How do you plan your holiday?

Vacation planning and booking entails different methods and means. The easiest way is to get a vacation package from a travel agent that already includes air fare, hotel, car rental, tour guide, trip itinerary and other travel activities. Thus, everything about your holiday is already prepared.

While there are vacation packages that can be customized, some travelers would still prefer to plan their trip on their own. This option is a bit adventurous and takes more time, but usually searching for the best travel deals online can help with your travel budget.

Online travel booking

The convenience of online booking is mostly due to the availability of various travel tools that automate the search. For instance, one can easily get the best deals with a hotel search tool that searches more than 30+ top travels sites like Agoda, Expedia, Priceline and Travelocity to come up with one simple result. For the best airfare deals, one needs to plan ahead and decide on the travel period at least three months before the departure as most airlines offer the best prices when you book in advance.

At the Château Ctenice park, Vinor, Prague – photo by rainydazeee.com

Some travel enthusiasts find air ticket promos for their favorite destinations and then look for the best-priced hotels within the area that offer their preferred facilities. It could also be that one discovers an irresistible hotel deal and proceeds to look for the best airline ticket to match. The best set-up is getting both promo deals for air fare and hotel at the scheduled travel period.

When it comes to car rental, tour guides, airport lounges and other services, these can also be searched online and it’s also a smart move to book them ahead to get the best deals. Some travel websites incorporate a booking tool for most travel requirements such as airfare, accommodation and car rental. With a DIY online booking, one is given more chances of saving money and there is added flexibility with customizing the trip.

Travel insurance

For international vacations particularly to exotic and tropical destinations such as Dominican Republic all inclusive resorts, travel insurance is a very important trip essential that one needs to research sensibly. Comparing budget travel insurance policies doesn’t mean that the lowest cost offers the best deal. One needs to read thoroughly the general provisions and special conditions, limitations, exclusions, etc. included in the travel insurance policy.

Mambukal Mountain Resort boating lagoon, Negros Occidental, Philippines

Holiday package online comparison

One needs to be aware when it comes to holiday planning and compare different airfare plus hotel combinations and other travel promos to come up with an option that actually offers more savings and the best discounts overall. You might be enticed with a discounted Finland round trip tickets but can’t find hotels that you can fit within your budget. Or you find a cheap 3D/2N stay at a Bangkok resort but no airline promos within that discounted travel period.

Also, when it comes to online booking, only access websites that provide secure transactions and are recommended by your friends and used by most travelers. Make sure that you are aware of all the additional booking charges that come up with your air tickets, hotel packages and other online travel purchases so you won’t be surprised for separate charges in your credit card bill.