MAd Town 2009 – Find The Info About hotel and travel

by Laughing Squid

These days, many families have their put their vacation plans toward the bottom of their list of priorities. During tougher times, a vacation can seem to simply cost too much money. However, if you are thinking about going on a vacation, you might want to look into working with a travel agent to save money on vacation expenses. Working with a travel agent to plan your vacation means you might be able to afford the trip you thought you would have to put off until next year. For this reason alone it is definitely worth exploring the possibility. So how can working with a travel agent save you money?

Your travel agent will help you get the most out of your budget

Whether your travel budget is 0 or ,000, working with a travel agent is probably the best way to make the most of your money. Especially if you’re traveling on a tight budget, the skills, knowledge, and experience of a travel agent can be invaluable.

Just make sure when you’re discussing travel plans with your agent, you are absolutely clear about how much money you have to spend. If you want to travel as cheaply as possible, make sure your travel agent understands this so that they have a good idea of the types of travel and accommodation they should be finding for you.

Your travel agent can quickly access a number of providers

Travel agents typically have access to a large network of travel, accommodation, and activity providers. With computer systems that provide access to travel agents all over the world, they can quickly locate details of discount travel providers in many countries. This is one of the main reasons why working with a travel agent is a good idea when you’re on a strict budget. They have access to a large number of different resources, software, and industry contacts, all of which they can use when hunting down the best bargains.

Your travel agent knows the cheapest times to travel

Some days are less expensive to travel on than other days. Red-eye flights and stand-by flights can be less expensive, but direct flights can cost more than taking a circuitous route that involves several different connections. Your travel agent should be very knowledgeable on the process of all this and knows that flights booked on Friday, Sunday, and Monday are generally more expensive. You stand a better chance of saving money on flights if you’re flexible about your travel dates.

In addition, your travel agent can quickly tell you if your vacation plans fall within a peak season during which flights to your destination are significantly more expensive. This means that you can modify your travel plans if you wish. Changing plans may include a cheaper destination or traveling during the offseason to save money on your flight.

Advanced booking is another factor that your travel agent can use to help you get cheaper flights. You should be booking at least six months ahead to get the most affordable tickets. Your agent should tell you that the holiday season is always a relatively expensive time to travel, no matter how far in advance you book.

Your travel agent has access to bulk discounts and consolidated tickets

If you’re willing to travel as part of an organized tour, your travel agent can help you access travel and accommodation. There are also specials for activities that are significantly cheaper than what you would spend if you did the same activities alone. This is because as part of a tour you can take advantage of bulk discounts. You can even organize your own tour through your travel agent, and the organizer might get to travel for free!

Consolidated tickets provide you with the chance to save on your air travel costs. A consolidated ticket is simply a ticket which was purchased by the agent as part of a large group of tickets sold by the same airline. The agent gets a bulk discount on the tickets and can pass that discount on to their clients.

Your travel agent has industry contacts and experience

This translates into money being put back into your pocket. Your travel agent may be in regular contact with many industry professionals, and might be able to get you a great deal on a tour being planned by another agent. If you’re flexible with travel times, your agent may advise you to adjust your trip dates to travel during a cheaper part of the week, potentially saving you hundreds of dollars in travel costs. An experienced agent should have expert knowledge of your travel destination and can provide advice on budget accommodation and activities. The agent may often be able to provide discount coupons, free passes, and other incentives.

Best of all, none of these advantages come at a price! You can take full advantage of the wealth of knowledge and experience that your travel agent provides, and can potentially save a great deal of money in the process.

by jonrawlinson

There are more than five reasons an online travel agency can save you money but the top five is a great start. Global statistics are pointing to the trend that online shopping for travel deals is way ahead of online shopping for books, electronics and clothing. For example, in Canada, about 45% of Canadians in 2007 looked for an online travel agency to book their travel, that’s a 9% increase from 2005 reports.

Here are the top five reasons why an online travel agency can save you money:

1. No overhead – many online travel agencies don’t have a physical location where they have to purchase furniture, supplies, and hire staff. In fact, many online travel agents operate from the comfort of their homes. All they need is a high speed Internet connection and access to global reservations systems. So the money they save on rent, utilities, personnel and other logistics constitute savings they can pass on to their customers. By booking online, you also save on trips to and from a travel agency in your area. You not only save money, you save precious time and gas.

2. Comparison shopping – by searching for travel deals online, you have the luxury of comparing prices provided by various online travel agencies. The idea is to read the fine print. You can compare them on the basis of:

· Actual fares and discounts

· Package deals

· Coupons and freebies

· Travel insurance

· Group discounts

· Last minute bookings

· Variety of travel deals (do they specialize in a particular country or to a particular age group?)

· Senior citizens’ deals

· Hotels and meals and transportation

· Tour guides

· Penalties for cancellations

That’s the beauty of online shopping. You’re not scampering from one travel office to another just to get an idea on prices. You can compare online deals and then narrow down your choices to three, ten or fifteen. If you have time on your hands, you can really save yourself some money by doing diligent research.

3. Ticket consolidation – many online travel agencies have access to a database of discounted tickets. Sometimes when they have excess inventory, they are forced to get rid of as many tickets to make way for the next travel season where they can purchase in bulk. Travel agents usually share information on discount tickets that are still available for sale, and prices are reduced on these tickets for “selloff.”

