There’s a lot to think about when planning a holiday. But whether you have enough money to visit the places you’d most like to see has to be one of the prime factors. Once you’ve made your choice, you just have to work out how to get the most for your money. Today most holidaymakers start their search online. The Web certainly gives you the ability to shop without leaving your house. The downside is the amazing number of special offers out there at any one time for pretty well every location in the world. In this article you will discover how to filter the range of options by finding the sort of travel deal that’s right for you.
Air fare deals
A lot of first-time international holidaymakers assume their air fare will be the most costly component of the holiday. This isn’t always the situation.
Fierce competition on air routes to Europe, for example, has seen prices fall to the situation where return travel, including taxes, can cost a lot less than a week’s accommodation in a 2-star hotel.
If you’re part of a particular frequent flyer scheme then there really isn’t an choice. If that isn’t the situation, the world is your oyster. Strong competition is seeing fares fall to extraordinarily low levels, and there are a heap of Internet travel agents pushing special air travel deals worldwide almost daily.
The time of year you wish to fly will also have a large impact on the fee. Keep away from peak-season times and you stand to save hundreds of dollars.
If you look around, you may find that buying your air fare with other parts of your vacation is beneficial. Tour firms, like European coach operators, negotiate considerable volume-buying discounts with airlines and can offer incredible fare levels in conjunction with their tours.
Car rental deals
Leasing a car for holiday travel at first glance seems like an uncomplicated deal. Self-driving vacations provide you with the greatest independence and allow you to make changes to your schedule.
Holidaying by rail or plane is often more costly than driving. Four people sharing a car (or campervan) will usually pay less for a trip than if they travelled the same distance by air, rail or on a bus.
Car hire deals available in many countries can also reduce costs. France is an excellent example. Carmakers Renault, Citroen and Peugeot operate a tax-free rental system which allows visitors to drive brand-new vehicles throughout much of Europe for as little as $30 to $40 a day, with the daily rate falling the longer you keep the vehicle. You can also get some complimentary driving time and cheap pick-up/drop-off fees.
Car hire firms sometimes need to move a large number of vehicles from one end of the country to the other, especially after a period of heavy use so look out for bargains. Seasonal movements in the US between Florida and the populous northeast states is a good example.
But first-time renters need to be aware of a number of things. If you have a lot of luggage or if you are large, you need a large car. There’s nothing worse than feeling cramped-up in a car when you’re driving for hours at a time just to save a few bucks.
If you are travelling in a country that drives on the other side of the road to your own country, this can be stressful. Another difficulty is road signs in foreign languages.
Further, though cars can be hired in most countries, not all countries offer a level of security which makes it safe for Westerners, in particular, to venture into rural areas.
Cruise specials
The only true all-inclusive style of vacation is cruising as it includes transport, lodgings, entertainment and food.
That’s not strictly true as tipping is often mandatory and not always included in the fare.
Apart from the extraordinary range of special deals being offered all the time, cruising has at least one other thing going for it. Baggage only has to be packed and unpacked once. And during the cruise, someone else makes their bed and services the room every day.
Cruises are seen as a good deal also because of last-minute offers. Suppliers would rather lose on the accommodation knowing that there is still profit to be made on drinks, gifts and the casino.
If you cruise during off-peak times, the price can be as little as $100 a day, especially throughout the Caribbean and the Mediterranean.
Hotel and resort deals
Hotels come in two flavors. The first type is just used for a short stay and these tend to be located in city areas and on major roads. Then there is more of a resort-style hotel that is intended purely for longer stay holiday makers.
Pick the wrong one, and you could ruin your trip. You’d be devastated if your special offer saw you stuck in a hotel filled with noisy convention delegates when all you wanted was a peaceful nights sleep. More and more so-called resort hotels in strategic tourist areas are trying to attract conference business to help fill rooms during the week.
These days it’s easy to find last minute specials online and sometimes the rates are even cheaper than buying direct from the hotel. More homework is needed though as these sites don’t usually offer the big specials from large hotel chains.
When you use the Internet to search for a special deal, check out major chains to see if they have current offers. Also, most tour operators have regular hotel deals, especially one-night or two-night stopover packages immediately before the start of a coach tour, or at the end of a tour.
Package specials
The term package holiday implies that you’re getting a fully-inclusive product comparable to a cruise. That’s not automatically the case.. Features usually include transport, accommodation and possibly attractions. But you can’t count on it including all meals. Packages generally include breakfasts but not lunch and perhaps half (or less) dinners.
A package, however, does have a number of advantages over private travel, because among other things it offers the security of touring with a group, with local guides and sometimes with an escort from beginning to end.
Another advantage is the time that is saved chasing down each piece of the vacation including lodgings and air fares. And because package suppliers get better deals, they can offer better rates than individuals can get hold of.
Comprehensive packages include everything from carrying luggage to and from your transport to appropriate visas and travel insurance.
Most will also include sightseeing excursions and admission to key tourist sites, another significant benefit. Large tour groups usually get to side-step the long queues at popular attractions.
And while main meals aren’t always covered by the package price, a knowledgeable tour escort or local guide is able to recommend value-for-money restaurants and gift shops.
Rail specials
As rivalry in the airline industry increased, many anticipated that the popularity of train travel would diminish. The opposite has happened. The sector has grown and now includes faster trips and better facilities.
In Europe, for instance, rail is not only less expensive than air in many cases, it’s often faster. It’s claimed that a Eurostar journey from the centre of London to the centre of Paris via the Channel Tunnel takes less time than air travel from London Heathrow to Paris Charles de Gaulle airports, including time taken to get to and from the airports from the middle of each city, plus time needed for check-in and boarding.
The French calculated years ago that it was faster to take a trip by high-speed TGV train from Paris to Lyon (435km) by train than by air.
Of course, you don’t get the same options with rail travel as you do with motoring. But it is perfect if you need to jump between destinations that do not take in sightseeing along the way.
Both commuter and tourist trains are found at the major tourist destinations and can include prestige businesses such as South Africa’s Blue Train.
Affordable prices is another reason to contemplate rail travel. Travellers can get special tickets such as the Eurail Pass that offers significant savings.
Travel Monitor
Australians can find the best holiday specials at Travel Monitor. It is an independent website that collects all the current holiday specials and presents it on one page. This ensures that holidaymakers are getting impartial, current and precise information.