Editor’s Note:

We’re, again, lucky enough to have a guest poster to the Blizzard Blog today. Jeanenne Diefendorf is the Director of Public Relations at Orbitz.com and contacted us in regards to a post we did when Orbitz first rolled out their Price Assurance program. There were some quesitons in the comments on that post, so in an effort to clear up any confusion, Jeanenne volunteered to send in some basic details and great tips for booking travel online.

Thanks,Jeanenne!

I’m Jeanenne Diefendorf, director of public relations for Orbitz Worldwide. I appreciate the opportunity from Blizzard Internet Marketing, specifically Carrie Hill, to be a guest travel blogger.

Orbitz has a history of innovation and continues to lead the online travel space in inventing and developing new ways to make searching for and finding the ideal trip easier than ever before. We continue to create a fast and easy booking experience that gives customers confidence about their travel purchases, and assures them they really are getting the best trip at the best price. We realize travelers like to shop around, hesitate to book travel, and wonder if the person sitting next to them has paid more or less for his or her plane ticket.

In an attempt to alleviate any booking anxiety, Orbitz has launched Price Assurance.
It’s been a couple months since the launch, and since then I’ve received a lot of questions, and frankly, speculation, about this offer being “too good to be true.” I’d like to take this opportunity to explain how the program works – and yes, it really does work - as well as share some inside scoop.

So, now that you know how Price Assurance came about, here’s a little information to explain how it works:

• When a customer books a qualifying flight on Orbitz, we automatically start tracking to see if another customer books the same itinerary on Orbitz, but at a lower price.
• If that happens, Orbitz will issue a refund for the difference, between $5 and $250 per ticket. Orbitz will continue tracking until the day of a flight. Each time the price drops and another customer books, the refund amount will increase. Think of it as a retail price adjustment, but Orbitz does it automatically.
• Orbitz notifies customers via email when another flight is booked at a lower price. We include information about the refund amount customers will receive. Or, they can monitor this information in the “My Trips” tab on Orbitz.com.
• Customers receive a refund check approximately 30 days after the trip is completed. Orbitz mails a refund check to the billing address of the credit card used to make the booking.

When you purchase a ticket through Orbitz.com we want you to know you are getting the best trip at the best price. The ticket you purchase might offer a fellow traveler a Price Assurance refund, or your own benefit of the doubt that you are getting the best trip at the best price.

There has been some feedback in the blog world as to whether or not we are issuing refund checks and what types of routes are more likely to receive refunds. As a matter of fact, since June, we have already mailed out thousands of refund checks.

Orbitz’s homepage has a running list of examples of travelers who have received refunds, such as:

• Sonja from New York received a refund check for $189
• Ryan from Appleton, Wisc., received a refund check for $240
• Kara from Phoenix has received a refund check for $106

As you can see from the running list of examples of travelers who have received Price Assurance refunds, they are from big cities and small towns too. This indicates that “popular itineraries” aren’t the only ones receiving refunds.

With that, what do you think about Price Assurance? Have you received a Price Assurance refund yet?

As we continue to develop innovative offerings for travelers, such as Price Assurance, we also have a few tips to help the savvy traveler save time and money.

• Try to avoid the last flight of the day, because if it’s canceled, you may be stuck overnight.
• Don’t rule out connecting flights if price is your number one priority. Depending on the route, giving up a few hours can mean saving you upwards of $100 or more.
• Check neighboring airports, sometimes they have more accommodating departure/arrival times and cheaper fares.
• If you’re heading for the East or Gulf coasts - It’s best to book flights departing earlier in the day — when they’re less vulnerable to delays. You’ll also have more rerouting options if your flight is canceled.
• Think later for flights to the West Coast — including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and smaller regional airports — where dense fog early in the day can cause big delays.

Do you have any travel planning tips or packing advice to share?

As always, I welcome travelers to share their thoughts, feedback, and stories! Feel free to leave a comment here or email me. If anyone is interested in speaking with me or any one of our Family, Ski, Air Traffic, LGBT, and Sport experts, just to name a few, let me know and I would be happy to put you in touch.

Thanks again to Carrie Hill and Blizzard Internet Marketing for allowing me to be a guest today.

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