Should You Book Accommodation Prior To Arrival?
September 6, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
When you’re planning your trip you need to decide whether or not you will be booking a hotel before you arrive. Whether you make reservations ahead of time or not depends on your temperament and your style of travel.
You need to decide if you want the freedom of spirit and sense of adventure and spontaneity that going without reservations will give you, or do you want the peace of mind of knowing there is a room waiting for you.
You may be the type of traveler who doesn’t like to commit to a firm itinerary. You want maximum spontaneity. Some travelers like to reserve a room for the first night or two at least. That way when you arrive, groggy with jet lag, you don’t have to worry about finding a hotel. Once you’ve recovered and gotten into the swing of things, you can hop on a train or rent a car and find rooms as you go.
If you haven’t traveled too much, or your time is short, or if you just don’t want the stress of looking for a room in an unfamiliar language in an unfamiliar country, then maybe you will be better off to reserve a hotel ahead of time in each of your destinations.
If you’re going to make the reservations yourself, check out recommendations in a good guidebook, and check several sites on the internet. The star rating systems in different countries can vary, and they can vary between internet services, so it pays to do your research.
We’ve traveled most often with no reservations. We like checking out the rooms we’re going to stay in before we commit. We like being able to decide to stay an extra day in one town because there is so much to see. We have the flexibility to get out of another town a day earlier than we planned if something more exciting beckons us down the road.
We have traveled with friends who just can’t stand not knowing where they are going to sleep. They think looking for a room for the night is a total waste of time.
We’ve come up with a compromise when we travel with them: we call ahead the day before and reserve a hotel to head for. We can’t check out the room ahead of time, but it does give us the spontaneity of deciding where we want to be as we go along.
If you decide to use this method, you should find a good guide book or hotel guide that matches your needs as far as the level of comfort you want in a hotel and how much you can spend. We’ve also relied on hosts in some of the small places we’ve stayed to recommend accommodations in the next town we’re heading to. Sometimes they can help and sometimes they can’t, but you might just find a cute little place that is “off the grid”.
The less developed the country is that we are visiting, the more apt we are to reserve a hotel at least for the first few days. That allows us to see how easy or difficult it is going to be to get around the country and find rooms.
So to reserve a hotel or not to reserve – that is a question only you can answer, and it’s all part of planning your trip.
The Different Accommodation Options For Travellers
August 25, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Make up your mind that it’s not going to be just like home. If you want that, you might as well stay home! What do you want or need in the way of a room? Your choices can go from from having a reservation in a “big brand” hotel to just finding a room in a local village as you travel.
What makes you comfortable when you travel? Do you want lots of luxury, a big room and a concierge to get you tickets to the latest play? Or, are you an adventurous traveler who carries a backpack and wants to find an inexpensive local place? Let’s look at your options:
You can stay in big name brand hotels, or big hotels that are famous in the city you are visiting.
You can find luxury spas where they will pamper you or help you lose weight or get you exercising.
You can find resorts of all kinds – like beach resorts, ski resorts, or golf resorts.
You can stay at a dude ranch and ride horses and play cowboy.
Many countries in Europe have castles that have been turned into hotels. A similar option are grand old manor houses that have rooms to rent.
There are small but luxurious boutique hotels.
There are small local hotels that have all the basic amenities and lots of local charm.
There are B&B’s and other Bed-and-Breakfast options almost everywhere.
There are also cheap hotels almost everywhere. These can be very basic. If you’re on a tight budget and you’ll almost never be in your room, these can work. Only you can decide if these will do for your holiday.
Hostels are probably the cheapest accommodation you will find, especially in cities. These are generally for younger travelers, but they have changed through the years, and travelers of all ages stay in them now.
If you’re traveling to wildlife areas there are safari lodges or jungle lodges. These may be just like city hotels, or you may find bungalows or tented camps.
When you’re trying to decide on the type of accommodation that will serve you best, you can take a look at some of them on the internet. Just remember, they will post pictures to make themselves look good. A wide angle shot may make that room look bigger than it really is.
If you are going on a tour, look at the types of accommodations they use as well as the itinerary. If that tour looks like it’s a bargain price, maybe it’s because you’ll be staying in cheap hotels that you’d rather not put up with.
If you are an independent traveler, decide if you want to book your hotels in advance or find them while you are on the road.
You may be able to book on the internet, but if all the websites you check say there are no rooms available, and there is a hotel you really want to stay in, consider calling the hotel direct. We have done that and come up with just the hotel we wanted.
Some cute little places are not on the internet, or you won’t easily find them. If you can deal with finding a place to sleep as you go along, these can be real little jewels.
Some trips will call for a certain type of accommodation, like a city hotel or a jungle lodge. Sometimes it’s up to you to decide what kind of accommodations you want. If you think about what you want and need while you are planning your trip, then finding that room will be easier.
Earn Extra Cash – Rent out your Spare Room!!
February 26, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Rent out a Spare Room In Your Home and earn extra cash!
RoomInMyHome is a new initiative from frequentflyer.com.au, Australia`s leading online travel community since 1998. It is based on a successful concept used for many years in the United States. It provides an innovative way for home owners to make some extra money by letting out a room of their home, or for B&B owners to advertise their properties. At the same time it offers a less expensive option for travellers to stay in a welcoming home environment for about a third of the cost of your average hotel!
Take advantage of our Opening Offer: For a limited time we are not charging our usual 10% Booking Administration Fee. So, not only is there no cost to list your room, but for a limited time there are no booking fees as well!!
RoomInMyHome is brand new. Be the first in your suburb to list your spare room!
