O62

Hi Delta folks.

I always book tickets with the airline directly but I came across a DL itinerary on google flights that can only be booked with a travel agent. Orbitz is the only OTA that shows this itinerary as bookable. It is DL 1647 (SJC-ATL) with an overnight connection to DL 4651 (ATL-ELH) in June. I was able to buy a similar itinerary directly via delta.com except the outbound leg is DL 760. I'm looking at F class (I think it's actually Z fare, discounted first). The earlier flight (DL 1647) is better for our young ones and also gives us some extra time in ATL to repack our cooler for the Bahamas, but we can live with the afternoon flight.

Is there any significant risk in booking via Orbitz in this case? My concerns would be it is an international itinerary with a lap infant during uncertain travel times and that would cause issues if schedules change. I'd obviously much rather deal with DL customer service than Ortbiz if things get moved around.

zymm

There is some sort of weird IT event affecting the booking systems of most of the major airlines right now. I would wait and try it tomorrow if you want to book direct.

O62

I did see that, but it was last night when I was able to book the alternate itinerary on delta.com but not the early morning one I saw on Orbitz.

MSPeconomist

I'd call DL with specific flight numbers, etc. and ask the phone agent to book what you want. Often itineraries with overnight connections (24 hours for international) can't be booked online but are valid using through fares.

ty97

I've heard horror stories (anecdotally but repeatedly) about dealing with customer service via the OTA including long wait times and additional change fees from the OTA.

Not that Delta hold times aren't a horror story right now though.

paperwastage

you tried using matrix ita + powertools script?
ITA-Matrix-PowerTools - Userscript for Orbitz/DL/UA/AA/BA/CZ/IB/LA/LH/LX/TK

able to generate DL link and get this (seems to be the cheapest price for F, $513?)

think it's taxes, the cheapest Delta F itinerary for same route/dates is $491 with a more optimal layover (same $457 base fare)

exwannabe

In my experience with OTAs they have always provided the correct result at the end of the story. But a couple times needed several calls and long wait times. And by "long" I do not mean 30 minutes, I mean hours.

But these were with Chinese airlines that Expedia/Orbitz had to "long book". I.E., they had to actually call the airline to make the change.

With DL (and I assume most) they can handle this via their own IT. So I would not expect a huge issue. But if the online request fails, expect more of a wait than you would with DL.

I think there is no risk other than annoyance.

I also think DL will likely be able to book it if you call. That would be my choice.

O62

And this is what makes Flyertalk great! This worked perfectly and I had no idea this tool existed at all. I got it for $547 which I'm pretty happy with given the cost to get to ELH just in economy (plus bag fees). I imagine it might have been the $512 rate had I canceled my previous reservation first but I'm not going to split hairs over $100.

paperwastage

There's also bookwithmatrix.com

Yeah, matrix is wonderful if you want something weird or particular (specific flights or minconnect 8:00 to explore a gateway layover city before intl flight)

xliioper

Beware of using multi-city search with Matrix as it doesn't correctly check married segment inventory when attempting to combine segments on a single fare (if the connection is an allowed routing for a fare and connection time is below layover maximum for the fare). Basically, it quotes fares based on individual bucket inventory, which may or may not match the married segment inventory. Married segment inventory needs to be used when combining segments on one fare. You won't know if it quoted a valid fare until you get to the final checkout payment on delta.com as it only does a check on married segment inventory at that point. One-way and roundtrip searches are fine and you can generally get these to give you the itin you want by playing with preferred times and such.

O62

I did call but the FlyerTalk response time was infinitely faster! DL quoted me a 2-hour callback but instead it was closer to 4pm.

Oh wow...you have me hooked on this thing. Just found a return ELH-ATL-JFK-SEA for $600 with the JFK-SEA leg in Delta One. Now I just need to convince the family that the extra leg in JFK is worth it for the lie-flat transcon...

Ryno1234

do you still get full miles and medallion benefits when using an Orbitz or third party like that?

Duke787

Yes you get full benefits on airlines when using an OTA (unlike the hotel chains where you do not receive your benefits when booking via a third party).

The big issue with OTAs is that they control the ticket until T-24 (when DL takes it over). That means if anything happens to the ticket before T-24 (schedule change, flight cancellation, etc.) you have to deal with the OTA instead of Delta which can be a huge PITA (and where most of the horror stories come from). That said using an OTA is perfectly fine and not a big deal if everything goes according to plan but you should still always book directly with the airline to streamline things if they go wrong unless the OTA has some complex itinerary that the airline can't or won't price.

paperwastage

there's also a minute possibility of getting a BULK fare that may change MQM calculation
(note that most BULK fares aren't sold standalone as a flight by the travel agency, usually sold via a bundle, eg with a cruise/hotel)

Bulk Fares & Perks (or lack thereof...)

note to mention the mess of getting a refund from OTA (see last year, OTAs can leverage additional fees / timelines before giving you the money back)
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/32442696-post287.html

gitismatty

this happens more with the 'questionable' OTAs you'll find. If you go to any of the major ones (Expedia, Priceline, etc) they will be sourcing rates directly from the airline. If you find some amazing, too-good-to-be-true price on Kayak from an OTA you've never heard of, they are probably scraping package/bulk fares and adding a slight markup so they still appear cheaper in kayak results