While you can find the odd travel agent today, the reality is that nothing quite compares to online flight booking tools and flight search engines when it comes to travel. In today’s digital era, it’s all about a few clicks of the mouse and a few taps on the keyboard from the comfort of your couch. What’s more, competition is high, with the industry featuring many leading flights search engines, of which two that stand out are Trip.com and Skyscanner. Despite the latter being a subsidiary of the former, the Trip.com vs Skyscanner battle rages on, with both online travel portals being equally popular.
However, what’s interesting is that they differ in their core competencies. While Skyscanner is majorly a flight, hotel, and car hire aggregator redirecting travelers to book with the original providers, Trip.com is a direct booking site that offers its own end-to-end services. So, which one fares better in today’s online travel portal war? Here’s a detailed guide to the same.
Also read: Why Trip.com Is Perfect For Last-Minute Bookings.
Primary Competency
Trip.com and Skyscanner differ in their basic offerings and primary competencies. While Skyscanner is a metasearch engine that mainly finds and compares travel deals from multiple airlines and travel vendors, Trip.com is a direct vendor and booking platform with its own inventory and customer service.
Trip.com allows travelers to complete end-to-end bookings on their website, whether it’s flight, hotels and homes, transportation, or even activities, tours, and things to do. It doesn’t direct them to a different website to complete their bookings, which is exactly what Skyscanner does. Since it doesn’t handle bookings itself, it directs travelers to a third-party website to complete their booking. So, while Skyscanner is great and even praised for its price comparison and comprehensive search tools, it’s Trip.com that is a one-stop shop for booking any travel-based service end-to-end.
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Customer Service
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Customer service is the backbone of any excellent service offering, and online travel agencies and platforms can be made or broken on the basis of this. There are many ways to get in touch with them, especially since their phone number is clearly displayed on their website. Moreover, Trip.com has an entire support page dedicated to customer service. It not only offers help online, but also allows reaching them easily via online chat. The best bit? All options are displayed together on the support page, which also has a whole comprehensive list of FAQs for travelers who have any questions.
Skyscanner works a bit differently, though. If travelers have any issues with a flight, accommodation, or transportation booked via Skyscanner, then they need to contact the online travel agency directly. If anyone has any issues with respect to booking, they’re handled by the specific airline, hotel, or travel agent that travelers were redirected to when they were booking with Skyscanner. In fact, Skyscanner’s help center not only offers limited assistance but also cannot resolve any booking problems directly.
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Search and Booking Capabilities
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Trip.com and Skyscanner differ vastly in their search and booking capabilities as well. Perhaps Skyscanner’s most well-known feature is its innovative “everywhere search” option. It allows travelers to enter their departure points and be bombarded with unlimited low-cost flight options to locations throughout the globe. Do you have a travel bug or can’t decide where you want to go for vacation next? Then Skyscanner is your best friend, and this function is especially appealing.
However, it doesn’t take away the fact that this innovative feature is actually just a decision making tool to a destination, and nothing else. Since Skyscanner can’t make end-to-end bookings, travelers will have to be directed to other websites for the same, even if they find kickass deals on Skyscanner. Unlike that, Trip.com presents its users with a host of one-stop-shop travel booking options, catering to every aspect of their travel needs. Whether it is flights, stays, transportation, attractions, tours, or more, if you can book it, Trip.com is your best friend. So, it’s easier to use Trip.com, since it also has a separate “Travel Inspiration” section, with further tabs for “Top Picks” and “Destinations.”
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Price Comparison and Deals
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Skyscanner’s price comparison is excellent, especially since it also features something called “flexible date search.” In this process, you simply need to enter your origin and destination cities, select “flexible dates,” and choose a preferred month or the “cheapest month,” and you’ll get a whole month of results. So, if your dates are flexible, you could end up flying and booking for a lot less! Additionally, Skyscanner also has a price alerts feature, which helps travelers compare options by spotting price drops and booking at the perfect moment.
However, Trip.com excels with its price match guarantee as well. This feature allows travelers to shop around, with Trip.com then matching any prices if they are beaten. So, this is a blessing for budget-conscious travelers. Not just that, but Trip.com also has a fantastic Price Alert” feature on both the website and the app. However, where Trip.com takes the cake — baker and bakery — is its package deal offerings that combine both flights and hotel accommodations. In fact, there might be times, during both peak and off-peak seasons, that this package deal might end up saving you a whole lot more had you booked flights and hotels separately. The best bit, though, is that since Trip.com offers an end-to-end booking process, both your flights and hotels are confirmed immediately in a single booking, while also saving you money!
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Additional Perks
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This is an arena where Trip.com beats Skyscanner hands down. There’s no doubt that Skyscanner provides comprehensive flight information along with checking prices, elevates the level of travel preparation.
However, Trip.com is a one-stop-shop solution for everyone’s travel booking needs. What’s more, it offers a plethora of deals, discounts, and offers. And when it means deals, it really does mean amazing deals. Not only do they offer the hot deals on stays, flights, and transportation options, but they also offer deals and discounts on tours, sights, attractions, and even tickets. Furthermore, they even have promo codes for portable Wi-Fi, SIM, and eSIMs. So, whatever it is that you possibly need from a trip, Trip.com will place everything in one place, as opposed to you having to scramble through different websites. Read more on the deals page.
Last but not the least, Trip.com also runs an excellent rewards program. For those who sign up to be members, they not only enjoy exclusive perks and priority services but also many member-only deals. Additionally, members can even purchase gift vouchers and gift cards for friends and family members who love to travel!
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Is Trip.com Legit?
Yes, absolutely. It’s part of the Trip.com Group, which also owns Skyscanner and Ctrip, and is reliable and famed for offering competitive prices on stays, flights, and more.
Can I get another confirmation email?
Yes. Log in to the Trip.com website or app and select the booking for which you want another confirmation e-mail. Next, select the “Resend Confirmation Email” under “Options.”
Can Trip.com book multi-city flights with different airlines for each leg?
Yes! Read more about using Trip.com to plan your multi-city vacation.
Some images on this article are copyrighted by Trip.com.
