Celine

My husband and I are going to Playa del Carmen in early May for a wedding. We'll be staying at the Viva Azteca AI hotel, and wondering where we can find the best deal for flights/hotel. Since we have to stay at this specific hotel (for the wedding), I'm thinking Expedia and Travelocity won't be our best options for deals (we'll check them in case though). <BR><BR>We're in California...please let me know which agencies you recommend and when we should buy our tickets. Thanks

westcoast

You might want to contact the hotel direct so you'll have a point of $ comparison. Then check on air-only as well. If the hotel doesn't normally participate in travel agent &quot;package deals&quot; making the arrangements yourself could end up the best.

susanna

How did I book my trip... For Celine...<BR><BR>I shop around and book my air ticket online. Then I make reservations also over the net at my favorite hotel. That's all there is to it (for me ;-)<BR><BR>Use local transportation upon arrival, bus and taxi.

Celine

Thanks for the info...never thought of contacting the hotel directly, I figured agencies (online,etc.) would have the prices. From what you're both saying, it seems that booking air and hotel separately might be the best choice,I'll look into it.<BR><BR>Thanks...

Amy

Celine:<BR>A few things I've learned for finding the best prices: Don't book too far in advance. Wait until you're about a month away from departure and then start surfing the internet (Expedia/Travelocity/Orbitz etc). If possible, be flexible with your departure dates. Sometimes you can save a few hundred leaving on Friday vs. Saturday for example. <BR>Also, find out which airline is 'hubbed' at the airport you fly out of in Cali. Usually the major airline will have an associated charter company that they use for vacation packages. For example, we live in Ohio and fly out of Detroit Metro Airport which is the hub for Northwest Airlines. NWA runs a package consolidator called Worryfree Vacations that flies their charter aircraft to popular vacation destinations - Las Vegas, Bahamas, Mexico, Florida, etc. I have done a lot of traveling/vacationing in my life and have never found a cheaper way to go. This packager can match and beat a competitors price every time. Find out if your hub airport/airline has one of these tour companies. <BR><BR>Also, of the big booking agents (Expedia/Travelocity/Orbitz) Expedia seems to consistently have the lower prices for packages. Again, be flexible with your dates and don't think about booking until at least March.

Celine

Thanks for your help Amy. Only thing is that we have to stay at a specific hotel and during somewhat specific dates (can't miss the wedding!), so waiting til March seems a bit risky in my opinion. <BR><BR>I'm starting to look now, and will wait a bit longer before booking. I also tried to find out what airlines might have San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose as their hubs, but checked the SF airport website, and didn't find any info. Anyone know?

Karen

I've been using the following company for our trips. No one has been able to beat their prices yet. They also let you get frequent flier miles while Hotwire and Priceline don't. Hope this helps.<BR><BR>http://www.1877femtrip.com/<BR><BR>

B. Forsyth

We spent Christmas 2002 in Mexico with our family and travelled via Alaska Airlines through San Francisco. Alaska Airlines had a lot of flights everyday departing from LA &amp; SF going directly to Puerto Vallarta (our destination). The flights were much cheaper than various other airlines that we tried. I called Alaska directly and was flexible on our departure date and received a cheaper price than their webiste offered. The other big price difference was leaving on a Thursday instead of a Friday or Saturday. Enjoy Mexico and remember you are on Mexican time while in Mexico. (We found the service a little slow but you get used to it after a couple of days).

susanna again

Alaska Air does fly into Cancun now and you could bus or taxi down to Playa.<BR><BR>I think the key (and the point some posters above are missing) is needing to stay at a certain hotel. The trick is to find out *IF* they even go thru any of the discounter, wholesalers, package deals, etc. Do you find them listed as an option on Expedia, Travelocity? I wouldn't wait (personally my nerves couldn't stand it) to the last minute and honestly I've found Alaska prices to be fair and consistent.

Celine

Thanks for the info...I will definitely look into Alaska Airlines. As for the resort, I have had problems finding it on Expedia and other sites, so I will definitely call them to find out what the best way to book my stay at their hotel. I have an agent from Travelocity who's researching which company carries that hotel (she couldn't find it when I called them).

Laurie

I found the very best deal for our trip early Dec. 2002 through USAirwaysvacations.com . This was for hotel only as we used frequent flier miles to fly. The price was better than expedia.com or travelocity.com. Just my experience. Good luck.

debbie

Hi<BR>My sister in law just booked a trip to Club Viva Maya in Playa. She got her best airfare deal on www.expedia.com. Direct flight from LAX to Cancun for $452 per ticket. She booked lodging with World Vacations and got the best room rate. Packages were approx $600 more! Mexico was the only trip that she booked separately with savings. Hawaii and Caribbean were done best with packages.<BR>Worth it to shop around a bit!

eng

I recently booked a hotel in Playa Del Carmen through www.eleisirelink.com and got the best rates. I also got good rates from travelnow.com. Good luck!

eng

sorry...eleisurelink.com

Kay

I use a good travel agent. That way if I have any problem w/my travel plans there is always someone to help. They find the cheapest deals anyway and a alot faster. Don't have time to sit at the computer for hours searching for a way to save fifty bucks...

df

Beware. If you must stay at the Viva Azteca, book all your reservations through a reputable travel agent, and then take contact numbers just in case.<BR>We arrived there last Easter with paperwork showing confirmed reservations, to be told that they had been cancelled. Many other people were given variations of the same story that night. At the hotel we were walked? to, a 20 minute car ride south, we met one guy whose brother got a room, but when he arrived two hours later, his room was gone. And yes, we did met one couple who were suppose to be part of a wedding party. The worst part, is that this hotel feels that they have fulfilled their obligation if they find you any room.<BR>PS They only found us another hotel after I demanded to talk to the manager. I had to wait for him to come up from the Azteca Maya, where they were also overbooked.<BR>Best of luck! The rest of the Riviera, and all of the people, are super!

MFNYC

If you can beleive this, I booked through Costco. They offer 10% discounts to many resorts/cruises/etc. They arranged air, land and transfers. No problems at all.