Whether it's for a hotel, a cruise, or the fare to get you there, many travel sites offer a best price guarantee, and will refund you the difference to match any lower price you can find.

Some sites like Delta will also throw in a travel voucher for up to $100.

Maureen Verre books vacations online for her family of six and says the price guarantee

offers make her feel confident she's getting the best price.

"I would feel that they're looking out for their customers and trying to give me the best rate," she said.

But Consumer Reports money editor Greg Daugherty says, not so fast.

"For instance, to collect on the price guarantee with Expedia, you have to file your claim within 24 hours of booking. With American, it's midnight the same day! So even if the price drops a couple of days later, you're out of luck," he said.

Orbitz gives you more time but will refund money only if another customer subsequently books the same flight or hotel on Orbitz at a lower price.

The travel experts we spoke to told us that because of all the restrictions, relatively few people ever collect a refund. But don't be discouraged. There are ways to save on travel.

Check out sites like airfarewatchdog.com and Kayak for the best prices. Hotwire and Yapta track prices, and alert you if the hotel or fare you want goes down.

Other sites worth a look include travel zoo.ca. Perfect for last-minute trips, travel-zoo digs up discount prices for airfare, cruises, and vacation packages --then posts a weekly top 20 lists of the hottest deals. Trip advisor can tell you which hotels travelers like you like best with it's extensive reviews.

Another useful website for those booking flights on line is Seatguru.com. It lists most of the world's major airlines including Air Canada, and Westjet. You click on a type of plane and it tells you which seats recline farther, have more legroom, and which to avoid, they are the red ones.

Finally, don't assume a package deal is always a deal. Sometimes it's cheaper to book flights, hotels, and ground transportation separately.

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Chris Olsen.