Thursday, December 28, 2006

10 plus Great Online Vacation Planning Tools

January is one of the best times to plan spring break and summer vacations in popular destinations like New England, Florida, southeast US beaches, National Parks, California, Arizona, and of course Europe. I've got a decent grasp on available online trip planning resources, but saw a few new ones at:
Do your pre-trip homework online | IndyStar.com. Of his list, I find these make it to mine:
1. www.vrbo.com for vacation rentals worldwide
2. www.tripadvisor.com for details on hotels, attractions, locations, and valuable forums especially for new trips to you
3. www.railpass.com for Eurail passes
4. www.raileurope.com for Eurail passes, rail tickets, and information
5. www.anchorfree.com for free wireless hotspots for those of us who have to be in contact on vacation
6. www.travel.state.gov for information on TSA, passports, and government warnings

The resources that are desperately missing include:
1. www.homeaway.com the largest vacation rental listing site out there (they now own www.vrbo.com; www.a1vacations.com; www.cyberrentals.com)
2. www.vacationrentals.com another excellent vacation rental resource
3. www.priceline.com my new favorite for excellent hotel prices
4. www.expedia.com for booking flights and hotels online
5. the major airline sites - www.aa.com American Airlines is my family's personal favorite - don't forget www.jetblue.com which doesn't show up on some of the major booking sites
6. www.google.com; www.yahoo.com; www.ask.com ALWAYS "Google" your destination and attractions to find out about local agencies, insider information, and money saving coupons
7. www.aaa.com is one of my favorites for saving money at attractions and hotels and transportation
8. www.entertainment.com This book is worth a purchase for your destination. You can save 50% on hotels, plus coupons for most major tourist stops. I found my Hawaii book saved us hundreds, and now provide a book in each of my vacation rentals in California
9. www.amazon.com - my favorite bookstore for travel guides, which even with internet preplanning, are still needed on site - we like Fodor's and the Top 10 series
10. www.nps.gov is the National Park Service site where all visits to America's national parks should start

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hey Vacation Mamma! Love your blog! I'm a fellow vacation mamma with three kids who has just launched a national park website to help families like ours plan their travel and get their kids engaged in the trip. Check it out! Thanks and happy new year. Andrea

nationalparkfamilies.com