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With the whole world out there to explore, it can be hard to choose where to go for your next travel destination. Whether you are looking for a beach holiday or something a bit more adventurous, the great improvements in technology mean that we can now select holiday destinations with more information to help make that crucial decision.
Reviews – Some people wouldn’t dream of booking a holiday without going through the TripAdvisor reviews beforehand. The great thing about customer reviews is that you can get a completely unbiased view of a place. If you only ever go to the travel company or hotel’s website, then you are going to get very biased views. It’s highly unlikely that the hotel website will tell you about the bad cleanliness, dated furniture or limited food options. Customer reviews and travel expert reviews will tell you everything you need to know and the more that there are, the more you can get an accurate idea.
Hotels can be very clever with their marketing. Have you ever seen a photo of a huge swimming pool and then you get there, and it is barely long enough to swim in? Photographers can manipulate images, so it is better to have a look at customer photos as well. Any hotel can have a full, fresh looking buffet one day for the professional photographs but customer photos will give you the reality.
Videos – With virtual reality options like 360-degree videos and drone videos now available, you can get a real taste of what it is like at the hotel or destination. Has anybody ever come back from a once in a lifetime holiday and told you the commercialization ruined the experience? People visiting the Pyramids in Egypt have been disappointed to find that amongst one of the wonders of the world sits a KFC and a Pizza Hut. Great if you’re hungry but not the experience you were hoping for. For example, a drone video of Thailand can give a much more realistic insight into the experience than photos that have been cropped or manipulated some way.
If you go onto YouTube, you will find drone videos for many of the great destinations in the world to give you a more genuine idea of the place you are planning to visit.
Exchange Rates – Always check what your exchange rate will be before you book a holiday and work out the typical costs. If you’re looking for a budget holiday and find cheap flights but then realize a meal costs five times as much as at home, your holiday could turn into a nightmare.
Weather/Seasons – It goes without saying that you should check the weather of the place you’re going to visit but there are other considerations you need to make. Check if there are any issues like storm seasons that could seriously dampen your holiday spirit. If you’re hoping to see whales or anything else that is dictated by the time of year, do your research to avoid disappointment.
Mike Israel
Monday 22nd of January 2018
Great article.