orbitz travel

Orbitz Hotels & Flights 4+

Travel & car rental deals.

• 4.8 • 400.5K Ratings

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Description.

Use code SAVEAPP10 for 10% off on select hotels in the app. Free cancellation on most hotels. Because flexibility matters. Orbitz is the #1 way to book travel on your mobile device. The Orbitz app lets you quickly and easily search and book flights, hotels, rental cars, activities. Plus, join Orbitz Rewards and start earning Orbucks on your flight and hotel bookings that you can instantly redeem on hotels in the app. EARN MORE -App bookers earn 4% on hotels and 2% on air! -Plus find last-minute hotel rooms nearby and save 30% with mobile exclusive deals! HOTELS - Last minute hotel bookings welcome and free cancellation available! - Pay when you book or when you arrive at the hotel. - Find hotels around you on an easy-to-use map view. - Review descriptions, photos and amenities from verified hotel guests. - Securely store your payment details for easier and safe bookings. FLIGHTS - Save even more on your flight with our combined one-way fares and get a single price for two separately issued tickets. - Search and book round trip or one-way flights. - Enter a departure date and destination, and your trip-ready. Book now! CARS - Search thousands of cars to find cheap, quality rentals. Save big when you book in-app! - Plan round trip rentals from any airport in the world to make your vacation, holiday or getaway a total breeze. ACTIVITIES - Attraction tickets without the lines. - Book local tours. - Book Airport shuttles. MY TRIPS - View your record locator, gate information, and upcoming trip details on the go. - Plan your own vacation packages with activities, hotels, cars, and more. - Explore Groupon valuable travel information. Orbitz envisions a world where all are welcomed. No matter who they are, who they love, or where they’re going. For 20 years we’ve led the way in advocating for LGBTQIA equality and inclusion in travel. Visit our LGBTQIA travel hub (Orbitz.com/pride) to search and book LGBTQ-welcoming hotels, view our LGBTQIA events calendar, get travel inspiration, and more! SAVEAPP10 coupon code Terms & Conditions Subject to the restrictions set out in these terms and conditions, the 10% promotion code may be applied to a qualifying stand-alone hotel (not a hotel booking in combination with any other product such as flight + hotel, or flight + hotel + car) booked on a mobile device or the Orbitz app by March 31, 2022, for 1 or more nights for travel by September 30, 2023. Qualifying bookings instantly receive 10% off at check-out through the use of the promotion code. Customers are limited to one redemption of this promotion code and up to a maximum savings of $150 per booking. After one booking, this promo code will not be able to be used again, even if the booking is cancelled. Exclusions may apply and most major hotel chains are excluded. The promotion code cannot be redeemed against taxes, supplier fees, cancellation or change fees/penalties, administrative fees or other miscellaneous charges, which are the sole responsibility of the customer. Discounts are not redeemable for cash for any reason. Promotion codes are non-transferable, not for resale, and cannot be combined with other offers or used for any booking previously made. Any attempt at fraud will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Void where prohibited, taxed or restricted by law. Orbitz reserves the right to change or limit the promotion in its sole discretion. Usual booking terms and conditions apply (https://www.orbitz.com/p/info-other/legal.htm) and all bookings are subject to availability. The Orbitz app uses information for analytics, personalization, and advertising. By using our app, you agree to our privacy and cookies policies.

Version 2024.28.0

This week, we made some improvements to make the app easier to use

Ratings and Reviews

400.5K Ratings

Agent booked flight correct and hotel dates wrong!!!

This is the first time I’ve had an issue with Orbitz and use them all the time this time I called spoke with an agent who booked the correct flight dates in my hotel incorrect out of the country. Thank goodness I realize before I left to go on vacation. I can only imagine going out the country and them telling me they have no room booked for me. I called to get the issue corrected I was on the phone for an one hour and a half and told a supervisor will call me back which was unacceptable because there should’ve been someone I could speak to right away then I was told they will call me back in 10 to 20 minutes I never got a callback until two hours later. I called back spoke to a supervisor for One hour and a half who had me on hold for 30 minutes never came back to the line never showed any empathy about my concern. When she came back to the line 30 minutes later after telling me she was going to review the call she tells me sorry I have to pay for anything extra. Which again is unacceptable because I didn’t cause this error she hung up on me and never called me back. This was a total of three hours that I spent trying to get my vacation rectified only to have to call back again to speak with another supervisor who then finally accommodated me. This was the worst service that I’ve ever had with Orbitz. It really has me questioning going forward if I will continue to use them.

