Below are some of my recommendations to help get you started on your travel journey. I’m recommending sites that I have personally used and like, or are widely used by other travelers.
Some of the links below contain affiliate links. What does that mean you ask? I may earn a small commission, but you won’t pay any extra.
Where to Book Your Travel: Accommodations – Hotels & Rentals
Hotels
- Agoda – One of my new favorites. They don’t always have the same inventory as the bigger name sites, but often times have lower prices.
- Booking.Com – This is my favorite hotel site. Booking is great for hotels and apartments (outside the US). It doesn’t take many stays to become a “Genius” and get discounts and free upgrades. Also, there’s usually a free cancellation option up to 24-48 hours in advance of check in.
- Expedia – Expedia has a ton of options, and now that they’ve partnered with VRBO you can get great rewards for booking hotels and rentals via their One Key program which helps you accumulate free stays and discounts faster.
- Hotels.com – Under the Expedia umbrella, but sometimes prices vary from site to site, so it can be helpful to compare.
- Hostelworld – Best for travelers on a budget. Many hostels also offer private rooms (at a higher cost) if you like the community of a hostel without the community living.
- TripAdvisor – Great site to search for the best pricing and get reviews before booking
Vacation Rentals
- Booking.Com – This is my favorite accomodation site. Outside the US there are also a ton of great apartment options as well. In the US the houses and apartments usually have really high cleaning or service fees that don’t show up until you’re ready to book, so Airbnb and VRBO are better options for US rentals.
- VRBO – Only has full vacation rentals (no rooms) so this is especially great for group travel. I like to check against airbnb. You can often find the same house, but sometimes the fees and/or cancellation policy varies between the two sites. VRBO is now partnered with Expedia, so when you book you can accumulate money towards free stays.
- Airbnb – The go to for vacation rentals. If you’re ever looking for hotels during peak season be sure to also check airbnb as you may find an apartment much cheaper than the hotels, with the bonus of a kitchen and laundry if you’re lucky. For budget travelers this is a great option because you can also rent a room instead of the whole apartment for a significantly lower cost.
How to find Flights
- Google Flights – this is a really incredible (FREE) tool you can use to research flights. I only recently discovered it and I wish I’d come upon it sooner. You can use the site to find and track cheap flights. For an in depth look at how you can utilize it, check out this article.
- Book direct! I can’t say this enough, do not book flights through a 3rd party website! Always book directly with the airline. If anything comes up and you need to change or cancel, I promise you it will be much easier working with the airline directly especially if there’s an issue on their end.
Where to Book Your Travel: Rental Cars
- Rentalcars.com – This is part of the Booking.com family, this one is specific to rental cars
- Expedia.com – Competitive pricing with Rentalcars/Booking.
- DiscoverCars.com – Popular rental site among frequent travelers
- GetTransfer.com – This is a service specifically for transfers, cabs, long distance travel or chauffeur services.
- Rental car companies to avoid: Alamo (terrible customer service) and Sixt (tons of hidden fees once you show up).
Where to Book Trains & Buses
- Omio – Use for booking trains, buses, ferries and transfers in Europe and North America.
- Trainline – Use for booking trains in the UK and Europe.
- Flixbus – Long haul bus service within the US and Europe. The earlier you book, the cheaper the ticket. Some tickets start as low as $5 one way.
Where to Book Travel Tours
- Viator – this site is great for full day (or multi-day) excursions many of which you can get for a reasonable price.
- For example, a tour Marrakesh with a camel back ride, sunset ATV through the desert, dinner with entertainment, AND transportation was about $100/person.
- GetYourGuide – this a very popular site for full day (or multi-day) excursions many of which you can get for a reasonable price.
- TripAdvisor – one of the most used travel sites for both recommendations and tours.
- Agoda – Best for discounts on ticket prices for example aquariums, hop on/hop off tours, etc.
- Airbnb experiences – you can find some really great (and often inexpensive) tour options here. Particularly walking tours and cooking classes.
Miscellaneous Travel Needs
Cellphones
- Airalo – This is a popular electronic sim service for world wide travel. If you have never used an e-sim, read this post on using your phone internationally before you purchase an e-sim card.
Travel Insurance
- VisitorsCoverage – this is a popular travel insurance site among frequent travelers and digital nomads.
- SafetyWing – this is a popular travel insurance site among frequent travelers and digital nomads.
If you have any other questions about where to book your travel, drop me a question in the comments or contact me directly.
I saw your website and found it a very informative site for planning a tour.