Travel agent villa AOA and ABTA cover or DIY?

[Guest]

Hi all. I'm looking for a bit of advice for my 2nd trip to Florida in August 2014.

We are trying to decide whether to go for a nice villa and book separate flights, which would leave us vulnerable to villa owner going bankrupt etc or book with a travel agent and get the villa allocated on arrival. It would work out about £500 cheaper to go DIY for a 2 week holiday. The price of flights is pretty crippling though, as we will be a party of 5.

We like the look of Windsor Hills (stayed there last year in a 6 bed villa that's already booked this year) or Emerald Island and ideally want a 4 bed villa. We intend to skip Disney as we did it to death last year and do Universal, IOA, Busch, Seaworld and Aquatica.

Does anyone have any advice on how to ensure I don't get ripped off on the villa? The websites I have looked at seem a bit lacking on villa reviews and some don't even display their pricing.

Also, has anyone ever done a layover in Philly? Flights quite a bit cheaper if you do this. We are thinking of saving on the flights to get a nicer villa.

[steve@mac155.f]

If doing DIY look for travel insurance that provides end supplier failure cover or independent traveller cover this will cover all your diy elements.

Why not look right here on the Dibb for a villa, you can see what is available by looking at the villa rentals section on the dibb menu.

So owners like myself use booking sites that also offer a 100% money back guarantee if for any reason the villa is unavailable when you arrive or is not as described in the villa advert.

Also have a look at the sticky at the top of this section to find out what checks you can do on villas before you rent.

http://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=311273

Happy hunting

Steve

[Guest]

Just to add to what Steve has said, many DIBB villas have reviews from past DIBBER guests. Click the top right hand corner of the advert on the word review to reveal them and some of us also have links to our reviews in our signatures. August is a busy month with a lot of us already booked a villa request will get you replies from owners who still have your dates. TBH the vast majority of direct from owners villa rentals are go without a hitch.

Alison

[arkv1lla]

If you book direct with the owner you can ask as much as you like and no one knows the villa better than them.

there are lots of lovely dibb villas so maybe put a request in there, other Dibbers may have left reviews. We have repeat Dibbers in at the moment, you can't get a better review than people going back to your home.

Enjoy choosing

Sandra

[PerksP]

It sounds as though the villa is a really important part of your holiday. Booking direct with an owner gives you the chance to choose one that exactly matches your requirements. Speaking directly to the owner will give you a good feel about the amount of time and investment they put into their second home. An owner who spends time there themselves will be likely to keep it in good condition as they want to enjoy it themselves. They will be happy to answer any questions that you may have.

If you choose to book through a Tour operator you will not know exactly what you will get, or where you will be. Most AoAs are fine but problems do sometimes arise during peak season when demand is high. Even if you do choose a villa in a specific resort you may find that you are offered a different villa after booking as the first one "becomes unavailable".

It really boils down to how much the saving is worth to you and whether you would mind if you were further away from the parks than you had anticipated. The two resorts you have mentioned have easy access to the I-4 which is important for the parks you want to visit.

I have never flown via Philly but have no problem flying indirect if it saves us a fair amount of money - it all goes towards doing the fun things!

[Susan Coleman]

I would strongly suggest booking DIY and here on the Dibb is the best place
that way you really know what you are getting and can ask any questions ...and get answers with a personal service
As said you can cover an end of supply failure with an insurance ...or like Steve and I if you have a booking co who will guarantee for you if you pay by cc that can be a good way to book

[BnDamo]

Its no riskier booking diy your flights ,car or villa than using TOs.Just get insured as advised and get good communication with your Owner.
Guardian headline from 2011
Travel companies going bust in 2011 affected the travel plans of 74,000 UK travellers
Over the past 12 months, 24 holiday companies collapsed with the biggest casualties in the peak travel season in the summer.

There are no guarantees so insure yourself.

[Luke Jaywalker]

I booked my holiday DIY and preferred it to using a tour operator as I know exactly where I am staying and saved money by cutting out the middleman. I found my accommodation on homeandaway.co.uk .Also like other posters have said you can check that the person you are renting from actually owns the property and has paid all their taxes. I used top dog for my holiday insurance for 5 of us and paid £82 for premium cover which included two medical conditions. I don't know if it includes end supplier failure but I am not too bothered (if you pay for everything using your credit card any purchases over £100 are covered by section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974) as I am more concerned that I have adequate medical cover.

[Guest]

Definitely I would DIY, as then you will know your exact villa.

Sandy

[Guest]

Thanks for all you replies. Think I've been convinced to go DIY, now just need to decide between Emerald Island or Indian Ridge. That and sort some travel insurance!