by Mia Hill

Created on: December 16, 2009   Last Updated: December 19, 2009

There are many travel planning Websites on the Internet. Three of the best of these sites in terms of functionality and reporting the most favorable prices are Kayak.com (Kayak), SideStep.com (SideStep), and Farecast.com (Farecast). These three Websites' search engines traverse hundreds of airline, hotel, car rental, and cruise line Web pages to find the best possible deals for online bargain seekers.

In 2007, Sidestep became a subsidiary of Kayak creating what some observers say is the fifth largest travel search engine and it continues to grow. Kayak's extensive database of airline, hotel, and cruise prices is what makes it one of the leaders in the industry. SideStep has partnered with other travel planning Websites such as Orbits.com, Continental Airlines, JetBlue Airways, American Airlines, Best Western, Hilton Hotels, Hotels.com, Budget Rent A Car, and Avis Rent-A-Car to bring to the customers the best business travel and vacation deals available.

Farecast, as the name implies, forecasts flight airfares based on historical prices and market trends. It uses the marketing strategy of selling insurance policies that protect online purchases against increases in flight prices; travelers can purchase policies for international travel that guarantees the prices for up to six months. These travel policies include prices of flights for more than two hundred markets in cities throughout the United States, Europe, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Canada.

SEARCH FOR FLIGHTS

The functionalities on the homepages of all three Websites are simplistic but efficient, containing only the textboxes needed for users to enter the criteria for flight searches. In addition to the facilities to forecast prices, Farecast also has a feature that allows travelers to access price history. This permits the traveler to make an informed decision as to whether or not the reported airfares are the best deals or if they should wait to see if a more favorable price becomes available. One feature that Kayak and SideStep have on their homepages not found on Farecast is the ability to conduct search routines in several languages, with corresponding currencies for particular country.

Farecast's homepage contains three options for the type of travel required these are “Round Trip,” “One Way” and “Multi-City.” In addition to these three travel choices, Kayak and SideStep have an additional option of “Travel on the Weekend.” The two classes to choose

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