Butch Posted October 13, 2025 Posted October 13, 2025 I still always book direct for my flights - have done ever since we were delayed by 2 weeks due to the Volcanic Ash Cloud all those years ago!. While the Airline direct prices are not too far away from those offered by skyscanner etc in some (not all cases) I still find that Agoda etc offer better deals than direct booking with some Hotels. Also, seeing as I nearly got scammed out of £730 by Page 10 (their website was hacked) I'm more inclined to book using an external site. Qatar coming up with some spanking offers for next year, with Econ at £600 or less. EVA still static asking £800 - £900+ for an Econ return in May , £2.3K for PE and over £3.2k for Biz. THAI around the same as EVA for both classes. One thing I can't get my head around though is the disparity in prices. I have been faffing about looking for Hotels for May, "August suites" coming up at over £3.5k !! whereas using Expedia same dates it's a more realistic £650 (give or take). I think it's possibly a bug in their system, defaulting the highest price is their database doesn't go that far ahead maybe?. as opposed to Anyhoo, finding a decent Hotel that isn't overrun by Indians is becoming a bit of a task these days. I'll probably just go to the PI next year and bin Thailand off for a while until things change for the better. 1
Nickrock Posted October 13, 2025 Posted October 13, 2025 I was looking at hotels for ate April on agoda there was almost nothing listed and most of them for a month were 3 times what I normally pay or showing as fully booked if I checked on specific hotels 1
Pumpuynarak Posted October 14, 2025 Posted October 14, 2025 I rarely ever book direct as the rates are ALWAYS higher than Agoda ime. 1
forcebwithu Posted October 14, 2025 Posted October 14, 2025 These search sites use dynamic pricing which can result in different prices displayed each time you run a search. Kind of like a less than honest human that senses from your inquiries that you really want to go somewhere, stay somewhere and will adjust the price up to maximize their profit based on your neediness. As for booking directly; airlines always as if there are irregular ops I stand a better chance of the airline taking care of me than if I booked through a 3rd party. Hotels I use Agoda or Booking.com. 1 2
Derek Dangleberries Posted October 14, 2025 Posted October 14, 2025 1 hour ago, forcebwithu said: Hotels I use Agoda or Booking.com. Do you (or anybody else) have any idea how Agoda judge who qualifies, or not, for their "Domestic Deals" ?? I am currently trying to get an answer directly from the hotel because I've found a good price on Agoda for a Jomtien Hotel "Domestic Deal" but don't want to arrive to a Gotcha moment at check in after a 9 hour drive .. No response thus far and I want a written answer rather than a phone call ...
forcebwithu Posted October 14, 2025 Posted October 14, 2025 22 minutes ago, Derek Dangleberries said: Do you (or anybody else) have any idea how Agoda judge who qualifies, or not, for their "Domestic Deals" ?? I am currently trying to get an answer directly from the hotel because I've found a good price on Agoda for a Jomtien Hotel "Domestic Deal" but don't want to arrive to a Gotcha moment at check in after a 9 hour drive .. No response thus far and I want a written answer rather than a phone call ... I don't know the details for the domestic deals program so I asked AI Bob. Perhaps book the room, assuming it can be done with no advance payment, then have the wife call the hotel to confirm the details of the booking. 3
boydeste Posted October 14, 2025 Posted October 14, 2025 I always book direct with the airlines as the protection if something happens is worth the extra expense. Most of my first hotel visits are done via Booking.com, then I will enquire direct with the hotel for further visits, but quite often the Hotel can't match or beat the booking.com price! 3
Stillearly Posted October 14, 2025 Posted October 14, 2025 I still use Kayak and Skyscanner to compare flights , but since Covid and the cancellations I had then , I prefer to book flights directly ... but I currently only look at EVA , BA , Thai , Etihad, Emirates and Qatar .. Hotels - I use Booking.com ... I then look at the chosen hotel's own Website , but sometimes they are more expensive, if so I use Booking.com I normally go for a flexible price ... Trivago sometimes comes up with cheaper options , but they are normally from companies I haven't heard of and don't have great reviews on Trustpilot ... 🤷♂️ 2 1 1
Recommended Posts