Air travel consolidators allow customers to compare airfares from as many airlines as possible for a specific route and for a specific time period. Not only can you save money on your ticket, but you can also find the best flight that suits your schedule best.

4. Wide network of travel-related services – online travel agents, through frequent bookings and constant research have a wealth of information that some travel agents with no online presence don’t have. Because of their ability to network rapidly with various people who work in hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, railway and restaurants, online travel agents are able to find the best deals for you.

The name of the game is called “relationship building.” Through frequent contact, online travel agents can squeeze out more discounts and free coupons from tour operators and hospitality establishments like hotels and restaurants. Instead of spending .00 for your lunch while travelling, your agent can offer you a meal ticket in exchange for your business, not to mention the fare discounts they are also able to offer.

5. One-stop shopping – travel writers know about the “clout” of travel agents. When it comes to flight arrangements, rental cars, tour excursions, cruise information and accommodation, and hotels, travel agents have a lot of clout. They can provide a complete travel package, including shuttle service to and from the airport and even the services of a personal tour guide if requested. By doing all your travel and travel-related shopping with a reputable online travel agency, there is no telling how much you can get done within a short amount of time.

Note that your online travel agent has more buying power than individual passengers when it comes to airline seats, hotel accommodation or cabin space in the yacht.

It used to be that travelling last minute was expensive. Not anymore with online travel agents! In many cases, unsold seats on flights or unsold rooms in hotels are offered to travel agents a few weeks before departure date at considerably discounted rates so they can be sold immediately. If you are travelling last minute, ask your online travel agent for last minute budget deals. Chances are you might get what you want, provided your travel dates don’t fall within peak travel times. But you have to ask, not assume that it will be offered automatically!

by Visions Service Adventures

Volunteers who are planning to go abroad have a lot to plan for. In their planning they will also plan for how they will be using their money. There are various ways of using money while the international volunteers are abroad. The various methods are through cash, travelers cheque, credit card, prepaid cards and local debit cards. Deciding on which form of money to use depends on a number of factors. These factors are length of stay, security, exchange rate and replacement in case they are lost or stolen. They should inform their banks that they are going abroad and that they shouldn’t cancel their credit cards while they are gone unless told otherwise. As a volunteer abroad, s/he should carry the different forms of money for safety. Here are the various forms of money that are available to volunteers:

Cash

The volunteers will need the local currency when they arrive in the country. They will need money to pay for small things as taxi fare, buses fare, trolley fares and many others. As the volunteer will be in the local country for a period of time, s/he will need to have local currency. The advantages of carry local currency are: it is easy to exchange; easy to use; available everywhere; and fluctuations in the exchange rate won’t make it more expensive. The major disadvantages of carry cash are: the volunteers can’t carry large sums of money; during conversion they can lose money due to the exchange rate; and it’s not replaceable when it’s lost. When dealing with cash, the volunteer should have money bag or an inside pocket where to hide their money. To be safe they should also not carry all their money at the same place and should have large and small denominations.

Credit cards

These are the most commonly used by travelers worldwide. Credit cards are available and are used in most countries. Cards that have Visa, MasterCard, American express and Access are accepted everywhere. There are many advantages of using Credit Cards for example: they are easy to carry; easily replaceable when stolen; accepted in most parts of the world; the volunteer can get cash advances from ATMs at a fee. The main disadvantages are: credit card fraud; sometimes they are not accepted in some hotels and institutions; there are added service fees by banks when they are used; there are interest fees included and you have notify banks when traveling abroad. The volunteer has to be careful when using credit cards, in that they should be used as few times as possible. Credit cards have hidden costs attached to them and when the volunteer goes back home, s/he will be surprised by the huge fees.

Prepaid Cards

These cards are new to the market and are gaining popularity. Prepaid cards are specifically targeted for travelers. They work the same way as travelers cheques and debit cards. Prepaid cards are preloaded with money from the volunteer’s home country. They use the standard Visa system, and can be used anywhere there is a Visa symbol. They are much safer to use than Credit cards and Debit cards. With a fixed amount in them, there is no risk in overspending and if the funds run out you can re load the funds through other credit cards. The disadvantages of these cards are: once they are lost they are hard to replace; the commissions are higher than travelers cheques and credit cards; topping up is expensive.

Travelers Cheques

Travelers cheques used to be very common but nowadays they are becoming less and less common. They are still one of the safest ways to carry money as they are not stolen and are easily replaceable. To use a travelers cheque, the volunteer’s signature is needed. Most of them are issued by American express and can be used in most banks and post banks. They can be replaced anywhere if they are stolen or lost as long as the serial number is produced. They only take 24 hours to replace them. The main disadvantages are: most foreign retailers are not accepting them anymore, in some places they can only be used for changing local currency; and the range of currencies is limited.

Local debit cards and bank accounts

If the volunteer will be staying for a lengthy period of time, they could open a bank account and deposit money there. Using local debit cards is good especially if the volunteer doesn’t want to be charged by their home banks when transacting. This method saves money as transactions are only done once and there is no worry of foreign exchange rates.