Orbitz App Troubleshooting

After spending s few days researching the hotels, it became obvious that I needed to book soon. Using a wireless PC, I spent about 3 days in a row trying to book the trip, only to see error messages about technical difficulties. We had a power outage and I was using the phone app. It was working, except not showing where I could select “nonstop” flights. Again, having major problems getting the trip booked. Every time I’d go thru the process to book the trip, an error message would say that one of my flights just got sold out. This was in error!! What was happening was that the flights and 3 trips were charged to my card, when the message said they were sold out. Consequently, I missed out on getting the flight time that I wanted, because the others said they were sold out. Not happy with this at all. If anyone is able to rectify this (and now the hotel is showing as less expensive), please advise ASAP.

Horrible Customer Service!!

First of all I’m a loyal customer to Orbitz I always use their services when it comes to my travels needs but not until March 17,2021 when I purchased car rental along with the insurance. When I tried to pick up my car at Payless in San Diego they said that they are franchise so they don’t take any car insurance from what orbitz has offer. They even told me to call orbitz to get the refund so I did call right away and they submitted the refund request. After 12 days I called them back to follow up on my refund the customer service from orbitz has no record at all on my case so they put me on hold for so long so they can contact Payless in San Diego they said that they never respond. I told them I paid orbitz why not just refund my money they said that they need to confirm with Payless. So they called again and emailed but no response. She ended up told me that once she receives an email from Payless they will refund right away just wait for an email. So It’s almost a month now I called them again to find out what is the status of my refund guess what same answer from Orbitz customer service no record at all on my 2 conversation and I had to go through the same process that they did before. This company is Horrible with their customer service!!!! they put me on hold again waited for more than 30 minutes still no refund.

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Booking Travel With Orbitz – Everything You Need to Know [2024]

David Slotnick

Former Content Contributor

2 Published Articles

Countries Visited: 11 U.S. States Visited:

Keri Stooksbury

Editor-in-Chief

38 Published Articles 3327 Edited Articles

Countries Visited: 47 U.S. States Visited: 28

Director of Operations & Compliance

6 Published Articles 1182 Edited Articles

Countries Visited: 10 U.S. States Visited: 20

Table of Contents

Why use an ota, orbitz rewards, insider pricing, and credit cards, orbitz flights, orbitz hotels, orbitz vacation packages, orbitz activities, orbitz cruises, orbitz car rentals, orbitz mobile app, final thoughts.

We may be compensated when you click on product links, such as credit cards, from one or more of our advertising partners. Terms apply to the offers below. See our  Advertising Policy for more about our partners, how we make money, and our rating methodology. Opinions and recommendations are ours alone.

There are a ton of online travel agencies ( OTAs) out there, each competing hard for your business. With such a saturated market, many of them try to offer something unique to attract customers.

For example, Priceline offers savings through simple bookings, while AmexTravel.com offers cardholder perks and fantastic customer service. Others, like Costco Travel , offer freebies for members. They each hope that by attracting business with specials, travelers will stay loyal to the platform for all of their travel booking needs.

What Orbitz offers is an in-house loyalty program, strong search functionality, regularly-published low prices, and occasional discounts. It also features a wide range of services, letting you book flights , hotels , vacation packages , activities , cruises , rental cars , and more.

In the grand scheme of things, Orbitz offers consistency. So if you choose to use an OTA, then they can be the best option, particularly when there isn’t a specific deal for what you want being offered elsewhere.

Let’s dive in and take a closer look at how to use Orbitz, how it compares to other OTAs, and cases when you might want to choose them over the competition.

When you’re booking travel for a particular hotel or flight, it often makes sense to book directly with the travel provider. If there are any issues such as cancellation, overbooking, or delay, dealing directly with the airline or hotel can make solving the problem easier.

When you book through an online travel agency, the actual travel provider may not be able to work with you directly to come up with a solution. Instead, you may have to go through the booking agent, which can cause some confusion when communicating back and forth.

One compelling reason to use an OTA is when you’re trying to put together a more complicated itinerary, especially when you’ll need to book a few different flight segments on a few different airlines.

Not all OTAs (or even airlines) make it easy to book a multi-city trip — for example, a trip where you leave New York and start in London, fly to Amsterdam, and head to Berlin before going home. This is something that Orbitz is particularly useful for, where it can help build a single itinerary with a carrier or alliance.

However, this benefit is made a little less valuable by the plethora of ultra-low-cost-carriers (LCCs) that have popped up lately. In the above example, for instance (New York-London-Amsterdam-Berlin-New York), you could pay a lot less by just booking a series of one-way segments on Norwegian Air Shuttle and Ryanair .

Rather than freely mixing and matching the lowest-priced one-way segments, Orbitz tries to stick with a single alliance where possible. Additionally, Google Flights has become a lot more capable over the past few years and makes it easy to search for and compare flights.

Bottom Line: These days, a better-use scenario for OTAs is vacation packages , where you can save a bit by purchasing airfare, hotel stays, and extras like rental cars or transportation all in 1 bundle. Be sure to check out our picks for the best credit card for vacation packages before making a purchase.

