are you making this mistake when you book flights?

Last year, I made a huge mistake, and I knew it was a mistake when I did it but I was being lazy and optimistic that it would work out — I was wrong — so I’m gonna share this with you in hopes that you can learn from my mistake.

Have you ever booked a flight through a third-party website? Yeah, same… First things first, just like hotels, third parties never actually have cheaper rates — they just make it easier to search and compare flights — and just like with hotels, you can negotiate if you actually do find something cheaper.

The main reason you don’t want to book through a third party is if anything goes wrong, if your flight is delayed, or if your flight is canceled you don’t get to deal with the airline, you have to go through the third party, and that little box agreeing to all of the terms and conditions that you check when you book through a third party is the kiss of death (ok a little dramatic but it feels like it sometimes). Going through a third party for vouchers during a delay and refunds for a cancellation is like pulling teeth and a lot of them charge you a customer service fee for doing it, THEY AREN’T EVEN DOING ANYTHING. The airline is literally giving you something but because you’ve gone through them, they take their cut from YOU.

Last year, I booked cheap flights I found on a third-party website because I was too lazy to go find them through the actual airline and my flight ended up getting canceled. I was never emailed that my flight was canceled, it was there one day and disappeared the next with no explanation, I actually didn’t find out it was canceled for 3 months. I called the airline I was supposed to fly with and they couldn’t give me any information, they claimed I had to contact the third party. I sat on hold with the third party for what felt like forever for them to tell me “oh, it was canceled” and no explanation to follow as to why I was never notified. THEN when I requested the refund that the airline legally owed ME, the third party was the only person who could file that claim and they took a portion of my refund for customer service (what customer service?? Checking the I want a refund box on the airline’s website?? Never notifying me that my entire trip was canceled? I was so livid). Anyways — long story short, never book through a third party, even when you’re feeling lazy like I was.