Does Expedia Charge you to Book a flight?
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Out of the big three travel agency sites (Travelocity, Orbitz, Expedia), Expedia's no booking fee policy takes the cake. Quite simply, Expedia no longer charges booking fees on flights booked online at Expedia.com. Expedia's booking fee policy goes beyond other travel agency sites, in that they also elimiated booking fees on multi-carrier flights. The only limitation is that you will pay an Expedia fee if you book your flight along with a hotel, as in a vacation package. Expedia did not stop there, as they also removed Expedia cancellation fees from hotel bookings, cruise bookings, car rentals and flights. Keep in mind that the government, airline, hotel, or cruise line may charge you a cancellation fee, and Expedia will pass that charge onto you.
Nonetheless, Expedia is not a fee free travel site. Expedia charges fees for a number of services, including:
- $20 fee to book flights over the phone
- Variable fee is imposed by some airlines, and Expedia will pass that fee onto you
- Shipping & handling fee for paper tickets
- Variable booking & cancellation fee for vacation packages, dependant on the specific hotel and airline booked
- Up to $50 per person vacation deposit is non-refundable at the time of cancellation, even when the Expedia Vacation Package Cancellation Penalty Waiver is purchased
This article is PART TWO of the series: The truth about airfare booking fees. For more information on the Expedia airfare booking fee policy, visit Expedia.com.
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Comments
I just discovered that they don't charge a fee to change hotel reservations last week and was really surprised. I had to change a booking and they said they only charge what the hotel requires, so I called the hotel, which said they wouldn't charge me. I told Expedia, and while I was on the phone, they called the hotel, confirmed it, and then didn't charge any fee at all! This was through hotels.com, which is actually expedia. I had no idea about the plane tickets though! Thanks for the tip!
I've loved Expedia's new policy. I had never booked airfares through them; I always book through the airline even if I had to book two one-ways to get the schedule I needed. But I've started using them more since this change and had no problems.
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