25 Aug 2009 at 08:04  by: beachbumjess98
I just booked a couple of flights on Travelzen.com. Has anyone used this website, and is it reliable?

25 Aug 2009 at 11:24  by: drumbrake
I've been using it for around a year now and no problems at all. The main advantage is that there is 'real' online booking, no faxing of creditcards, and there is no 'international' creditcard surcharge. Usually their prices are the same as elong and ctrip, but best to double check as well.

25 Aug 2009 at 18:15  by: audjie504
I've used it many times... no problems ever. To comment on #1, they once DID call me and ask for me to fax my credit card info. I asked if there was another way because I did not have access to a fax machine and they (for some reason) called back and said that it was not necessary. So anyway, they MIGHT ask for CC fax but you can probably appeal it.

26 Aug 2009 at 00:38  by: Sarah55
I used them for three flights in the last few months. They were excellent. Any emailed queries were answered very promptly, helpfully and pleasantly. They'll be my first choice in the future. And I didn't have to fax anything.

18 Sep 2009 at 21:34  by: 111op
Ok, it's my personal experience, but I just booked using Travelzen.

I booked China Eastern and the flight is 520 CNY + 50 CNY in taxes. The China Eastern website offers a 30 CNY discount, but since I can't use it I didn't bother.

As mentioned, Travelzen accepted my foreign cc. However I didn't get a confirmation right away, so I called them. On their webpage I found I could Skype them directly, and I did. The customer service is supposed to be 24 hours.

They said the booking has gone through and they will email me the details. Actually it turns out the receipt did come in while I was on the phone with them, but I need a second email with the itinerary and details.

I'm cautiously optimistic about Travelzen. I didn't want to run the risk of a long confirmation with ctrip because I don't have the time for it.

Thanks again!

18 Sep 2009 at 21:36  by: 111op
By the way, they asked how I heard of them. I mentioned a travel website, didn't say Fodor's. :) But I said that someone had suggested they were easier to use than ctrip.

18 Sep 2009 at 21:45  by: 111op
P.S. Itinerary came in about 12 minutes later with E-ticket numbers. I suppose if I'm truly obsessive I could call China Eastern to make sure that they can see my reservations.

I think calling this "instant confirmation" is probably a little bit of a misnomer. But if I recall, Expedia takes a short while to generate an E-ticket too (but maybe not as long as 12 minutes?). I can't remember.

19 Sep 2009 at 01:56  by: 111op
Ok, just to be safe, I called China Eastern in the US and they are able to retrieve the reservations via the E-ticket numbers given by travelzen.

So count me as a satisfied customer. Thanks again for recommending the website.

19 Sep 2009 at 03:12  by: ekscrunchy
Thanks for posting this! Glad it worked out.

29 Sep 2009 at 17:14  by: media8
Hi folks,

I’ll wade in here with some clarification, but before I do, I’d better disclose. I currently work for Travelzen, and have in the past written for Fodors (Mostly restos and hotels in China), so I may be tainted with bias from both sides…. But please bear with me, I do understand the difference between the two sites, and what is meant by ‘instant confirmation’.

The big difference between Ctrip and Travelzen is that Ctrip uses manual booking- you book online, but the actual purchase of the ticket is handled by a Customer Service Rep. Travelzen is fully web enabled- directly interfaced with the international and domestic ticketing engines, which is why your purchase is ‘instant’. The processing is locked and underway once you hit the purchase button, with prices guaranteed. The actual mechanics of generating your itinerary, confirmation number etc. can take a few minutes depending on the airline.

This is why Ctrip doesn’t process orders after 10pm (they are processed the next day) and why they disclaim the possibility for price changes when you buy. This is also why very often the prices they list are not available when you book, because the listing is not updated real time.

That is the fundamental difference between the two engines. There are other differences, of course- Ctrip has packages available and you can pay in cash being two big ones- but technologically that’s it.

Word of warning about using a false phone number. Travelzen does call back to confirm that the order is real- if you don’t have a contact number, make a note to that effect in the remarks section of the purchase page. Customer service will work around it for you.

Speaking as a travel writer and long term resident of China, my best advice is to do your research, read the FAQs and T&Cs, then choose what suits you. It’s an amazing country, explore it however you can.

Happy traveling,

Dave

30 Sep 2009 at 06:37  by: Fabio
monica

I used ctrip for our domestic flight reservation and ticket purchase. It was really very complicated and frustrating. If I went back I would book and purchase with travelzen as HappyMom32 and others have suggested.

Do not be too much concerned for that number 9. It does not mean that there are only 9 seats left available but shows that for each different available economy class at least 9 seats can be sold. Number 9 is the widest possible availability and shows that the flight is stll selling quite a good number of seats. Lower numbers as 7 or 4 or 1 mean lower availability of seats.