More Like Dial With Caution (dial-a-flight.com)

Member Name: jo1l

Product:	dial-a-flight.com
Date:	24/09/06 (3567 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap flights

Disadvantages: Operators trying to sell you so called bargains, over priced accomodation

When it comes to booking a flight I tend to be one of those people who’ll hunt for days or even weeks till I finally prove to myself I’m not going to get it any cheaper. I’ll go through site after site inputting all the boring information, changing the days if I can be flexible and then finally booking a ticket. Last October on a whim I decided to make a certain person aged then eight dreams come true and take her to Florida. A shoe string budget was set, after searching sites like Expedia, Opodo, Lastminute.com, Ebookers and probably a hundred or so more I stumbled across Dial A Flight.


Dial A Flights web site is basic to say the least, but then again if it comes up with the goods does it matter? It’s easy to navigate around the site finding the information you want and their all important telephone number is literally on every page as well as the ABTA symbol. The phone lines are open from 8am -11pm and answered quickly! Dial A Flight do not just sell flights, they also sell packaged holidays plus accommodation. In order to book you do need to give them a call.


After inputting my desired flight dates it came up with a flight that was £30 cheaper then I’d seen it on other sites. One thing I did find off putting with Dial A Flight was the fact it only showed me the best fare available, sometimes the cheapest option is not the best when it comes to say having to change planes several times therefore I like to see a list of my options, also it’s handy to be able to search by a particular airline etc - all of this you can not do online with Dial A Flight. With some doubts I rang them. The phone was answered extremely quickly, the operator took all my details and came back with the reply the flight I wanted had sold out. I must admit then I felt just perhaps the “Best Fare” was a cherry to entice you to ring. The operator did ask if I’d be willing to fly into Stanford airport on a charter flight but given the fact I’d decided not to hire a car this was not an option due to the distance. Just as I was about to terminate the call feeling slightly deflated the operator did say it’s a shame you couldn’t flight out the next day, at this point my hopes of a cheap flight were risen again and he gave me the details. 10 minutes later -after a computer glitch on their part my tickets to Orlando were booked. Dial A Flight do like most travel agents charge you a 2% surcharge for using a credit card as a method of payment. The operator gave me his direct number and I was dancing around the room as we were finally going to go to Florida!


Following my booking of the tickets, I received an email detailing my iternary and an invoice. My actual plane tickets arrived 4 days later, even though I was not flying out for another seven months. Having once booked a flight throw Opodo where major changes to my travel were made and I only found out due to my travelling companion, who had booked separately being told about the changes I felt reassured when Dial a Flight not only emailed me but wrote to me to inform me of changes on two occasions - my arrival time in Orlando and departure from Orlando times were changed by about an hour. My holiday proceeded without a hic up and I went on to recommend that friends and work colleagues booked with Dial A flight.


At the beginning of this month, I had this great urge to go back to Florida, after spending several evenings researching flights I decided it was time to give Dial A Flight another call. This time around I really wanted to flight direct to Orlando and not via another airport. I was however willing to go on a BA flight from Manchester -Gatwick - Orlando, if the price was right. I rang Dial A Flight giving dates at the weekend asking for either BA or Virgin. After a disappointing call - I’d have paid for one ticket what I’d paid the year before for both of us to go I went back on a hunt for that cheap ticket. I thought I’d found it using a site I’d not heard of before but it was coming up with a Virgin flight from Manchester flying mid week at £767 for one adult and one child. Given that I’d never heard of this site I was slightly reluctant to part company with that amount of money - I didn’t want to turn up at the airport with an excited 9 year old and be told you don’t have a booking with us. I decided to give Dial A Flight a ring to see if they could match the price or give it me a bit cheaper. After giving my dates I asked the operator to search only for Virgin flights I also mentioned I’d found the flights on another site and could they beat the price. After 5 minutes or so the operator came back and told me that the return date was unavailable and no seats were left, I pointed out I was about to book that flight with another company, to which I was informed you will not get that day as there are no flights available. I was then offered flights at £850 for different days - these were mid week days. I declined. 24 hours later I booked the exact same flights, I’d wanted to book with Dial A Flight on Ebookers for £741. So much for there being no seats left.


Last year if anyone had asked me to recommend a cheap, reliable site then I’d not have hesitated in saying give Dial A Flight a call. But after this last time I’d be reluctant to do so. Their available accommodation is hardly a bargain either the hotel I have booked for £383 for 13 nights is marked up at £537 What I would say to anyone wanting to book cheap flights is do your homework know roughly what flights are going for and then give Dial A Flight a call at least then you’ll know your “bargain” flight really is a bargain!

Summary: use this site ater you've done your home work to ensure your bargain is a bargain!