I booked a flight using Smarter Travel, coming from Skyscanner. I did multiple searches and every time I clicked through, skyscanner would say checking if fare is still available. But when I enter credit card and press "book", the fare suddenly becomes unavailable and $10 more expensive. I booked it anyway since it was still relatively cheap. But when I called about 10 minutes later to cancel, in order to use another credit card, the rep said they had to charge $300 cancellation fee. I said there's always a 24-hour window and I didn't even get a flight confirmation email. She insisted that's the rule and said it's ok that I did not see any warnings or conditions before purchasing the ticket--or indeed, afterwards. I saw on their home page, the first page, a prominent "24-hour no cancellation fee" message. The rep wouldn't even give her name when I asked, until I asked again after she had sent me the cancellation email. These behaviors are those of crooks, not legitimate travel agencies.

ImagineNoHell

New York, NY

Using SmarterTravel.com is a great choice as an add on site. If you are lacking inspiration or want a few ideas, this is a great site. What I love about it is it even has something to offer the well seasoned traveler, which I would certainly claim! Every once in a while I like to go to the site to browse for my next trip. I love the SmarterTravel Pick Of The Day. I always seem to find the very newest and best new products to enhance my next trip or at the very least, simplify it a little more. There are so many great things about this site to explore and build from. You can get some really great tips, browse or discover a new product. The one thing that is lacking is an area to read reviews on properties. If they added that, they would really polish their cornerstone as being one of the best sites for me.

Estella1

null

SmarterTravel.com is a great site to a vast array of articles about traveling. It all kinds of information about what you should do before you travel, such as what to pack, where to travel and ways to get free stuff such as drinks. Where travel deals and savings are concerned, I've found better sites than SmartTravel.com. I think the best feature this site has to offer is its interesting articles about traveling. I have had a few problems with the sites setup as when I've clicked on an article it rerouted me to a blank page. Since it's only happened a few times it's not a big issue however. Ease of Use It's very easy to use, it is set up with different articles on its front-page. The articles are pretty interesting in themselves. It has different categories you can choose from depending on the type of travel deal you want. The front page has categories such as travel deals, trip ideas, today in travel, travel guides and a price comparison. Features As I've stated this site lists its travel deals into different categories. One of the best features is its informative articles about traveling and where to travel. It has hotel deals, airfare deals, vacation packages, travel guides, reviews, and a good price comparison feature. One of the best features is their newsletter, which will give you good money savings offers. I have found better travel deals on other sites, but this is still a great site for deals, and an even better site for information.

jarschnell

USA

This website definitely lives up to it's name. Today in Travel page was fantastic. It offers different articles on all aspects of travel, including a great article I saw today on that Metro in NYC is going to be using phones instead of Metro cards. This site is not just about airplane travel. it's very helpful. Lots of travel ideas and even travel guides. You can compare prices for so many different things, not just flights or hotels. They include vacation packages and cruises. I also used this to search flights. They have a compare section. I was worried for I felt like my computer was going to get a virus, as popups were happening and there were sketchy looking ads. But I found some definite deals. Cheapoair.com had a 25% coupon. It also looked sketchy, made me not want to click on it, but if it's true to what it says, that could save you some money too. Even though it looked sketchy on my computer, there is definitely a convenience to being able to compare different prices for flights without leaving the page. They have little tabs that come up with different websites, like cheapoair, onetravel, priceline, etc. Features Looks a tad sketchy. There are so many ads on the website. I understand the need for that, but it would help attract attention if it was cleaner and not going to make you feel like your computer might get a virus.

