6 Sep 2018
Booking Your Holiday Hotel Online? This is What to Consider!
In this day and age, booking your flights and holiday accommodation online has become the norm. One minute you could be day-dreaming about a place you want to visit, and for all you know the next minute you could be all booked and ready to go.
Nowadays, with just one click and a few personal details later, you can easily secure a place to stay in when on holiday. As convenient as this may be, this also does not come without risks. Ideally, ample time is dedicated for booking a hotel online. Several factors should be taken into consideration to ensure that your stay is pleasant and secure.For this purpose, we’ve put together a list of tips to help you book a comfortable and decent lodging for your next escape!
1. Double-check the hotels location
A hotel’s description might claim that you will be staying only ‘minutes’ away from the Trevi Fountain or from the Louvre. Nevertheless, it is always ideal to copy the actual hotel address to Google Maps and check the exact distance to the top attractions you want to visit.
2. Beware of any hidden fees
Make sure to read the price description well. Do not simply pay attention to the price in the largest and most dominant font. It can turn out that this is not actually the final price. In smaller, less visible fonts, there might be other extra hidden fees, like the ‘cleaning fee’ or ‘city tax per person per night’. These may be minor fees if you’re staying just for the weekend or so, but if your duration is quite long and you are a big group, the final price might get quite pricey with such fees!
3. Pay now or pay later?
Many booking websites give the option of reserving now and paying later i.e. when you arrive at the property. If your holiday still has a long way to go and you are still saving up money (as you’re still recovering from your previous holiday), you are very likely to prefer this method. If so, be sure to read the information well, to ensure you won’t be restricted to pay the moment you book.
4. Reasonable cancellation fees
Once again, if your holiday is still months away and since in life, some things might not go as planned, it is advisable to look for accommodations which offer free cancellation for at least a month or so before your holiday. Maybe work will restrict you to go on holiday, or you get sick, or you find out from someone how unpleasant the hotel is…whatever the reason might be, with the free cancellation option, you will be able to cancel in a hassle-free manner.
5. Read guest reviews
No matter how flowery and compelling a hotel description might be, no information is more valuable than guest reviews! Go through a good number of reviews and find out what guests liked/ did not like to avoid going through the same unpleasant experiences as previous guests.
Undeniably, choosing the right accommodation is one of the most important decisions when planning a holiday. For many travellers, the moment they arrive at their hotel and feel welcomed and secure is the moment their mind is set at rest. With a travel insurance in hand, you are guaranteed to feel the more secure. Get the ultimate protection during your holiday with the Travel Insurance Plan from Laferla. Click here for a free online quote.