How to Get There and Where to Stay

How to Get There

Most big trips involve airplane travel, so my tips are focused on finding the best airfare prices.

• Join the frequent-flyer program of every airline you fly. It’s free and some offer perks even before you accrue miles.
• Consider signing up for your main airline’s credit card and using it for travel – not only will you get free perks (many allow free checked bags and priority boarding), but you will accrue points for an upgraded flyer status faster.
• Sign up for travel updates and/or free alerts from Airfarewatchdog, Thrifty Traveler, Jetsetter or Travelzoo.
• Use Kayak to track prices and look in the upper left corner for advice on when to buy, although I usually prefer to buy direct from the airline once I’ve found the price and times I want.
• Always search using Incognito mode. Try either Command (or Control), Shift, “N” or Command, Shift, “P” or under File, select “New Private Window” depending on which internet browser you use. This will prevent the airline from tracking your searches after you close your search window.
• For the best price, try to travel during the middle of the week instead of on the weekend. Friday and Sunday are typically the most expensive days to travel.
• Search for airfare prices over multiple days and at different times. Typically, pricing on weekdays are better than on the weekends.
• If you’re traveling internationally, look at breaking up your trip. For example, when we fly to Copenhagen this spring I purchased a round trip ticket to Amsterdam on Delta and then a ticket from Amsterdam to Copenhagen on a local carrier and saved over $500 / ticket. Just make sure to allow enough time for customs. If you miss your flight because you booked them too close together, the airline isn’t responsible for getting you on a new flight since you purchased the flights separately.
• A guide for when to purchase for the best deal: domestic flights should be purchased between 30 days and three months before departure, international should be purchased two to six months before departure.

Where to Stay

Hotels

When booking a hotel, the first place I look is TripAdvisor.com. You can enter your hotel criteria (location, price, amenities, class, etc.) Read the reviews but don’t get hung up on one bad review – some people just like to complain.

Some things to think about when reading reviews: Do several guests complain about the same thing – dirty bathrooms, construction noise, slow service at the pool – and is that something that’s important to you or not. If people complained about room service, but you never get room service, not an issue. Did management respond to the complaint? Was it a canned response or do they really seem concerned and willing to correct the problem?

Think about your location. If it’s more expensive to stay close to the things you want to see (museums, beaches, theater, etc.) consider the cost and time of transportation. If you need to rent a car, take into account the nightly parking rate at the hotel. Before you book that less expensive room, just make sure you won’t be spending all of the money you saved on transportation and parking.

When you’re ready to book, pull up your hotel on TripAdvisor and at the top of the page click on Room Tips. Again, read through these and determine what’s important to you. I almost always include a room request with my hotel booking.

Join the hotels reward program, even if you don’t travel enough to earn free stays, many programs offer free bottled water and a free welcome gift for reward program members.

All-inclusive Resorts

I’ve stayed at a couple all-inclusive resorts and they typically are not my favorite; but if you’re traveling with a large group or you are on a remote island where there aren’t many options for restaurants, it might be a good idea.

A few things to consider:

• Ask about restaurant reservations in advance, many all-inclusive resort restaurants allow reservations and if you haven’t made one for your first night in advance you’ll be stuck eating at whatever restaurant has an opening.
• Ask if all the resort restaurants are included in your rate or is there an up-charge for the nicer restaurants.
• Ask about liquor. Is there wine and beer only or does it include hard liquor? Is it top shelf liquor or rail?
• Ask about included transportation and activities.

Redweek.com

This is a site where people sell their timeshare week(s). If you’re staying in one location for at least one week, check this site.

VRBO / Home Away / Airbnb:

There are so many reasons to consider these options.

• It’s nice to have access to a kitchen when traveling.
• Sometimes the only way to stay in a specific area is to rent a house or apartment.
• It’s fun to feel like a local, especially for an extended stay.
• If you’re traveling with family and / or friends it’s nice to have shared spaces to gather.

I’ve had great success with all of the websites above. Research location, study the photos, read reviews and ask the owner questions. If the owner is rude or doesn’t respond quickly before you book, he/she isn’t likely to respond if you have a problem with the property during your trip.

See my post “How to Choose a Vacation Rental and Make it Feel Like Home” for more tips.

If you have any travel tips related to airfare or booking a place to stay, please share in the Comments.

Next Up: Things to Do and Restaurants