Orbitz offers its own loyalty program, meaning that you can triple-dip on rewards between Orbitz Orbucks, credit card rewards , and frequent flyer miles (you generally aren’t eligible for hotel loyalty points if you book through a third party). Before booking anything through Orbitz, you should sign up for an account.

Orbitz Rewards

This rewards system is relatively simple. Each travel purchase made through the site earns Orbucks. Each Orbuck is worth $1 and can be redeemed for hotel purchases with no blackout dates.

Any time you book travel, you’ll see an earning rate next to your itinerary. Typically, it’s an even 1% return on airline purchases and vacation packages , and 3% back on eligible hotels (or 5% on hotels if you book through the Orbitz app). In other words, if a flight costs $650, you’ll earn 6.5 Orbucks.

The next time you book a hotel through Orbitz while you’re logged in, you’ll have the option to apply your Orbucks balance to the purchase.

Insider Prices

Orbitz offers discounted member pricing on certain hotels, with discounts usually around 10%, but sometimes as high as 50% . When searching for hotels (more on that below), just look for the Insider Price marking.

Rewards Tiers

Orbitz offers 3 tiers of rewards with elite status benefits.

The first tier, Silver, is the most basic level and applies to everyone. You’ll reach Gold status after staying 4+ nights per year in hotels booked through Orbitz and Platinum status after 12+ nights per year.

Perks for all members include access to Insider Prices, Orbucks earning, and a low price guarantee. At the Gold level, you get access to a priority customer service line and perks at certain hotels, such as free in-room premium Wi-Fi or breakfast.

At the Platinum level, you’ll be eligible for upgrades at participating hotels (Orbitz Rewards VIP Hotels) and a reimbursement of $50 Orbucks if you pay for 2 or more checked bags on flights booked through Orbitz. You can also get an $78 reimbursement if you sign up for TSA PreCheck.

Just remember that you won’t earn hotel loyalty points, status, or receive status benefits when you book through a third party like Orbitz. You’ll have to decide whether hotel rewards or Orbitz Rewards are more valuable to you — if you are loyal to 1 hotel chain, that reward system is likely more worthwhile.

Orbitz Rewards Visa Card

Orbitz offers a branded credit card that earns rewards in the form of Orbucks.

The Orbitz Rewards Visa Card earns 8% to 10% back on hotels booked through Orbitz, 6% on flights, 5% on other Orbitz.com purchases, and 2% on everything else.

This is a generous card — the catch is that Orbucks can only be redeemed on hotel purchases through Orbitz. Most other rewards cards offer more flexible or more valuable points. Still, if you use Orbitz frequently, this card could make sense as a way to earn a lot of Orbucks quickly.

Bottom Line:  Orbitz Rewards is a substantial program; make sure to sign up before booking anything through the site.

Booking a flight on the platform is a fairly simple process, just like with most OTAs. Let’s take a look at how to search and book, and how to build a more complex itinerary.

To search for flights from its homepage, make sure to click the Flights tab. Enter your origin and destination city/airports, dates, number of passengers, and whether you’d like to search for lower prices on nearby dates.

If you click the “Advanced Options” link, you can choose whether you’d like to restrict the search to nonstops, as well as whether you want refundable fares, if you have a preferred airline, and what class you want. Once you’re ready, search and wait for results to load.

Results are typically displayed in price order, starting with the lowest. You’ll only see the outbound flight, but the price represents the entire round-trip. It displays flights from most low-cost carriers, so if you’re searching for a one-way or basic round-trip, chances are these flights will show up first.

If you have preferences for which airline you fly, the number of stops, or the time of day, you can use tools on the left side of the screen to filter results. You can also reorder the flights by departure or arrival time, duration, or highest price using a drop-down menu to the upper-right of the results.

Another great feature is that Orbitz displays amenities alongside flight results — icons to the left of the price tell you whether the flight is equipped with Wi-Fi, power outlets, or inflight entertainment (IFE).

You can also click on “Flight details and baggage fees” to learn about costs, as well as the type of plane and what meal service is available.

Keep in mind that to keep prices as low as possible, Orbitz will often book flights through the operating airline’s partners — for example, in the above search for a flight from ORD to LHR, Orbitz is showing a flight operated by American Airlines but booking it through British Airways .

That’s usually not an issue; just make sure to show up at the right terminal and consider this for frequent flyer mileage earning.

Making a Reservation

Once you’ve found an outbound flight you like, hit the pink “Select” button. The next screen shows you options for the return flight. Because the price on the first screen represented the total lowest-possible round-trip cost, most of these will show a cost of $0.00.

As you scroll down, other flights may show additional costs due to timing, capacity, or whether they’re operated by a non-alliance carrier.

In this example, most return flights on Oneworld carriers are either no additional charge or just a few dollars. This is because the outbound flight was on American Airlines booked through British Airways.

However, when you scroll down, you’ll see that you can book on other carriers including Star Alliance . That would require the trip to be booked as 2 expensive one-ways, which would add a punishing $3,940+ to the overall cost.

