Walmart+ Travel Helped Me Plan an Epic Vacation (After Almost Ruining It)

Booking a vacation online sounds easy — but it helps to double check some things.

Specifically, our family trip to Costa Rica hit a snag before it started. For months, my wife had regularly asked whether our passports were up to date. I knew mine was, so I kept saying, “Yeah, sure, definitely," and for some reason she trusted me instead of verifying for herself.

Then, five days before our trip, we realized hers had expired … uh … a couple years ago. (Let’s just say I am not the detail-oriented person in this marriage.) An expedited passport service helped us out just in time, but my better half deserved a fun experience after this last-minute stress avalanche.

So I booked a canopy zipline tour at our destination, hoping she wouldn’t get any ideas about sabotaging my harness. Fortunately, I’m alive to tell the tale — and to guide you through similarly booking an experience with Walmart+ Travel. (Well, not too similarly…)

What Is Walmart+ Travel?

Walmart+ Travel is a one-stop shop for flights, hotels, rental cars, and activities — powered by Expedia, and only available to Walmart+ members.

Why Use Walmart+ Travel for Experiences & Tours

There are countless websites for booking vacations — many of them trustworthy household names, some of them fly-by-night, if you’re lucky. But Walmart+ Travel has one big perk for members: 2% back in Walmart Cash on airfare and 5% back on everything else, including activities at your destination. (That’s on top of any points your card happens to offer.)

You’ll receive the Walmart Cash 30 days after your trip is complete, but it should appear as “Pending" in your account within 48 hours of booking.

How to Book a Tour with Walmart+ Travel

• To book an activity, go to WalmartPlusTravel.com.
• Click on “Things to do" on the right side of the top menu.
• Enter your destination and travel dates. (You can filter the results by factors such as review score, free cancellation, family friendliness, duration, and whether hotel pickup is offered.)
• Picked an activity? Great! scroll down, select the number of adults and/or children, then click “Book."
• Enter some personal info and a payment method on the next page. (Note that the charge will show up on your statement as Expedia, not Walmart.)
• Check off that you’ve read the fine print, and click “Complete Booking."
• You should receive a confirmation email within minutes. The booking will also appear in the Walmart+ Trip Planner, which organizes your vacations and suggests add-ons for each.

Picking Activities Might Take Research

A plus and a minus of the “Things to do" search is that it can return a lot of results, many of them similar-sounding but subtly different. For example, some zipline operators in Costa Rica offered lunch, while others offered something called a “Tarzan swing." (I was more interested in lunch.)

That’s why you’ll want to scan the section “What's included, what's not" for each listing — it will give you the best idea of what to expect and what will cost you extra, from transportation and water to gratuities and (in my case) GoPro-ready helmets:

Each listing also contains prices or price tiers, customer reviews, meeting points, and example photos of professional models who look nearly as good as you will doing this stuff.

Travel Booking Hacks with Walmart+

• The Walmart+ Trip Planner is your personal vacation dashboard. It organizes your bookings, suggests add-ons, and spares you from digging through your inbox while everybody waits in line behind you.
• Book weekday tours for smaller crowds (or even off-season tours, if you feel lucky gambling with the weather).
• Stack Walmart Cash with your travel rewards card for a double dip.
• Use the “free cancellation" filter if your plans are as flexible as a hammock.
• Check reviews for hidden gems — sometimes tours off the beaten path are more fun and intriguing (and less crowded).
• Screenshot your booking confirmation just in case cell service is spotty.

How to Cancel Your Booking

You can cancel your booking in the Trip Planner, often without a penalty if you back out early enough.

Date changes might require contacting the tour operator directly, as I had to do when (on top of neglecting to check my wife’s passport expiration until it was almost too late) I accidentally scheduled the zipline tour for the week after we’d visit Costa Rica. Oops. Did I mention I’m not the detail-oriented one?

We had a blast once we got there. All’s well that ends well, even if I might still be sleeping on the couch.

Sign up for Walmart+ to start booking with Walmart+ Travel.