Don’t Let Who You Are Travelling With Ruin Your Holiday

Do you often travel alone but due to finances can no longer afford to? The best way to bag great value cheap holidays is to travel with someone or in a group. This way you can split holiday costs and save yourself substantial amounts of money. You can even save money by sharing suitcases and travel necessities such as sun cream, adapters, insect repellents etc. Just make sure you have enough for how many there is of you.

Saying this, by not choosing the right companion(s) for great value cheap holidays, it will soon turn into a nightmare, as you realise that you don’t want the same thing out of your holiday. So with this in mind, read on, as we give you the top tips to ensure this doesn’t happen.

Smoking issues

If you are not a smoker and not used to it, if the people you travel with are, this can soon cause issues. Think about it, you will be sharing cars, accommodation, tables and space in general; do you mind being surrounded by the smell of cigarettes? Even if your companion(s) are considerate, there will inevitably be some issues that arise, putting a strain on the holiday as a whole.

Accommodation

When you are choosing the people to travel with, ask yourself this, have you ever shared a room with them before? Also, are you aware of all of their bad habits and could you cope with them? Great atmospheres can soon turn sour, by little, frustrating arguments about the cleanliness of the space or volume levels of music (for example).

Spending habits

Whilst you both may be on the hunt for cheap holidays in the sun, you may have different budgets and spending habits whilst actually out there. Some of us tend to be more extravagant then others and don’t mind paying a little more money for an amazing meal. However, others may not be so inclined to splash out for meals. To combat this issue why not go all inclusive? This way you both pay up front for all meals and drinks during your holiday, avoiding any awkwardness when it comes to meal times.

What does a good time mean to you?

Having a good time during great value cheap holidays, can mean one thing to one person, but then something completely different to the other. Before paying for your holiday, sit down with your travel companion(s) and see if you are both on the same page. Do you both just want a holiday for complete relaxation, where you plan to spend lazy days sunbathing on the beach or beside the pool? Or perhaps you are more of the adventurer, who can’t wait to explore the destination, visiting tourist attractions and getting to know the culture. If you differ, how will you compromise? Explorers will soon become bored lazing around and beach lovers will soon become frustrated being on the move constantly. 

Early risers or night owls?

Before booking cheap holidays, the last conversation you will need to have is; are you both early risers or night owls? You may think this is irrelevant but there is nothing more frustrating than hanging around waiting for someone, or, on the other hand; having to come home early because someone is tired and wants sleep.

Some of us want to get up early, to be able to fit as much as possible into the day or to find a sunbed in the ideal location. However, others love nothing better than long lay-ins in the morning, due to getting to bed late the night before. 

So, if you have read all of our points and confident you have picked the right travel companion(s), for a great value holiday a discount centre online is your best bet to find great deals!

(Photo courtesy of Bgrentals)

Top 5 Travel Items You Mustn’t Leave Without!

If you haven’t already, now is the time to start looking for cheap holidays for this summer. For a great value holiday a discount centre is a great option, as they will have many deals to various destinations, offering a range of board basis’s from room only to all inclusive.

Once you have chosen and paid for cheap holidays, the next thing on your list is preparing yourself and making sure you have everything that you could possibly need for your break.

We have decided to make this easier for you. Below are the top 10 items you must get for your holiday:

Travel Bag

Whether you are going for a short city break or a long beach holiday we recommend taking with you a travel bag. For city breaks they are just the right size to fit everything that you could possibly need from outfit changes to sunscreen and swimming wear to travel documents. If you are going for a longer holiday this is great for the plane and beach trips whilst you are away. You can fit everything you will need for a flight, from entertainment to all your important documents. For a day at the beach, you can fit in all your essentials, meaning no trips back to the resort. Allowing you to make the most of the beach!

Travel Adapter

Cheap holidays can soon turn out to be rather pricey if you turn up to the airport and realise that you haven’t got essentials such as a travel adapter. Airports charge a fortune for such items because they know holidaymakers will pay in desperate times. Prevent being out of pocket and make sure that you buy one beforehand. Either raid a pound shop or if you go to various destinations around the world, invest in an adapter which has multiple plug configurations, suitable for different countries. They may seem expensive at first, but work out cheaper in the long run! In some cases a multiple country adapter may cost the same as a single one from the airport. Bear this in mind!

Travel Wallet

Travel wallets are ideal for keeping all of your money, cards, and important documents together in one handy place. How many times have you ended up frantically looking around for your passport, because it is has made its way to the bottom of your bag, hiding from you? Cut out this stress and keep everything together. This is particularly handy for those who aren’t good with organisation.

SteriPen Ultraviolet Bacteria and Pathogen Killing Water Wand

When travelling out of the UK, you have to be careful with water. In the UK you can get water from a tap that is safe, however, in many countries abroad water from the taps are unsafe. If you don’t go all inclusive, cheap holidays can cost a fortune, as you will have to buy bottled water to drink. In hot places we need to drink more, as it is very important to stay hydrated, so the £1 bottles soon amount to lots of money! However, the SteriPen Ultraviolet Bacteria and Pathogen Killing Water Wand can make any water safe to drink in 48 seconds! How handy is that?

