Online travel deals are surprisingly easy to find and easier to land. The trick is finding one that suits your purpose. There’s always a cheaper option available. Rather than focusing solely on the economics, it would serve you better to enquire why the deal is so cheap and what you would be foregoing in order to avail the fabulous low prices. Often you might prefer to pay a bit more and enjoy a modicum of comfort and arrive safe.
The simple secret to getting a good travel deal online is to shop around. Often a you can find price differences between sites. If you are willing to do your homework, a better rate can usually be found. Another well known secret is that if you choose to book during off season periods you will definitely get fabulous rates whether it’s airline fare or an amusement park ticket. The use of certain credit cards for online bookings also helps to get discounts, as those adding up those air miles and points rewards.
Travel arrangements from booking airline tickets to fixing an itinerary, hotel accommodation, tickets for various events and venues are done online these days. The more you surf, the more choices you’re faced with. Eleventh hour bookings have become the norm, and there is a whole genre of travel sites focused on this type of clients. This has indeed grown to be a substantial part of online travel arrangements for most people.
Most of the major online travel sites in the US and Canada, such as Expedia, Travelocity and others, have fantastic package deals that give you more bang for your buck. A package deal does not mean a group tour, but rather a deal where airline tickets, accommodation, and sometimes even a car rental all are “packaged” together for usually a lower price than you would pay for separately.
Booking hotel accommodation online can get you good discounts even at star hotels. Be careful however, some deeply discounted bookings may not be refundable in the event you decide to cancel so always check the fine print. Another option for discounted hotel prices are Hotwire.com and Priceline.com. Both are both popular discount travel sites that offer attractive discounts on hotel rooms. Referring to itself as the king of online travel, the Priceline’s claim to fame is the “name your own price” where the buyers are free to fix their rates for hotel rooms. With either company, you pick the price, quality, amenities, and neighborhood you want, but you are not able to choose a specific hotel. With Priceline, you bid on the hotel which meets your needs. You then find out if the price you choose was accepted and if it was, your hotel is booked. In contrast, when using Hotwire, you don’t bid on your hotel and the prices are displayed.
In all, finding travel deals has never been easier, what you do need to watch out for is the fine print. Do your research, compare prices and always read the terms and conditions – happy holidays!