The old saying goes that a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step but in this modern digital age, it starts with a finger tap or a click with a mouse. Here is a listing of some of the online services, search engines, review sites and information services I have used to plan my trip.
Flight Comparison and Searching
Skyscanner – is a flight, hotel and car hire search engine that allows users to search for deals by price and location.
Farecompare – is a company which provides airline tickets, airfare, air travel planning tools and travel advice services. Their website at FareCompare.com offers an airfare comparison shopping service.
Kayak – a travel search engine that compares hundreds of travel sites at once.
Vayama – an online travel agency that focuses on international travel.
Also search for price comparisons at the official airline websites. Here is a short list of airlines that I am using:
- Air Canada
- SpiceAir – (an Indian company)
- Emirates
- Thai Airways
Be cautious with your web searches, especially with flight and travel search engines. I have read that these types of websites store search engine data on their users. This stored history can affect succeeding searches on their websites. On one hand this can be handy for the user but most often than not, it is designed to favour the website and the companies they represent. A good practice is conduct your searches using the incognito mode that is provided by most modern internet browsers.This way, you will have more of a chance of finding deals and prices out of the ordinary as a brand new unique visitor every time.
Another caution should be directed towards viewing your final agreed upon price for anything you book. Travel search engines working in tandem with airlines, travel agencies, or other services tend to create a clutter of numbers, reservation codes, reference numbers and all sorts of other information.
When it comes to booking flights be careful to double check what currency you are booking your flight in. Use services like xe.com to keep an eye on what you are paying for by converting foreign amounts to your local currency.
When conducting your searches, note the flight and layover times as the cheaper flights often end up having the longest duration. Consider spending a little bit more than the cheapest price and you will save yourself hours of flying, unnecessary connections or waiting in airports.
Accommodations
When you are looking for a place to stay, check out the following accommodation search services. Some booking services offer better prices or services in some areas than others, so be willing to search on other sites if you can’t find the right price.
- Booking.com
- Priceline
- Tripadvisor (mainly to check the reviews),
- VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner)
- Airbnb.
When booking a hotel look for one offering a free breakfast. Make sure, if you don’t smoke, to request a non smoking room as smoking is still popular in many other countries.
Be cautious and check your room before you move in to look for bedbugs. These nasty critters do not differentiate between no star hostels to five star suites. Ever since first world countries began banning powerful pesticides, bed bugs have appeared everywhere. Bed bugs can turn a good trip bad. I know first hand from my own Malaysian bed bug experience that made for late night room changes and a long restless uncomfortable sleep.
Some Of My Favourite Smartphone Apps
Some good apps to consider include the following:
- Skype to make free phone calls with an internet connection,
- Travellist a preparation guide,
- Xe for currency exchange,
- Foodspotting about finding out where you get the best meals not just the best restaurant,
- Snapseed for photo correction tools and enhancing effects for iPhones,
- Camscanner to turn your smartphone into a scanner,
- Postagram to print and send postcards,
Most apps require an internet connection which is why it is important to have a few apps that can work offline. Here are a few apps that are handy for travelling:
- Wiki Offline provides tons of offline information on your device without needing an internet connection and
- CityMaps2GO for easy to use offline guides and maps.
If you are looking for inspiration about travelling, life or anything under the sun, also try TED TV which is addictive as I can’t just watch one video.