Booking Through Costco Travel May Not Be Worth This Frustrating Disadvantage

On paper, Costco Travel is an ultra-convenient way to book your vacation. You can pool together your rental car, flights, accommodations, and activities all under one booking for a comparably low market price. When you book travel through Costco, you take all of the research and thought out of it and let the prearranged vacation package do the work. While Costco Travel receives bouts of praise online, some people have opened up about one part of the Costco Travel experience that may make you want to just do the work yourself.

One travel advisor on TikTok booked a rental car through Costco Travel. While they reported that the online booking process was simple and they received a good discount on the car, they also noted that they were unable to look at, modify, or cancel the reservation without calling Costco directly. This led to hours on the phone with their issue unresolved and to ultimately deciding to cancel the reservation completely given the inconvenience. While many have reported that using Costco Travel has been seamless for them, others relate that when things go awry, Costco is not the most helpful when it comes to customer support.

Several other Costco members have harped on the wholesaler's impersonal approach to customer service. One traveler reported receiving a "robocall," alerting them that their return flight had been canceled. While the flight cancellation may not have been Costco's fault, they reported struggling on the phone with customer service for hours and eventually having to spend additional money on a new return flight. This experience swayed them not to use Costco Travel in the future so as to avoid any stressful customer service calls.

Some users report similar instances to the Costco Travel snafus when booking through sites like Expedia or Hotels.com, where their hotel booking was not received or a flight was unexpectedly canceled. Because you didn't book directly with the airline or hotel, it becomes more complicated for third-party services to iron out any kinks that may arise. However, while some users share bad customer service stories about Costco Travel, others report receiving plenty of support from the wholesaler. One Reddit commenter said, "I had a car rental experience go sideways once, no fault of Costco, and they fought with Avis on my behalf." Trying to decide if booking through Costco Travel is the right choice might prove difficult based on the mixed reviews. Just know that you may be taking a risk for the affordable price.