Hot Tip:  Make sure to check the additional cost for your return flight! Usually, it’s $0, but just keep an eye on it.

Once you select the return flight, a dialogue box pops up asking if you’d like to book a hotel simultaneously, claiming that people booking flights and hotels together save an average of $193. If you’re interested in vacation packages , check out the section below.

If you don’t opt to book the hotel, the next screen displays your complete flight itinerary and offers a few different fare choices, such as flexible economy and business class. Select the fare you want and click “Book.”

On the next screen, enter passenger and payment details, then confirm to pay and book your flight.

Make sure that you’re signed in when you pay to earn Orbucks on the flight. Also, remember that Orbitz gives you 24 hours to cancel any flight . Most airlines and travel portals have to offer this according to U.S. law, but Orbitz is known for making the process easy.

Comparing Prices

Orbitz offers a “best price guarantee” on just about everything — for flights, if you find a lower price within 24 hours of booking, it will refund the difference. Placing a claim is relatively easy, but let’s see how likely it is that you’ll need to use it.

We searched a few different portals and websites for the same nonstop trip from Chicago to London on the same days but didn’t specify the airport, time of day, or airline. Here’s what we found:

*Priceline offered an “Express Deal” flight for $561.42, but this was an opaque booking — you wouldn’t know your airline, the number of stops, or the exact time of day until booking.

In this example, Priceline found virtually the least-expensive possible non-stop routing, remarkably consistent with the other online travel agencies and search engines — perhaps because this is such a busy route. When checking other routes, prices stayed consistent with the other OTAs.

Justfly.com, through Kayak , did manage to find a route that was about $4 cheaper by booking American Airlines flights through multiple Oneworld partners, though odds are good that it was either a glitch or a mistake.

We repeated the search from New York (JFK), where a few different airlines operate multiple daily flights to London, again restricting the search to nonstops. This time, prices were a little different depending on whether an OTA had access to low-cost carriers:

We can only assume that the Orbitz pricing for Norwegian was an error or glitch, as it was around $150 more than we could find that ticket anywhere else — the comparison is not only of the cheapest available options; it’s looking at the same exact flights.

This could be a case where a price guarantee claim would be effective, especially since it seems to be a mistake.

Bottom Line:  Generally, Orbitz offers the best price on flights. If you find a better price within 24 hours of booking, it will refund you the difference.

Before searching for hotels on the platform, you should make sure to either create or log in to an Orbitz account. This is because it offers Insider Price deals on some hotels that feature savings up to 10%. Also, some Orbitz VIP hotels offer elite status perks if you book through Orbitz and have elite status with Orbitz.

After logging in, head back to the home page and click the Hotels tab. Enter your city, check-in and check-out dates, the number of people staying, and the number of rooms you need. Then, hit “Search.”

By default, Orbitz sorts results in “recommended” order. You can find a breakdown of how it decides which hotels will be recommended on the website’s support section .

If you want, you can change the results to sort by distance from downtown, price, customer rating, Insider Prices, best deals, and more.

You can also use tools on the left-hand side to filter results by star rating, the price per night, neighborhood, amenities, property type, proximity to popular locations, and more. You can also search for a specific property by name.

When browsing results, keep an eye out for a few different icons. A purple VIP circle signifies hotels where Orbitz Gold and Platinum members can get perks like room upgrades. If the price is highlighted in blue, that means it’s an Insider Price.

Booking a Room

Click the various results to see property details. When you find one you’d like to reserve, click on the price.

Immediately, you’ll see messages encouraging you to book quickly, with pop-ups reading things like “prices for your dates have been going up,” or “32 people are looking at this property!” Feel free to ignore these.

Either click the “Reserve” button or simply scroll down to see available rooms and rates. Pay attention to the “Options” column — if you click the top line, a pop-up appears with terms and conditions for your rate. Click “Reserve” next to the room and rate you want.

Enter contact and payment details and you’re pretty much set. Again, remember to double-check all rate terms and conditions before making the reservation to know the cancellation and refund policy. Orbitz also extends the window to submit a claim for its price guarantee up to 48 hours before check-in!

Hotel Pricing Side-by-Side

To compare prices between Orbitz and the competition, we searched for stays in London for a week in March and picked the Grosvenor Hotel, a property with an Insider Price available. Here’s how the total stacked up for 7 nights in a standard double room, including all fees and taxes:

Ultimately, booking direct was slightly cheaper in this instance because the hotel was having a sale. However, Orbitz was clearly cheaper than any other online travel agency. In a few other searches, this was generally the case — it even beats direct booking on a few occasions, as long as it was a hotel with an Insider Price.

Hotel Rewards

Remember that whenever you book a hotel through an online travel agency, you won’t collect rewards with the hotel’s loyalty program. You will, however, get Orbucks.

