7 Travel Tips To Help You Book Your Dream Trip
Sharing my top 7 tips to help you book your dream trip right NOW!
Looking to book your dream trip but not sure where to start? Booking travel can be SO daunting but exciting; from deciding the destination, to working out the best website to use for booking, as well as logistics and managing your travel money. It can be a mind field at times and for this reason, I've put together a post sharing my top travel tips that will help you book your dream trip right NOW!...
1.) Destination inspiration...
First things first, where do you want to travel to? Hot destination or cold? City break or a holiday in the sun? America, Africa, Caribbean, Asia? Oh my GOD there are SO many things to think of when booking your trip; and the first step is working out where exactly you want to visit!
For this I would always turn to Pinterest; I'm forever making boards of places I'd love to visit. One of the best things about Pinterest is that sometimes you've never even heard of a destination, then you come across the DREAMIEST image ever and before you know it you're lusting for a holiday in the Philippines!
It's a great place to start looking for holiday inspiration and I would recommend categorising your boards into hot and cold destinations, and sorting further into city breaks, sun holidays, activity based holidays. This should help you to narrow down the places you want to visit for your upcoming trip! My travel bucket list for 2018 includes Bali, South Africa, Croatia and Japan!
2.) Where to book your trip...
With so many websites to choose from, where do you book your trip?! It's so easy to become overwhelmed with the number of comparison sites and new holiday websites that are popping up everywhere.
For hotels my immediate go-to's are Hotels.com or Booking.com. If I'm looking for more of a home away from home, then Airbnb.com is great. I've used it for booking trips in London, Iceland, Barcelona and Paris and since I’ve started using it I’ve only had great experiences!
When you read on further I’ll let you in on my secret on how to make hotel bookings pay for your next holiday as well!
3.) Looking for recommendations...
I LOVE to read hotel, flight and destination reviews on my favourite travel blogs and websites as it sometimes inspires me to travel somewhere I may not have considered before!
My favourite travel blogs and websites to read for recommendations include; The Travelista, Wanderlust Chloe, Vicky Flip Flops, The Discoverer, Adventures Of Us, Conde Nast Traveller and We Are Travel Girls!
4.) Travel smart with Avios...
Have you signed up to collect Avios yet?! Basically Avios are travel rewards points that allow you to turn your everyday spend into incredible getaways. It’s free to join and if you’re not a member, then you absolutely NEED to become one! It's super handy for travellers, as you can collect Avios on everything from your weekly shop, your ASOS orders and your flight bookings!
Avios can also be collected and spent on flights with airlines such as Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia and Flybe. For example with just 1,000 Avios you can get a £10 discount on a flight with British Airways!
5.) Best exchange rates for travel money...
For travel money, I tend to use websites like Money Saving Expert to find out the best exchange rates, they always showcase the best deals. Or why not think about a pre-paid card such as the Avois Multi-Currency Cash Passport™ where you get the exchange rate on the day you load or buy, not when you spend. Even better, you can collect 1 Avios for every £1 you load on to the card
6.) Gain points whilst you shop...
Raise your hand if you're constantly shopping online? Want to earn rewards while you shop?! HELL YEAH! You can indulge in some online retail therapy and collect Avios at the same time when you shop through the Avios estore! From ASOS, to Topshop, Matches Fashion, John Lewis, Marks and Spencer's and SO many more!
You can collect between 1-35 Avios per pound spent, so to earn extra Avios all you need to do is shop via the online store and watch your points increase... simples!
Check out how to use the Avios eStore here.
Great news too gals – you can also collect Avios on your accommodation if you book through the Avios eStore with partners such as Booking.com and Hotels.com (the two hotel booking websites I recommended earlier on in the post!).
7.) Earn twice the Avios points on purchases...
You can earn rewards not only on purchases through the Avios eStores and with other retail partners, but also by using an Avios earning credit card to pay for them. The cards not only reward customers with Avios when they first sign up, but also for each purchase made (which means you'll have more points to use towards your flight and hotel bookings - YAY for Avios!).
What are your top tips for booking a dream trip? Do you have an Avios earning card? Is it something you use for travel? Any tips/websites I need to know?
*This blog post was compensated by Avios in points to use for my travels, all images and opinions as always are my own.