooks and other references.