Bottom Line:  Orbitz Insider Prices offer great rates and discounts on hotel stays!

By booking vacation packages on Orbitz you can save even more money! Unlike the packages offered by Costco Travel , these only include a combination of flight, hotel, and rental car rather than activities or tours. One great benefit of booking a vacation package through Orbitz is that its price guarantee extends to 48 hours after booking!

Searching and Booking — Flight + Hotel

To search for a vacation package, click Vacation Packages on the home screen. Choose what you want to include in your package — flight, hotel, or rental car — and enter your departure city and destination, dates, and the number of people.

In this example, we looked for a Flight + Hotel package flying from New York to Rome.

Just like the results of the hotel search, Orbitz sorts vacation packages by recommendations. On the first screen, you’ll see hotel options with VIP and Insider Price hotels flagged.

Click the hotel you’re interested in. On the next screen, beneath the hotel’s details, you can see room options. Rooms included with the package’s base price say “+$0.00 per night,” while upgraded rooms cost extra.

Once you pick the room, you’re taken to a screen to pick outbound and return flights. The package price reflects the cheapest available “recommended” flight — in this case, a nonstop on Norwegian from Newark to Rome. Other flights might cost more, or in some cases less — these flights usually involve either more stops or inconvenient flight times.

On the next screen, you can add airport transportation and tickets to attractions, or you can proceed to payment.

In the above example, you save about $38 for booking the flight and hotel as a bundle. That’s not a huge amount, obviously, but depending on destination, hotel, time of year, and many other factors, you might be able to save a lot more.

Vacation package prices tend to vary across the different online travel agencies, with each having access to different hotel deals and perks. Unless you’re set on using 1 — for instance, if you value Orbucks — it would be worth checking out packages at a few different websites.

Bottom Line:  Orbitz vacation packages can offer savings by bundling a few purchases together, though the savings may not always be huge.

Orbitz allows customers to search for and book entertainment in the city that you’re visiting, just as you would search and book a flight. These activities can include anything from concert tickets to tours, or even food events.

Searching and Booking

When looking for activities on Orbitz , simply enter the destination that you’re traveling to and your dates. You’ll then receive a list of all the activities happening within the city on those dates. From there you can filter by price, activity type, or enter a keyword for a specific activity you’re looking for.

Once you’ve selected your activity you’ll receive a list of available dates and times for you to choose from, along with highlights and reviews of that activity.

When you find a date and time that works well for you, simply click “Book,” finalize your payment details, and you’re done! Easy as that!

Orbitz offers perks and extras on certain cruises, like many other online travel agencies. Prices are often consistent across OTAs and booking directly, but Orbitz occasionally offers sales with modest discounts.

To search for cruises, hit the Cruise button on the home page, then select a destination region and departure month — that’s it. On the results page, you can use filters to narrow down what you’re looking for: departure port, length, cruise line, and even specific ship.

When you pick a cruise, you’ll have a choice of extras, when available. For example, on the below cruise you can pick between a free third and fourth guest, free dinner or drinks, credits to use onboard, and more.

We compared the above cruise to other booking sites and prices were all identical — except for Orbitz, which offered $40 off. While that’s a small amount compared to the $1,498 total, it’s still a savings!

Bottom Line:  While prices are generally consistent across OTAs and cruise websites, Orbitz occasionally manages to offer a discount. Keep an eye out for included perks, too! Curious to learn about other resources that help you find cheap cruises? Check out our post on the best websites to book cruises ! 

Orbitz’s car rental options are fairly consistent with most other online travel agencies . Although most rentals are available at the same price that other OTAs offer, Insider Prices offer discounts on a few different classes of car.

Enter your location, choose pick-up and drop-off dates and times, select any preferences you have, and click “Search.”

Scroll through the cars, using filters on the left as needed. Orbitz offers occasional Insider Prices on rental cars, so keep an eye out for the blue highlighted prices.

Once you’ve found the class of car you want from the rental agency of your choice, click the price to make the reservation. On the next screen, select any add-ons or accessories you want, then click “Reserve.”

Hot Tip:  The Chase Sapphire Preferred ® card is a credit card with primary rental car insurance ! Just use your card to pay, and decline the rental company’s collision damage.

Enter contact details, payment information (if prompted), and select whether you want collision protection. That’s it!

Rental car prices tend to stay consistent across OTAs — the exception is Costco Travel, which has negotiated group rates and discounts (similar to AAA ) and automatically applies anything available. The downside to Costco Travel is that it only included 4 rental companies.

In head-to-head comparisons, Orbitz offered the same prices as other portals like AmexTravel.com. The exception was at Budget , where Insider Prices were available. Across the board, rentals from Budget were $2 to $5 cheaper per day than at other OTAs.

Bottom Line:  Orbitz offers a few discounts on rental cars, but for the most part prices are the same as anywhere else. Need more rental car resources? We’ve got you covered! Have a look at our best websites for finding cheap car rentals . 

