As promised, I am posting my practical tips for my 'do-it-yourself' travels. All these are applicable to me but may not be for others. Nevertheless, I hope it is still worth sharing.
AIRFARE
All my travels started with airline seat sale promo. There was a time were I am so into viewing websites in search for promo airfares. My objective is to book the airfare at a cheap price. The rates are relatively cheaper if booked in advance. If I see a seat sale, my mind works instantly. I search for the places I want to visit with my preferred dates. It's really a ' trial and error' and 'try and try until you succeed' thing. If it doesn't work, I try to adjust and search for another combination. If it still doesn't work, I DO NOT BOOK. I know I can find another promo some other time
TIP: Take advantage of seat sale and promo airfares. If you don't find anything now, you may find something later. Be patient and alert for the next seat sale. For faster booking, I have an account with the airline company which I often use. Usually the tickets I book are at least 6 months advance and others go as far as more than 1 year before the actual travel dates.
Just to give you an idea, here are some of the roundtrip airfares I booked which I think are great deals:
1. Php 97 Manila to CDO
2. Php 3,400 Manila to Incheon, Korea
3. Php 2,700 Manila to Taipei, Taiwan
4. Php 12,000 Manila to Dubai
ACCOMMODATION
Finding where to stay can be really taxing. You'll have to consider a lot in selecting one among all the list coming from your researches. Here are the factors I consider in selecting mine, arranged from the most to the least important.
1. Price
At the end of the day, it is the price that matters. Personally, I prefer to stay at cheaper places since most of the travel time are spent outside. My philosophy, I can stay in fancy hotels here in the Manila where I can enjoy and maximize the facilities. But when traveling, I want to explore more of the place rather than the comfort of a bed. For me, I just need a decent, clean, and safe place to crash, freshen up and that's it. My search goes from 3 star hotels and below to guesthouse, inns, bed and breakfast, hostels, etc.
2. Location
This is the second important thing I consider. I want an accesible location, near the train/metro/mrt station or at least a bus stop or a shopping area. When traveling especially abroad, mobility is the key. It saves a lot on time and money if you stay somewhere strategically located.
3. Reviews
I read reviews from booking sites and other travel blogs. Here, I get to have the real experiences of people who already went and stayed there. I compare different reviews I read because an opinion of one may differ from another. But if the complied reviews are more on the negative, I delist it among my selection. Just take note reviews are subjective and still, trust your instinct in selecting where to stay.
I normally use different hotel booking sites like agoda, booking.com, hotelsclub, hotelscombined, asiarooms and even hostelclub, hostel.com, etc., where I can compare prices.
Then I research for the hotel's location. Here, I access the hotel's official website, if they have, and also use google maps. It is important for me to determine the hotel's exact location, and to know how near/far is this to my places of interest.
Next, I read reviews. If all 3 are okay with me, I proceed with the reservation. Else, I repeat steps no. 1 to 3 until I've come to choose again...and again...and again...until I selected the right one (for me).
Lastly when I finally decided on one, I search again using the different hotel booking sites versus the hotel's official website, to check for the cheapest price available. I am also on the look-up as some credit card companies have promos and discounted rates on certain booking sites depending on the travel period and location (country/city).
TOURS
What to do; where and how to go; where and what to eat; are among the basic things I research after booking a flight. These things come in handy especially for 'DIY' travelers like me. Given that travel time is limited, it is a constant effort to maximize each visit and spend it wisely. When organizing my itinerary, I group all places and activities of my interests according to their location. I also research on how to go from one place to another, citing different mode of transpo. This is to avoid getting lost along the way and wasting the "precious" travel time on finding my way back. Personally, I don't wanna look to "touristy".
This is also when blogs from other travel bloggers come useful. Their insights give me an idea whether an attraction or activity is worthwhile. It helps me decide on my final itinerary given the limited travel time.
I am more of the nature, sights and theme parks rather than historic, museum kind of place.
Listing the price of entrance fees, fares, and other travel expenses are also done in this part.
In my final itinerary, I list down all the following:
1. Date and time of visit
2. Number of minutes/hours allocated
3. Place of Interest
4. What to do
5. Cost on entrance fee/fare
6. How to go
7. Mode of transpo
Remember, the more you save on airfare and hotel means you'll have more budget for tours, food, and shopping :-)
BUDGET
Having done all my researches, I am now ready to set my budget, how much money would I need for the trip (food, shopping, transpo, etc.). This is not much of a problem since I already jot down all the fixed and estimated costs in the initial part of planning. A ballpark figure will do as it is quite hard to get the exact figures. I also bring extra for miscellaneous and contingency expenses.
HERE ARE MY TIPS:
I make payments to my travel expense on a staggered basis. First is the airline. Given that airline booking is done months before the actual trip via credit card, payment is also done in advance. No sweat!
Second, the hotel. I strategically decide on when to make the online hotel booking. This is to make sure that the payment will be due at least a month or two after the actual trip. Some credit card companies also offer to charge the amount on a later day. I take advantage of this to extend the payment due date.
Third is the pocket money for tours, food, etc. Having estimated the costs of everything during the research stage, I already have an idea how much to bring. I still have few months to prepare. Just the right attitude in saving for something greater is my key.
All big ticket purchases and unplanned expenses like pasalubong for family, shopping for myself, etc. are usually charged to my credit card. This way these purchases won't hurt my allocated pocket money for the trip.
Lastly, I exchange in the country's local currency using Php few days before the trip. The amount corresponds to my allocated budget. And I also bring few USD in case my pocket money is not enough. USD are widely accepted for exchange in all banks and money changers abroad.
NOTE:
I pay everything charged on my credit card before it comes due. It is not advisable to have revolving balances on credit card as they charge high interest rates. If you do it this way, it outweighs the benefit of having a credit card since you'll be paying more than the price of the actual purchase.
MY BIG NOTE:
Don't spend beyond your means. Traveling can be really tempting because you might have thoughts like, "This is a once and a lifetime opportunity", "I don't know when and if I can come back again", etc. Remember, traveling is just a quick escape from reality and you will always go back to where you came from.
Happy traveling!
