Kayak.com

No, this isn't about kayaking the sport (though I'm sure that the site gets a lot of false hits from individuals looking for information on the sport). Kayak.com, one of the finalists for the Web 2.0 awards, is a travel site.

With family on the East Coast, we fly cross-country once every year or so. Having had a bad experience with Expedia, we usually go directly to the airline's website to purchase tickets. Now we use Kayak.com.

Kayak.com is a travel information clearinghouse, not a ticket seller. You use the site to research what travel options are available for the trip you want to take, and then the site refers you to either the carrier's website or to Orbitz, Travelocity, Priceline, etc., to purchase tickets. A few months ago, I used Kayak.com to research flight information for a round trip from Sacramento to Philadelphia. I entered the dates for travel, preferred departure times, number of travelers, and so on, and Kayak.com did the rest. I was offered an extensive list of itineraries on 6 or 7 different airlines that fly from here to Philly, sorted by price. In 2008 our family flew American Airlines from Sacramento to Philadelphia, and then returned to Sacramento from Norfolk, VA, connecting both ways through Dallas. I had thought to take the same flight on American to Philly and back, but Kayak.com showed a redeye flight from Sacramento to Philadelphia via Houston on Continental for a significantly lower price (the other choice was an early morning flight on Delta, via Atlanta). Based on price and arrival time, Continental was the best choice, and Kayak.com provided a link directly to the airline to buy tickets directly from the carrier.

Kayak.com is a winner! Check it out when you're planning your next trip.