had no problem using expedia and travelocity for domestic travel, but I remember one trip in particular that I had both crummy air seats and very small hotel room when expedia arranged it.

I also always check the Southwest website, as they are not contracted with Travelocity.

I use tripadvisor to research hotels, then find the best rate. They will check with multiple websites and show you who's charging what. Most hotels don't require a deposit, so you are pretty safe in booking.

If you aren't sure about your travel plans, you can sometimes pay a little more and retain the ability to make changes without a charge.

These days you have to look carefully for extra charges - taxes, baggage - on airlines. If you have some flexibility in travel dates, you can do a search and see a calendar with best dates.

Hope that helps.

I also try for those between season times when rates are generally lower. The air/hotel package seems to be the way to go, in terms of the comparison of companies/hotels. I read all of the reviews and try to do a thorough job of research.

I think it is a good idea to retain the ability to make changes w/o a charge. You never know what can happen...

I especially value their hotel reviews.

I have used them in the US, but have really found them helpful when out of the country.

On kayak.com or ebookers.com for example .

Happy to help look if you like.

The book is about the hotel industry, and the author says that when you book through Priceline or other online intermediaries, you'll get the worst rooms possible. If you contact the hotel and book with them directly, you'll get a much better room.

In general I book flights with Orbitz, but they seldom offer the hotels I want in their packages, so I book hotels separately.

Sometimes I use Orbitz, et. al, just to see which airlines fly to my desired destination. Then I'll book with the airline directly, because Orbitz, etc., doesn't always have seat availability while the airline does.

primarily because my travel buddy wanted a really good hotel and there was a deal on flight + 5 star hotel. This was to Brussels. The seats were excellent, particularly on the flight home and the hotel really was a step up. Usually, I don't care as long as the rooms are clean and the location is good. I hate spending any more time in a hotel than just sleeping and showering/dressing. I am up and out. What I did miss was an included breakfast, which I really like, because they usually have a variety of fresh fruit, yogurt, cereal and some hot dishes. I had to settle for a croissant, juice and coffee served in the hotel bar/lounge since their buffet breakfast cost 25 euros and that was just too much.