Tips For Booking Your Holiday Online
By : Mark HanesWith thousands of websites to choose from and a huge number of booking options available, what should be a time and money saving process - booking a holiday on the internet - can turn into hours of frustration and confusion. It's enough to leave you feeling that booking your vacation online is not all it's cracked up to be.
To help you through this maze, here's our step by step guide to booking holidays online :
1: PUTTING YOUR MIND AT EASE
Let's start with some of the main concerns people have about booking online :
- How Do I Know Which Websites Are Legit ?
If you stick to major online brands such as Travelocity, Expedia and Opodo or the websites for tour operators like Thomson or Going Places, you won't go far wrong.
You may, of course, find a great deal at a travel website whose name you don't recognise. In these cases - if you are from the UK - check that they are fully registered with ATOL. If they are a British travel agents, they should also be ABTA registered.
Another good way to check out a company is to visit the Holiday Truths website and ask on their forums whether anyone has used that particular company. - What Happens If I Make A Mistake When Booking My Trip ?
There is, in reality, less likelihood of a mistake happening when booking a holiday online than when booking by phone or in your local travel agents. After all, you know for sure how to spell your name correctly, your correct date of birth and the names of your children; but a travel agent may not.
Most good online travel sites ( Expedia, for example) have a final step in their internet booking procedure that allows you to check over all the details of the holiday you are buying. Don't just skip over this page. Do review your information as this is another step in ensuring that mistakes are minimized when booking vacations on the web.
If you do make a mistake or the confirmation information sent to you doesn't match what you have booked, call the website's customer support number immediately and they will help you resolve the problem.
- What Happens If Something Goes Wrong With My Vacation ?
An enduring attraction when booking with a local travel agent is that you have several points of contact if something goes wrong.
In the UK at least, most holidays abroad are package deals booked with well known tour operators, meaning that they will have a representative in your hotel you can complain to in the first instance. Plus your travel agent back home will go into bat for you.
Of course, many vacations booked on the internet also originate with the same tour operators, regardless of the site you have actually used. For example, the package holidays on Opodo are from companies such as Thomas Cook, First Choice and Sunset.
If you are booking a package holiday online, you will be covered by the same legislation that covers package holidays offline. So, if your airline or tour operator goes bust, you will have your money refunded or be entitled to a free flight home.
However, DIY holidays - where you book flights, rooms and so on separately - are not covered by this legislation and you may be left stranded if the airline or operator goes bust.
While this is true of DIY vacations regardless of whether you book it via a travel agency or online, most people seeking this type of holiday are now using the internet. You do need to be aware that your travel insurance may not cover this and you should use large, reputable online travel providers like Expedia who will refund money and provide assistance in case of DIY holiday disaster.Search over 3 million holidays from travel companies including Virgin Holidays, Portland, Direct Holidays, Airtours, Aspro, Panorama, Manos and Escapades.