AshleyPankow

Undisclosed

Smartertravel.com is focused more on making you a smarter traveler than on finding you the big money-saving deal. Nevertheless, it has links to find deals on hotels and flights. But that really isn't the centerpiece of this website. What's showcased instead is a range of articles - everything from reviews of particular destinations, to guides on how to take certain trips, to top 10 lists on the things to pack, or things to watch out for and so forth. It is, at the end of the day, a catchall site with a little bit of this and a little bit of that, but in the process of trying to be a jack of all trades, it is a master of none. Frankly, if I stumbled upon it while searching for something, I might peruse through it briefly, maybe even skim through a few articles here or there. However, I can't ever see myself actively seeking out this site, or bookmarking it. If you want deals, there are far better sites. If you want travel tips, there are far better sites. If you want reviews on destinations or guides to places, there are far better sites.

newstart11

Boston, MA

SmarterTravel.com offers a fantastic emailed newsletter, in addition to its website, which digests great articles (such as "9 worst airline ripoffs" and "10 free things you can get at hotels") which are essential for -- as advertised -- any smart traveler. They are not so much a travel deal website (although they do offer that service) as a magazine/blog-style source for great news and tips for travel. I generally read through most of their newsletters and check their website on a regular basis for travel trends, tips and news. Ease of Use The website is easy to navigate, and offers regularly updated features. There's also a search option, as well as articles on travel which are very useful. Features I would highly recommend signing up for their email newsletter (I've been getting it for several years now), which offers great ideas and tips for navigating your travel with ease. Customer Service I have never had any trouble with their customer service.

afish

USA

I've subscribed to SmarterTravel's e-mails since 2008, or possibly earlier. Their articles are a wealth of knowledge -- topics ranging from places to visit (obvious) to tips for not getting ripped off when renting a car (less obvious) to the best credit cards for earning airline miles (I would never have thought of this). They've enriched my travel experiences and helped me look for some of the best deals for my dollar. Many of the travel websites I reviewed on Viewpoints (such as Yapta), I learned about from SmarterTravel. There's a reason I never unsubscribe from SmarterTravel when I'm cleaning out my inbox -- I don't want to lose this source of knowledge. Ease of Use The site is easy to navigate, and I like receiving email newsletters where I can just click on articles of interest and be taken to that article immediately. Features I'm a fairly frequent traveler and have still managed to learn from SmarterTravel's articles -- things such as knowing my rights for compensation if a flight has been delayed for over 4 hours, places to sneak a nap during a long layover, and products designed to for traveling (I bought many of my luggage items based on their product reviews). Other articles are better for the casual traveler, such as things you can't carry onto the plane, or must-try street food around the world. Naturally, it's not possible for the writers to cover everything from around the world, but they do a great job of introducing locales and ideas that might not occur to the average traveler. I also enjoy viewing other travelers' photos as I dream about new destinations to visit, as well as participating in their annual photo contest. Customer Service I follow SmarterTravel for the articles and have not used the customer service. However, they allow readers to post comments under each article, which is a good place to get tips from other travelers that may not have been included in the articles.

hell5fury

Sugar Land, TX

**Like to travel spontaneously?**Do I have a site for you!  Smarter TRAVEL (formerly Smarter Living) allows users to register their email address and home airport, for weekly alerts on flight deals from home.   You won't know what destination will be popping up or when, but if you like surprises (giving or receiving), you'll love Smarter TRAVEL. **Deals, Columns, Rate Comparisons, Newsletters**The site may not be the most exciting site you've ever seen, but it's got lots of helpful info, particularly about deals. . . on flights, cruises, whatever.  There are newsletter for Family Travel, Senior Travel, and many others, which you can sign up for, if you wish.   The online Travel Guides are especially nice, with articles, deals, maps and more.   **Deals to Europe**As European flights are often fairly hefty from anywhere but the country's largest cities, the section profiling deals to Europe is a winner. **Even Armchair Travelers Will Be Tempted**You may just think you're more of a fantasy traveler than a reality traveler.  But when you see a low fare to somewhere you really like, or somewhere you've never been, or the perfect romantic destination for that special someone . . . you might surprise yourself, and your partner, too.     The Bottom Line:  ***Libby Likes It.   ***

LibbyMcMillan

Sanibel, FL