With the Orbitz app, you can book travel, get mobile exclusive deals, and track flights and your overall itinerary, all from your smartphone! The Orbitz travel app is available on iOS and Android .

In addition to the discounts and deals you can score through the Orbitz app, one of the best features is trip management . From the app, you can access your itinerary and receive instant trip updates, including gate changes and even baggage carousel numbers.

Orbitz offers some decent deals on travel, as well as a fairly robust rewards program and a very handy 24-hour free cancellation policy on flight bookings . Thanks to its price guarantee, you can always get the difference refunded if you find a lower price elsewhere within 24 hours of booking!

For information on alternative OTAs and metasearch engines, check out our post on the best websites for booking cheap flights.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is orbitz.

Orbitz is an online travel agency (OTA) that you can use to book flights, hotels, and much more.

Can you change your flight with Orbitz?

That depends on what rate you choose — Orbitz offers both discount and flexible fares for most flights. If you pay more for a flexible fare, you can likely change your flight without penalty.

Which is better, Orbitz or Expedia?

Orbitz is part of the Expedia Group, so you’re likely to get similar results when searching on each platform. But always compare and contrast prices before finalizing your booking.

When does Orbitz charge your card?

That depends — for flights, right away. For hotels, cruises, and more, it depends on the rate you book — make sure to read terms and conditions to see whether the booking is prepaid or not.

How does Orbitz work?

Orbitz works by booking specific travel through airlines and hotels. It also negotiates certain deals or group rates that it then passes along to customers.

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About David Slotnick

Born and raised in New York, David still remembers his first flight when he was only four years old: a U.S. Airways trip from New York-La Guardia to Palm Beach, Florida. He formed his love of travel around that and other family vacations, including to England at age eight and Namibia when he was 13. During college, a four-country trip around Europe with a friend cemented his passion for seeing the world.

David is currently Senior Aviation Business Reporter and a photographer at The Points Guy.

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Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia – Which travel website is best?

Vs.       vs.      .

When searching to book travel on the internet, should you use Orbitz , Travelocity and Expedia ?   There are an amazing variety of travel websites on the internet, and I personally find the selection a bit overwhelming.  If you simply Google the words “travel website”, you will find upwards of 132 million results!   Interestingly today, Orbitz got top billing on Google.    But, is Orbitz really the best website to use to book your vacation just because it shows up as the first travel website on Google?    Well, of course any rational person knows that’s not necessarily the case!

There are many factors to consider when comparing travel websites.  Things to compare include booking fees, cancellation polices, price guarantees, coupon codes, price-wars and sometimes even membership fees.  In our travel website reviews , we look at each of these variables, including what real travel website users have to say in the comments.  You will find these comments, real experiences, and cautionary complaints under each of our reviews for Orbitz , Travelocity and Expedia.  As with anything you find on the internet, don’t believe everything you read.  However, the amount of complaints about one travel site versus another is a good indicator that there may be a real customer service issue with the travel website.

Fees and cancellations

Let us start with the travel website fees*.   In our latest review, it appears to us that  Travelocity has the least amount of fees, along with the easiest to find cancellation policy.   Keep in mind that if you cancel a vacation package or flight, you will be charged approximately $200 by the airline (per ticket).  This cancellation fee is charged by the airline, and the travel website will pass this charge onto you.   In addition to this airline fee, most travel websites will also charge you their own cancellation fee.   Expedia claims that they do not charge to cancel flights or hotels.   But when it comes to Expedia’s policy on canceling vacations… it gets blurry.   Does Expedia offer refunds for vacation packages?   That is a question that remains unanswered when browsing their website.  Travelocity’s claims that they do not charge a fee to cancel a vacation, albeit you still need to pay those pesky hotel and airline fees.  Orbitz claims they will tack on an additional $25 fee if you cancel a vacation.  At least we could find their policy!

User reviews and comments

Now, let’s move onto the user comments.   As far as users of this site are concerned, the Expedia travel website has the most complaints.  Travelocity is not trailing far behind and Orbitz has relatively few.  I take this information with a grain of salt because we are talking about the biggest names in online travel and they are bound to have more complaints than the smaller companies.  Take a few moments to read through these user comments, just to familiarize yourself with what you may need to watch out for on a particular travel website and possibly pick up a few insider tricks along the way.

Price guarantees

Looking at the price guarantee policies* of Orbitz , Travelocity and Expedia , I’d say that Orbitz takes the cake on this one.  Expedia offers you a $50 coupon if you find a lower price within 24 hours.   Travelocity gives you a longer period of time, but otherwise their guarantee appears identical to Expedia’s.  For both Travelocity and Expedia, you need to search for a lower price on your own and submit a claim to get this benefit.   Orbitz takes their guarantee one step further with their new “Hotel Price Assurance”.   Although only good for hotel bookings, “ if another Orbitz customer books the same pre-paid hotel as you for less, you’ll get a cash refund for the difference… automatically “.  Oh, and Orbitz also offers the same $50 price guarantee that Travelocity and Expedia offer.

