Last time I went to Hawaii, I used AAA to arrange everything. The reasons were two-fold: It was a lot of money to spend without some human help, and the trust level with online sites wasn't quite there yet.
I went back to them today to talk about the honeymoon, returning after another visit in October. On that trip, it was still too far out and there was solid speculation that prices would come down. The woman I talked to has since left. I get there today, and the "manager" is blowing people off because she says she's sick, and the woman who looked stuff up for me is stuck with some cats who don't know anything about Disney World.
After 20 minutes the manager comes back out and gives me some stuff printed out, which adds zero value to this trip. I can look this shit up too... I'm looking for advice on the best flight plans and how to get the best hotel rates.
So I'm thinking I want to wing it. Hopefully we can use our Marriott connection for room discounts. Flight deals are hot, as low as $500 round-trip from Ft. Myers, but only about two and a half months out. I feel like I should risk it and hold off booking just two or three more weeks.
My niece is interning at Disney resorts right now. She's got one full term left at Grand Valley for her Hotel management degree and is hoping to get a spot at DW for another internship, if not a real job in Orlando.
I, too, am hoping for a connection for discounts sometime in the future.