I generally prefer to use orbitz to shop and then book through the airline, but one time I was on different airlines for different legs of the flight and I could only book through orbitz and I have to say that when the first airline rescheduled my flight, making my connection bad, the orbitz travel agent was very helpful in getting the airlines to rebook us onto an itinerary that worked (when I called the airlines myself neither one took responsibility for fixing the problem).

I know many people sweat by these sites, but I use them only for price benchmarking. I prefer to book directly with the airline. I usually get the lowest rate advertised, and if anything goes wrong, the airline will resolve it. If you book through Expedia, and you flight is late and you miss your connection, the airline is less motivated to accommodate you.

Be careful with Expedia. I know many people who have done just fine with them, but I had a very bad experience where I found a GREAT hotel rate and tried to book. Got an error message, tried again later. Tried again and again. Called. Rate was no longer available, but my debit card had been charged every single time I tried to complete the reservation, to the tune of almost a thousand dollars. Of course they refunded it, but it took a couple of days.

I'm getting ready to make reservations for summer vacation. On Tripadvisor, it appears that I can get a discount by booking through Orbitz or Expedia.
Has anyone done this before and familiar with what the pros and cons are?
Thanks in advance for any feedback.