Coupon codes and deals

What about those coveted travel coupon codes (aka.  promotional codes)?  Not every travel website has coupon codes, and they do not make these codes easy to find by the public.  Travelocity is the winner of this group when it comes to coupon codes.  We get new Travelocity promotional codes every month here at Travel Site Critic.com, and try to be the first to post them in our travel deals .  I’m not sure how much this weighs in on making Travelocity the best travel website, but if coupon codes are what you seek, you can easily get them for Travelocity .  The downside of coupon codes is that they often expire within 30 days or less, so you need to search for new codes every time you book a vacation.

Ultimately, it’s up to you to arm yourself with relevant information and decide which travel website is best for you.  You may find that a smaller travel website may be just what you are looking for.  Our top rated travel websites are listed on the left side of this page.  Explore our other travel website reviews and see what you find.  It may surprise you.

Read our Reviews Disclosure

I have only one thing to say. AppleVacations.com

I highly recommend to avoid using Expedia. They overcharge and then it is a pain and nightmare to get your money back. I recently booked a trip (for $1400 and got charged $3400) – still waiting to get refund part of hotel (about $700). Issue is still open, and so far I got over 5 hours of waiting time on the phone during 3 phone calls that still have not lead to a resolution. Read details here http://bit.ly/9BGi6b and join the facebook group to talk about your experience http://bit.ly/bUbp9h

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How does Orbitz work?

Is orbitz reliable, what should i know about orbitz, how do i get a good deal on orbitz, orbitz is legit.

If you're thinking of using an online travel booking portal to find and book travel, you may be wondering, is Orbitz legit? Orbitz is one of several online booking platforms that make it simple to book flights, hotels, rental cars, cruises, activities and travel packages.

Knowing what to expect before using this tool and reading Orbitz reviews may help you have more success booking a great travel deal. Here's what you need to know about Orbitz.

If you’re considering booking your next trip with Orbitz, the first question you may ask is how does Orbitz work?

Orbitz is an online travel agency, OTA, or travel booking platform. You can use the Orbitz website or app to search for travel and compare availability and pricing. It functions as a search engine and displays pricing from different travel companies.

When you're ready to book, you can make your reservation through Orbitz instead of making a reservation directly with the travel brand. Since you can compare companies and book all in one place, Orbitz can be an easy and convenient way to make travel arrangements.

» Learn more: Best credit cards for online travel-booking websites

You may be asking, can I trust Orbitz? Since Orbitz is a genuine brand and a well-known platform, it’s pretty safe to put your trust in it.

As long as you verify all of your reservation details to ensure the booking meets your needs and you understand all of the terms before booking, you can feel confident when making a reservation through this online travel agency.

While Orbitz can be a great money-saving booking tool, it has some potential downsides.

Orbitz reservation issues and limited customer service

It’s important to remember that Orbitz is a third-party booking website. That means you’re not booking with the travel brand directly, and there is a possibility of your reservation getting lost in the system.

After making a reservation through Orbitz, call and verify your reservation with the hotel, airline or travel brand before your trip begins. This way, you can feel confident that your reservation will be honored.

It’s also important to remember that customer service may be lacking. When you deal with an airline, hotel or rental car company, it’ll be easier to get more direct and detailed help. When you deal with a third party like Orbitz, it may only provide minimal assistance.

Earned Orbucks can only be redeemed for hotel stays

Another downside is that the Orbitz rewards program has limitations. You can earn from 1% to 4% of your spending in rewards from booking flights, hotels, Orbitz flights and hotel packages, and activities. The percentage varies by booking type and whether you use the website or app to book.

The biggest limitation is that Orbucks can be redeemed for hotel stays only. That means you can’t use Orbucks to book a flight.

There’s no guarantee that you’ll earn brand-specific rewards

By booking through a third-party booking website like Orbitz, there’s no guarantee that you will earn points or miles through your favorite hotel, airline or rental car company loyalty programs .

In some cases, you will still be able to earn rewards after supplying your loyalty program details. Just be aware that there is a possibility that you won’t earn rewards, so you'll want to check with your selected loyalty program first before booking.

» Learn more: How to get a refund from a travel agency

Is Orbitz a good deal? There's no guarantee that Orbitz will provide the best rate, but it is possible to find a good price through the platform.

The following tips may help you have more success.

1. Create a free account

Orbitz has a rewards program that rewards travelers for making bookings — and it’s free to become a member.

Once you're a member, you’ll earn Orbucks on eligible bookings. You can work your way up through the program tiers to earn more perks .

Make sure you create an account and log in before making an Orbitz booking to receive the Orbucks. You can redeem rewards for hotel stays in the future.