Mini First Aid Kit

Don’t go on holiday without a mini first aid kit, especially if you are going away with small children. Try and look for ones that are especially for travel, as they will often come with mosquito repellent and medication for unknown insect bites. Holidays can soon be ruined by bad reactions to insect bites, so prevent this from happening, by going prepared! 

(Photo courtesy of The Spark Blue-Glue)

What Does The Future Hold For Holidays

Cheap holidays could get even cheaper and not too far in the distant future. Not only will we be able to save substantial amounts of money but the planning and actually going on holiday will soon be a lot less stressful too. Soon, we will be able to turn up at the airport with no suitcase, hop on the plane and rest assured that our items are waiting for us at the destination. Sounds a little too good to be true? Read on!

3D Printing

This is all going to be made possible through an innovative concept that is 3D printing. High quality suitcases can be costly and put travellers over budget on cheap holidays before they even fly. However, this new method will soon see the back of suitcases and other travel luggage items, as you will soon be able to print everything that you will need.

Janne Kyttanen

Finnish artist, Janne Kyttanen, partnered up with 3D systems and designed a printable collection called ‘Lost Luggage’ featuring bags, shoes and dresses. He is an expert in 3D printing which enables the user to transmit designs and shapes over the internet, so that they can be physically replicated somewhere else. This collection was designed with the holidaymaker that is very time-conscious in mind, as it helps streamline an efficient travel process.

Inspiration

Kyttanen was inspired to create this collection by the Second World War and his own family’s struggles in Finland. Whilst in interview he said,

“Without warning, soldiers from the Soviet army forced my grandparents from their home by gunpoint,’ he explains. ‘For years my mind has raced with the fear and bewilderment they must have felt abandoning their home and possessions. I've always thought, if you had to decide on an impulse what to take with you, then what would your luggage look like in order to accommodate what you couldn't leave behind? What if luggage was obsolete? An antiquated thing of the past? Imagine if all we needed was scaled down to a digital file, and simply reproduced at any location. How would this change our relationship to physical objects?”

(http://www.dailymail.co.uk)

Did you know?

3D printing may seem very futuristic but the concept has actually been around since the 80’s but only came commercially available at feasible prices at the end of this decade. Renowned organisations such as Nike have had a play around with this technology, in order to reduce manufacturing costs, by allowing intricate and complex designs to be created on a large scale. Today, designs and shapes can be created in the following materials:

·         Paper

·         Plastic

·         Metal

·         Rubber

·         Plaster

The only question yet to be looked into and dealt with is what happens after the holiday? Once you have printed the entire contents of your suitcase, what happens with them when it’s time to hop on the plane and return home? Saying this, Kyttanen and his team have plenty of time to look into this and come up with a solution.

So, by 2027 we should all be able to enjoy cheap holidays without the added stress of packing and lugging around a suitcase! For your next holiday, discount centre and comparison websites are the best way to bag great deals. 

(Photo courtesy of National Holidays)

Top 6 Travel Apps You Must Get Your Hands On!

Planning a trip away with friends, a loved one or family can prove to be very challenging. Not only do we all want to grab great value cheap holidays but there is so much to plan in order for it to be a success.

Saying this, thanks to advancements in technology, efficient holiday planning can all be done from a smartphone, tablet or laptop all from the comfort of your bed or sofa. Not only are there numerous travel comparison websites and discount holiday centres to help you find the best possible deal but there also great apps that make your whole holiday experience less stressful and more enjoyable. These are explored below:

Flight Track

This app allows users to check the status of thousands of international flights, with slick, scalable maps and information about departure gates, if there are any delays and what we all dread, cancellations.

WeatherPro

Many of us book cheap holidays to escape to the sun, but even the hottest places do have rain, especially at certain times of the year. WeatherPro gives the user access to over two million weather reports in many geographical locations. The technology it uses is very accurate, so if the app predicts rain for your destination, make sure that your umbrella is with you!

XE Currency

First things first this app is FREE! So don’t bother with the other apps that charge you to install, as there really is no point, as this is quite simply the best! It is very accurate seeing as it uses live currency rates, which makes it no surprise that over 5 million people have already downloaded this app.

Packing Pro

Knowing what to pack for cheap holidays can become a nightmare! However, don’t fret, as Packing Pro will become your new best friend. Tell the app where you are going, the duration, who with and it will suggest everything that you will need to pack. This ensures that you don’t pack to much or too little.

Sunscreen

The red lobster look will never come into fashion nor is it good for your skin and overall health. Download this app and you will know just when you need to top up your sunscreen. Input your skin type and the SPF of the cream you are using and once it has identified the UVI rating in the location you are in, the app will set a timer that will alert you when you need to apply more protection. 

Trip Advisor

Last but by no means least let’s look into Trip Advisor. When looking into cheap holidays, it is a good idea to check hotels, apartments, resorts etc. on Trip Advisor and read reviews before fully committing to a deal. This will also come in very handy if you are torn between deals and need help choosing one. It also finds interesting things to do around your destination and places to eat if you are not travelling all inclusive.

So after you have used an online centre for discount holidays and managed to grab yourself a great deal, make sure that you download these handy apps, to prevent that headache that often occurs when trying to sort everything out!

(Photo courtesy of Holiday Tips)