| A Google search for travel will return nearly 8 millions | | | | A lot of people start their search at With more than 25 |
| results. But how can you know which travel sites will | | | | million user-generated reviews, it's one of the most |
| truly assist you in your trip planning, and how can you | | | | popular travel sites. But take it all with a grain of salt. |
| figure out which ones you should visit first? | | | | The travelers who give a hotel rave reviews may |
| If you know where you want to go, your first step is | | | | have lower standards than you do. |
| probably finding out how much it will cost. | | | | We'd be careful about booking a hotel based |
| Airfare comparison travel sites have come a long way | | | | exclusively on user-generated reviews. and both |
| in the past few years. With fares from virtually all | | | | provide objective reviews from travel professionals. |
| domestic carriers, is one of the best. A flexible-date | | | | Check them out before you make a commitment. |
| feature makes it easy to see how much you could | | | | For European hotels, is an excellent travel site that |
| save by shifting your dates. And once you find a fare | | | | includes lots of smaller properties you won't find listed |
| you like, clicking on it takes you to the airline's website | | | | on Travelocity or Expedia. |
| to make reservations. | | | | is a terrific new site with videos, photos and in-depth |
| Sidestep scans more than 600 sites for fare | | | | reviews by journalists who travel anonymously. But so |
| information. It's another good place to look for cheap | | | | far, they only cover a few destination. |
| domestic flights. | | | | Once you've settled on a hotel, don't waste a lot of |
| European airlines like EasyJet and RyanAir offer really | | | | time comparing prices. Since most of the hotel booking |
| cheap airfares that aren't available in the United States. | | | | sites are owned by the same two or three parent |
| You have to be careful about all the hidden charges, | | | | companies, there's not much difference in price. If you |
| but with fares of $2 one way from London to Rome | | | | find a rate that's a lot better than another, make sure |
| or Paris, they're hard to resist. | | | | it's for the same room type. |
| The best place to find these fares is on If you can, | | | | If the best price requires you to pay in advance, |
| don't take any luggage to speak of. And read the fine | | | | contact the hotel directly to see if they will match it |
| print carefully. These low-price carriers are notorious | | | | without prepayment. If you do prepay to get the best |
| for bait-and-switch tactics. | | | | rate, read the terms and conditions carefully. Most of |
| British Airways and several other international carriers | | | | the time, these rates are nonrefundable and once you |
| recently started charging for advance seat | | | | book, you can't make any changes. |
| assignments. If you're going to pay for an aisle or | | | | Hotels with low occupancy rates are often willing to |
| exit-row seat, you'd better make sure that it's worth | | | | negotiate, so if you're traveling at the last minute, call |
| the extra cost. or can help you find the best seats on | | | | the property. And if you know occupancy is way |
| your flight. | | | | down, consider showing up without reservations. A |
| Once you know how much your flights will cost, you | | | | hotel with few guests will make you a very good deal |
| can start looking for places to stay. | | | | if you appear on their doorstep. |