CheapTickets.com review

Using CheapTickets.com, you can secure discounted flights, hotels and rental cars.

CheapTickets.com
(Image: © CheapTickets)

Top Ten Reviews Verdict

CheapTickets is a great place to visit for, er, cheap tickets. Use it for holidays, short stays, and even events. The only problem is the hard sell on the results page.

Pros

  • +

    A wide range of options to book

  • +

    Clean and slick website

  • +

    Student discounts

Cons

  • -

    Does give you the hard sell

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While CheapTickets.com hasn't always been a website, it has been helping people book flights, hotels, rental cars and other reservations since 1986. CheapTickets offers good value for flights and hotels, and it provides all of the information you need in an easy-to-use interface. This travel site has a tab dedicated to event tickets, including concerts and plays. CheapTickets offers deep discounts and includes some last-minute deals if you want to book a quick getaway. It's one of the best online travel sites out there.

For flights, you can sort results by price, departure time or shortest flight, a great option, especially for parents with small children. When you book your tickets, you can access a seat map to select your seats for each flight. You can also narrow your search by selecting a preferred airline and price range. We recommend price checking with Orbitz, because you might find a cheaper flight on that site.

The location of your hotel can make a big difference in your vacation experience. This online travel site shows results for hotels based on maps and town sections. If you don't know an exact address, you can select it based on one of these methods.

You can also search for hotels based on points of interest like Six Flags or Disney World. To make sure you're booking the right hotel, you can read user reviews. Full reviews from previous customers give you better insight about the hotel. In addition to customer reviews, CheapTickets hotel searches show when someone last booked the same hotel, which means it's a popular and respected hotel, so you'll likely have a better experience on your trip.

The top travel websites effectively narrow your results to your preferences on the first try. CheapTickets provides the most important options for hotels, flights and other travel bookings in the initial search, so it takes less time to find exactly what you want. Of course, there are ways to refine your initial search results, such as the sliding scale for outbound and inbound flight times. Furthermore, you can also expand flight details if you have layovers or transfers.

CheapTickets

(Image credit: CheapTickets)

CheapTickets provides some extra perks for signing up. When you become a member, you get 20 percent off the price of qualifying hotels when you book a flight. To sweeten the deal, CheapTickets also sends you promo codes and notifications for fare sales, promotions and new site features. These are great if you're a regular traveler or just looking for that perfect opportunity to get away.

Like most online ticket services, CheapTickets doesn't allow refunds on all reservations. But some money back is available. Because CheapTickets is a mediator between you and the airlines, you'll find that some tickets are refundable and others aren't. When you book a ticket, the difference is stated in the Review Fare Rules, Terms and Conditions section of the Traveler's information page.

If you're flying or traveling long distances, especially internationally, we recommend considering travel insurance. CheapTickets offers coverage through Allianz Global Assistance. Coverage may protect you in the event of a medical or dental emergency as well as if your trip is delayed or in the event your baggage is lost or delayed.

If you're renting a car through CheapTickets, you may also want to look into rental car protection. This temporary insurance is effective as soon as you get behind the wheel to the moment you return the car. In the event of an accident or theft, your rental car is covered up to $35,000. You'll also get 24-hour assistance. However, terms and conditions may vary from state to state, so check the fine print for specific details.

To help maintain the best website possible, CheapTickets.com has a site feedback pop-up at the bottom of the home page. From this window, you can add suggestions, problems or praise. Each of these comments comes with a blank text box so you can talk to CheapTickets.com in your own words.

The searchable FAQs section is a great way to get quick answers without waiting on hold for customer service. This section covers a variety of topics like flights, hotels, vacation packages, travel insurance, payment methods and your CheapTickets account. The support system from this travel site is not very active, but the FAQs cover most of the common inquiries.

Should you use CheapTickets.com?

CheapTickets has been both an offline and online travel booking entity for almost 30 years. Their experience is reflected in the impressive amount of booking options and search tools offered on its website. Not only can you book standard flights, hotels, rental cars and cruises, you can secure tickets for the big game or concert whether you're on vacation or staying at home.

Aaron McCarter

Aaron McCarter has written extensively about senior care and mobility for Top Ten Reviews, but he no longer works for the site. He's also a fan of travel, and has dipped his toe into assessing hotel sites too. Aaron holds an MBA from Utah Valley University and currently works as a writer for a Marketing firm in Utah.