What do you think of Orbitz?

Wall Street Journal ^ | 10/3/02 | STEPHEN POWER

[stromsfriend]

WASHINGTON -- In this town where money talks, lobbyists long have known that campaign cash can help secure a lawmaker's vote. But can money be used to frame a policy debate?

The nation's air carriers are battling it out with online travel agents over Orbitz, the airline-industry-funded system that rivals fear could give airlines an unfair edge in selling tickets via the Internet. But the adversaries are going far beyond the usual tactics of pressuring lawmakers through campaign contributions and Capitol Hill lobbying. In the Orbitz fight, both sides are giving money to think tanks whose findings promote their viewpoints.

[stromsfriend]

Has anybody used Orbitz.com? I have actually been using it for over a year for businsess and vacation - I just bought a good flight to head west for Thanksgiving from DC - $208 to San Diego. Obviously, I check others, but I like the one page display of fares, flights, times and prices.

I have noticed that the government has been checking them out - I wondered if anyone else had experiences with Orbitz....?

[kemathen7]

I've used orbitz countless times for flights and hotels. Whenever hunting for an airfare, I check out other sites, but orbitz has consistently given me the cheaper fare. Never had a problem.

[oyez]

BFL

[ifhult45]

After some terrible experiences with some of the others my brother in law recommended Orbitz. Since then I've used them a few times for business and personal things and have had really good success. No problems (knock on wood) and they've always been really helpful. I read about some of the anti-trust stuff and it just seemed like sour grapes to me. I'll stick with what works regardless. Just my opinion.

[sinkspur]

I generally fly Southwest, so I don't use Orbitz for flights.

But I like the side-by-side layout for rental cars and hotels. Rates can be compared quickly, and I've found SUVs and vans occasionally rent for less than a mid-size car, and I would have to dig through multiple screens to come up with that on a rental car website.

Travelocity is cumbersome and I never use it anymore.

[white trash redneck]

I've used Orbitz a lot for travel, but I always check Expedia, too. I'd estimate that about half the time I find cheaper fares on Expedia.

[dighton]

What do you think of Orbitz?

They can take their pop-under ads and . . . . sorry, it's unprintable.

[Ethrane]

Love 'em...

Have used Orbitz many times, and have always been satisfied.

Flew my family of 4 to Germany last April for about $1600, without a hitch...

[AdA$tra]

Last June Mrs. AdA$tra and I vacationed in Chicago. I tried all of the services out there that I could find including Orbitz. I found the best hotel rates by at least $20.00/night at the Palmer House Hilton on Hotwire.

[avg_freeper]

Vanessa from the Orbit Institute states that it's "Fab-a-lus"

[N. Theknow]

I use them as a starting point and find the airline they offer with the lowest fare. Then go directly to the airlines web site and get an even lower fare.

I have never bought through Orbitz as the individual airline sites are about 20-25% cheaper and you can usually get your seat assignment at the same time you buy the ticket.

Otherwise I use Hotwire.com if I am not concerned with keeping a time schedule. There you have to buy the the ticket before they tell you the flight times. You can say "no red-eye" flights, but you most assuredly will fly around 6AM. Unlike Priceline.com, where you have to bid on a ticket, they do tell you what the ticket will cost before you buy, they just don't tell you the flight time.

[L_Von_Mises]

They can take their pop-under ads and . . . . sorry, it's unprintable.

Amen to that!! Any company that sends pop-up adds all over my screen will never see one dime from me as long as I live (that also includes companies that call andd try to sell me stuff during dinner (MCI))

[lysistrata_SF]

I have to fly several times a year and I'm a big bargain hunter. I think Orbitz is one of the most diverse and reliable places to check. Their layout is simple and easy to understand; they consistently get me fares I can't find through the airline websites; and their customer service has always been helpful when I need it.

[Keeper of the Turf]

Anyone that does not run a pop-up stopper these days is just plain crazy.

[TexRef]

If you dislike pop-up (or pop-under) ads so much, I suggest that you go here: Mozilla

[JeanLM]

I use Orbitz for all of my business and personal air tickets. I have had nothing but good fares and good deals all around. Sometimes I try direct on-line with the airlines but always come back. Never use a travel agent any more. Haven't used Orbitz for hotel or car deals, so I can't say how they are for these services, but for air fares thy are the best. Priceline, Travelocity too hard to make your way through to the end of an itinerary.

[stromsfriend]

Anyone that does not run a pop-up stopper these days is just plain crazy.

I agree - I downloaded the free pop-up stopper from www.panicware.com over a year ago and I have completely forgotten about those %@#$%#^ing ads. ;)

So other than that Orbitz kicks a$$ - pretty good trade off especially when you can just block them.

[dighton]

I've used Mozilla from time to time, and that's a great feature. Still too many rough edges for regular use: very promising, though.

Meanwhile, I'll imagine Orbitz and X-10 execs in a special hell, tormented eternally by their own ads.

[elfman2]

I don't like Orbits. They make you register just to look at more than one fair. Their fairs don’t include a $5-$7 fee of some kind that show on Travelocity, making them look cheaper until checkout time. I've found slightly better deals on Travelocity the last 2 times I used it. Plus I like the Travelocity interface better.

[TexRef]

I've used Mozilla from time to time, and that's a great feature. Still too many rough edges for regular use: very promising, though.

Really? Like what???

It's great for reading Free Republic — doing a CTRL-click opens up a link in a new tab (if you have this option turned on) — so you can load several FR stories that you are interested in and read them — all in one window.

It doesn't have everything that IE has, but that's not such a terrible thing! :)