It can pay to do some research before you buy, so here are some sites to comparison shop, check out hotels and seek out bargains
Andy Riga
Sun
Packaged vacations, which can include flights, hotels, meals, rental cars and more, are as popular as ever, with travellers looking to save money and the bother of organizing their own holidays, especially of the sun variety.
With the busy winter-holiday and spring-break seasons approaching, we offer a look at some sites that will help you start shopping.
The Web is where people research and book their packaged holidays for popular destinations such as Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. Even if you plan to go through a trusty travel agent, the Web can help. You can:
– Comparison shop. What are other operators charging for similar packages on the same dates? Does another company offer deals to the same resort?
– Find last-minute deals. Sign up for regular e-mail newsletters featuring coming specials and special alerts for last-minute deals.
– Look for reviews of tour operators and individual hotels and resorts. Some booking sites offer only a few pictures and a short description. Always do your own follow-up research. Go online and find the resort or hotel’s own site, then search out reviews. To start, simply type the full name of the hotel or resort in Google (in quotation marks) and see what pops up.
First, though, you’ll have to see what’s out there:
Uniglobe (www.uniglobetrips.com). This is the most confusing site we looked at, but we’re starting with it because it offers so much useful information.
It’s in the form of a primer (found on the front page), titled: All-inclusive resorts: top 10 questions to ask before you book. Questions include: What’s really included?, What’s on the menu? and What are the rooms like? After each question, you’ll find related information you should think about before booking.
Click on “Click here to see all tips,” for more practical advice on such topics as travelling with kids, pets and laptops.
The site is confusing because before you can search for vacations, you must pick a bricks-and-mortar travel agency to deal with using a “agency locator” on the front page. After that, click Vacations to browse all-inclusive packages.
Expedia.ca. Head for the Packages section, where you can choose to build your own package or scan trips packaged by several of the biggest tour operators in Canada. Your personalized package can include hotel, flight, car rental, insurance and attraction tickets. Click on Deals, then Package Deals to see what’s on sale. Sign up for the Bon Voyage e-mail newsletter.
Travelocity.ca. Click on Vacations to go to a screen that lets you create a discounted custom vacation that includes flight and hotel and, if you like, rental car and attraction tickets. Unfortunately, for some reason the prices displayed are in U.S. dollars, making comparisons more complicated than necessary. Go to the Last Minute Deals for special offers. Travelocity offers FareWatcher, a free e-mail service that tracks the lowest round-trip fares for up to five city pairs of your choice.
Like Expedia, Travelocity is a subsidiary of a big U.S. company and won’t let you book vacations in Cuba, a no-go-zone for the U.S. government.
Signature Vacations (www.signaturevacations.com). A veteran of the Canadian all-inclusive scene, this company has a long list of destinations. Click on Special Packages for a list of trips based on your needs — seniors, short stays and weddings, for example. The Deals page shows specials for your departure city. The site has a useful “My Signature” service. Sign up and you can easily keep track of the resorts and specials you’re considering.
Sunquest Vacations (www.sunquest.ca). Another big, long-time player, this company has added Quebec City as a departure city and three new destinations to its list — St. Kitts, Barbados and Samana in the Dominican Republic. Click on Deal of the Day and Hot Deals for the latest specials. My Personal Brochure is where you register if you want to be able to save your research.
Air Canada Vacations (www.aircanadavacations.com). Anyone who has used Air Canada’s cumbersome flight-booking page will appreciate this service. Perhaps because the options are less numerous, the vacations site is uncluttered and fast. Click on Hot Deals for specials on trips with departure dates within the next few weeks.
Transat Holidays (www.transatholidays.com). Another old-timer, this company’s site lets you store information for future reference. There, you can pack away your favourite holiday offers. The site does a good job of dividing its destinations by category (click on Holiday Ideas), such as adults-only, family-friendly, singles, golf, and more.
Nolitours (www.nolitours.com). Owned by the same company as Transat Holidays, this company goes to some different destinations. The site will sell to you directly but also offers 10 Good Reasons to Choose a Travel Agent. Top reason: Personal and professional advice from an experienced adviser.
Go Travel Direct (www.gotraveldirect.com). The crisp, easy-to-use site offers some nice touches, such as short videos about its destinations, links to zoomable satellite pictures of golf courses near the resorts it deals with, and an e-newsletter to advertise special offers.
Sunwing Vacations (www.sunwing.ca). This Toronto-based operator, in business since 1985, flies out of a number of Canadian cities. Its destinations include Cuba, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Panama and Florida. Click on Sell Offs to see specials, organized by departure city, destination and date. Sign up for its “hot deal” mailing list.
WestJet Vacations (www.westjetvacations.com). WestJet’s recently launched packaged-deal division. The airline recently added the Bahamas to its list of destinations.
Sell Off Vacations (www.selloffvacations.com). Scan discounted deals from several major tour operators.
© The Vancouver Sun 2006
