Tips for Travel ? 1851 Franchise Magazine

By CHRIS POWILLS

Booking travel can be a tiring and stressful experience. Understanding the best practices of booking travel can help relieve some of that stress and can help save time and money. Saving money and getting the best deal has never been easier with information that is provided on the Internet. However, knowing where to find the information and how to conduct the necessary research can be tricky.

There are many this to consider when booking travel, including asking questions like when is the best time to travel? How can one find information on airports? What are some money saving tips for travel? These questions and more should be in everyone?s mind when trying to book travel. Sometimes it is best to use travel agents throughout the process, but it is not necessary. According to travel expert Yuri Karadjov, ?Travel agents today are not what they used to be only a few years ago. There are the traditional travel agents- with actual offices, and hopefully helpful personnel, that would provide advice or help to book your trip in its entirety. And then there are OTAs, or online travel agents, which are travel booking platforms that allow you to do most of the planning and booking activities on your own.?

Using a travel agent mostly depends on the traveler?s needs and preferences. Karadjov goes to explain that ?in general, simpler travel (round trip, rental car and hotel) can easily be handled online. More complex travel, involving international, multi-city travel, stop-overs or a larger group of travelers, is where traditional travel agents provide the most value.?

Flexibility can be another factor when booking travel. Leisure travel tends to give the most wiggle room for travel dates. This can be used as an advantage if research is done right. Travelers should look to book ahead of time and buy based off of the trends of ticket pricing. ?All travel vendors set their prices according to the demand and supply situation at the time of the planned travel,? said Karadjov. ?If the demand is higher on specific days, then the prices are likely to be higher, and vice-versa. So it is worth checking alternative days and even times of the day for flights.?

When booking for business, the dates of travel can be limited and it might be difficult to book on certain ?alternative? days. However, businesses can sometimes receive corporate discounts that can even sometimes be negotiated. With business travel, be weary, as ?in many cases business travel is subject to corporate policies, which dictate what type of travel agents or channels one is allowed to use, the class of travel (economy, business, etc.), approved hotels and rental car companies,? explained Karadjov.

The best way to find information regarding rules and regulations, baggage fees and information is to research via the internet. Rules and regulations comply with domestic and international statues and standards. Baggage fees are usually listed on airline sites as well. ?There are still airlines, such as Southwest Airlines, that do not charge fees for check bags,? said Karadjov. ?baggage fees are also waived based on the traveler?s status with airline and the travel destination. As there is no standard that governs these fees, the best thing is to check the airline?s website for the baggage policy.?

A lot of information can be found on useful websites. ?Seatguru.com is one travel site which provides information about the good, bad and ugly of each type of aircraft and flights,? Karadjov said.

Websites like Airportplugs.com and jeffsandquist.com also provide travelers with possible places to plug in electronic devices at airports. Both websites are still evolving and have recently added pictures for plug in areas at certain airports.

At the end of the day, it?s important to do your research when booking travel. Understanding where to look on the web is essential to relieve stress and to find the best information when booking travel, ensuring a safe and comfortable journey

Our favorite travel booking websites:

Kayak ? www.kayak.com: Kayak?s website is clean, intuitive and able to pull prices from hundreds of travel sites for everything from flights and hotels to cruises and full-package vacations.

Travelocity ? www.travelocity.com: We like Travelocity because of its partnership with Virgin Atlantic Airways for those times you hear London calling.

Google ? www.google.com: The search engine does a fantastic job pulling rates for flights and other travel necessities. All you have to do is search for something like ?Flights from New York to L.A.?

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Source: http://www.1851project.com/tipsfortravel030613/

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