Orbitz also displays insider prices on hotels, so having an account could help you score better deals.

2. Use the calendar view to find cheaper travel dates for flights

No matter what booking tool you use, having flexible dates can be beneficial. If your travel dates aren't set in stone, play around with different dates and times to see if you can score a better deal.

Here’s a simple trick: When searching for flights on Orbitz, click on your travel dates to revise them. You'll see a calendar view pop open that highlights the cheapest dates to fly. Another option is to click “Flexible dates” to access dates and prices in an easy-to-compare grid view.

3. Rent a small car to save money

If you're using Orbitz to book a car rental , you may be able to save by booking a smaller vehicle. Often, compact cars and sedans are cheaper than larger vehicles. If you feel comfortable driving a small car, you could score a great deal.

4. Download the Orbitz app

Orbitz has a mobile app, and it's easy to use. If you're not yet using the app and plan to make a booking soon, download it. Some deals and discounts are available when booking through the app only. Plus, you'll earn more Orbucks rewards when booking through the app, too.

5. Use the search filtering and sorting tools to your advantage

Orbitz offers many search filtering and sorting tools. You can narrow down the search results to find options that better align with your travel needs. You can also sort the results in several ways, such as displaying results by lowest price first or highest guest rating. Sorting the results by price is an easy way to find the best deals.

6. Save money on hotels and vacation packages with Orbitz coupons

Orbitz has coupon codes that can be used to save money on hotels and vacation packages. These codes are listed on the website and app.

7. Browse the best deals for inspiration

Orbitz displays its best travel deals in one organized area. Often, these are last-minute deals. Look for the deals section on the website or app and maybe you’ll find your next destination.

» Learn more: Are vacation packages the best travel deals?

Is Orbitz legit? Yes, Orbitz is the real deal, and this travel booking platform can help you score some great travel savings. Just make sure that you consider the pros and cons of using a third-party platform like this before making a reservation. There's no harm in using Orbitz to see if you can score a better deal the next time you're ready to book a trip.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are some of the best travel credit cards of 2024 :

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

on Chase's website

1x-5x 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases.

60,000 Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

1.5%-5% Enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

Up to $300 Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back!

on Capital One's website

2x-5x Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day. Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options.

75,000 Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

American Airlines sues travel site Skiplagged over 'deceptive' conduct

DALLAS – American Airlines is suing a travel website that sells tickets that let people save money by exploiting a quirk in airline pricing.

American sued Skiplagged Inc. in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, last week, accusing the website of deception. It threatened to cancel every ticket that Skiplagged has sold.

In a practice called skiplagging and hidden-city ticketing , travelers book a flight that includes at least one stop, but they leave the plane during a layover or don't continue onto their connecting flight. Generally, skiplagging is not illegal, but airlines claim that it violates their policies.

Last month, American  booted a 17-year-old  from a flight and banned him for three years when he tried to use the tactic to fly from Gainesville, Florida, to Charlotte, North Carolina, on a ticket that listed New York City as his destination. For the teen, that was cheaper than booking a flight directly to Charlotte.

In the lawsuit, American accused Skiplagged of tricking consumers into believing they can tap “some kind of secret ‘loophole.’” American said the website poses as an ordinary consumer to buy tickets and warns its customers not to tip off the airline about the arrangement.

American said Skiplagged has never been authorized to resell the airline's tickets.

“Skiplagged’s conduct is deceptive and abusive,” the airline said in the lawsuit. “Skiplagged deceives the public into believing that, even though it has no authority to form and issue a contract on American’s behalf, somehow it can still issue a completely valid ticket. It cannot. Every ‘ticket’ issued by Skiplagged is at risk of being invalidated.”

There was no immediate response to a request for comment left with Skiplagged.

Skiplagging is possible because of the way airlines compete on price.

What is skiplagging?: Everything about the controversial air travel hack airlines hate

Long flights usually cost more than shorter ones, but the reverse might be true if many airlines compete on the longer route while only one or two fly the shorter one.

Travelers who use the tactic avoid checking a bag since it will wind up at the ticketed destination, not the layover airport. They often book one-way tickets, or only try this strategy on the return trip – if the airline notices someone skipping out, it might cancel the rest of their itinerary.

Skiplagged, which is based in New York, has been sued before.

United Airlines and online travel agency Orbitz  accused Aktarer Zaman, who was in his early 20s when he started Skiplagged around 2014, of touting “prohibited forms of travel.” Zaman  started a GoFundMe  to pay his legal costs. He settled with Orbitz, and the United  lawsuit was dismissed .

Expedia Rewards is now One Key™

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Members can access discounts, points and special features

Don’t have an account.

Rewards are waiting for you in the Orbitz app

• Earn 4% back when you book your hotel in app, vs. 3% on site
• Get flight status and gate number notifications
• Have questions about your stay? Message your hotel right in the app