Deciding where we wanted to go on our big trip this year was easy. Vishnu and I have always talked about visiting Italy together, so that was a no brainer.
Next came deciding if we wanted to book a group tour package or do our own thing. After lots of back and forth, we decided to do our own thing. While there are some fantastic options out there, our friends who have already been told us that Italy is a safe and fairly easy country to navigate. And when you’re with a group, the opportunity to try different restaurants is not always there. This alone was enough to convince me that a group tour was not for us!
Once that decision was made, we started researching all of our options. One of the very first sites I visited was Costco Travel. As I’ve blogged about in the past, my family is obsessed with Costco. I’m pretty sure my parents frequent it a couple times a week. And I’m certain that if we had one closer to us, I’d be doing the same!
Anyway, after thinking through all of the different ways we could book our travel, Vishnu and I had a big decision to make. Do we book everything separately (airfare, hotels, tours, inter-country travel, etc.) or do we use Costco and have them book all of the major stuff for us?
We decided to go with Costco and here’s why…
When we were in the initial stages of planning, Vishnu was busy with work. And seeing that I’ve only been to London (through work), I honestly didn’t feel comfortable or confident enough to take the planning on myself.
While we’re pretty sure booking through Costco was the more expensive option, we’re very happy with our decision (so far!). Instead of spending weeks researching every last detail of our trip, all we had to do was call Costco Travel, tell them what we wanted, and voila…we were all set!
Some additional perks of booking with Costco include free meals, bottles of wine, free breakfast, free Wi-Fi, etc. Of course, this depends on where you go and stay, but it’s a nice touch! And while we’re not concerned about anything major happening during our trip, it’s nice to know that Costco Travel is only a phone call away.
So here’s how the booking process went…
I called the Costco Travel number and was connected to knowledgeable agent. Thank goodness because I had lots of questions! I told her we wanted to deviate from the packages listed on the site, and she assured me we could create our own custom travel package for no additional cost.
She asked for our dates of travel, which countries we wanted to visit, and how long we wanted to stay in each. She was even able to provide some insight based on other customers’ experiences! Based on all of that information, she booked our airport transfers and inter-country travel as well. Once those details were settled, she asked if we wanted to stick with the suggested hotels or pick different ones. This is where Vishnu’s research skills came in to play. He spent some time on the Costco Travel site beforehand and looked at all of the hotel and room options. So when we got on the phone with the agent, we knew exactly where we wanted to stay. Once the agent booked everything for us, we reviewed it a couple of times. She then assured me that all of our tickets/vouchers would be mailed to us 30-45 days before our trip (which they were).
That. Was. It.
I promise Costco did not pay me to write this post! I honestly just love their travel site and find it to be convenient and easy to use, and their agents are wonderful, patient people. Like I said, it probably cost us a tad bit more to go this route, but the amount of stress that was lifted off of our shoulders over the last few months makes it all worth it.
T minus six days and counting! I can’t wait!!!
Have you ever used Costco Travel to book a trip?
If tomorrow you could pack up and travel anywhere in the world, where would you go first?
Have a great vacation in Italy, you will definately love it !!!!
We love Costco as well !!
Thank you! SOOO excited 😉
Thanks for sharing your experience with Costco. My husband and I take one international trip a year, last year we went to Tokyo and Bejing. I have never though of using Costco for my travel plans, but maybe this year we will check it out.
Italy is amazing!! I’m sure you’ll have a great time! Safe travels… 🙂
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We really want to visit Southeast Asia at some point…hopefully next year!
And we are super excited about Italy. I have an unofficial countdown going, which annoys my husband but I can’t help it!
I didn’t even realise that Costco had a travel booking service- it sounds great! My travel list is getting longer by the day but top on it (for now at least) include Maldives, Japan, Australia & South Africa!
Costco is truly a one stop shop! And we definitely want to go to all of those places too. A few of my friends went to the Maldives recently and raved about their experience!
That sounds great! I didn’t even know Costco did travel. I am overwhelmed at the idea of booking our big Europe trip (hopefully next year) so something like that would be great!
The answer to your second question changes almost daily, haha. Right now I’d say… Easter Island. I really want to go there while we’re in South America, but it just doesn’t seem feasible. Yet!
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I was SO overwhelmed! Once we figured out how Costco works, we pretty much tossed out all other ideas and went with that!
And i’m sure you guys have some awesome travel plans lined up. Can’t wait to read about them!
OMGGGG! How funnn!! Six days until Italy?! So So fun!! Italy (Rome and Venice) were legs in our honeymoon a few years back and we had the best time! You are going to love it. And that’s great that you were able to find a great deal with Costco Travel! I considered using them for our trip this May, but with all the different legs and cities, it didn’t make as much sense so we went with a local travel agency in town, which has been great. I can’t wait to read about the trip! How long are yo going? Which cities?? Details, girl! 😉
Haha! We’re going for 12 days and we’re visiting Sorrento, Rome, and Florence. CAN’T WAIT!! I’ll share more after we get back!!
My sister swears by Costco travel! I haven’t used it yet but I will on my next trip. On my trip to Bali and Thailand for my honeymoon, I used Global Basecamp to help organize my itinerary and setup activities during my stay. I loved the service! They recommend the best activities and they setup the whole thing – from pick up to drop off so that you have a relaxed experience. I would also highly recommend this company for hotel recommendations and activities during your travel. For flights, it’s cheaper doing it by yourself or another company. But they’ll have someone to pick you up and drop you off.
I highly recommend you check it out for your next trip! It’s super convenient! And when Vishnu and I finally make our way to SE Asia, you’ll be one of the first people we talk to. 🙂
OMG.. every desi loves Costco, especially the parents! My family is obsessed.
I haven’t used Costco Travel, but my family has and they loved it because they took care of everything… pick up and drop offs. I looked into it, but I felt I could get a better price because I am obsessed with doing research for vacation and how to get around.
It’s a great service though.
Where in Italy? I loved it.
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