Expedia.com announced today that it will not charge booking fees on phone orders (1-800-EXPEDIA) for flight, hotel, rental car or cruise reservations. This is another substantial effort towards driving the cost of travel down for customers.

Expedia is the only online travel agency offering such a deal. Other online travel agencies can charge as much as $25 a ticket to book a flight over the phone. Same is true for several airline carriers. In May, the company got rid of online airfare booking fees and cancel and change fees on hotel and rental car reservations.

Travelers have been clearly responsive to these value propositions. Even with the steady decline in demand for international and domestic travel, some online booking sites are reporting a surge in profits and a more positive outlook for the year ahead. According to Expedia’s third quarter results, online reservations increased 23% in the third quarter, and the company expects to see a steady increase in bookings in 2010. These numbers are better than Wall Street and analyst expectations, and offer a promising outlook for the next season of travel in the United States and abroad.

Analysts report that hotel and airline ticket prices are still dropping steadily, so many travelers are able to take advantage of great deals and enjoy a vacation this season, regardless of the economy.