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By admin, September 3, 2010 1:31 pm

You’ve finally decided you and your family on going to take that long awaited dream vacation in Hawaii. You’ve decided that you want to go the vacation rental route for numerous reasons: privacy, comfort, location and cost effectiveness. Next, you probably Googled Oahu Vacation Rentals and are faced with the daunting task of choosing among some 175,000 web sites. Where to begin? Here’s two secrets that will help you make the right choice so you can enjoy your stay in Hawaii to its fullest.

Secret One: Use a reservation service. There are several reasons for this. First, a single property vacation rental listing by owner will severely limit you to the dates that you can take your vacation. Vacation rental properties in Hawaii run nearly 90% occupancy, so unless you know your travel dates six months to a year out the odds are high that their property won’t be available for the travel dates you had in mind. Second, the owner is only concerned with booking their own property so they will extol the virtues of their vacation rental and not mention any of the faults.

Secret Two: Make the right choice of reservation service. Make sure it is locally owned and operated. Websites like vrbo and findrentals (for instance) don’t have a clue about geography, weather, attractions, events and the other necessary information required to give you the property that best fills your needs. For instance, let’s say you want to whale watch but also want to vacation on Oahu. Your reservation service should be able to tell you that you need to stay on the windward side of the island if you want to see the whales. Another tip-off of services to avoid are those that do automated, credit card bookings. Steer clear of these services as this implies they aren’t interested in talking to you, they just want your money. Be wary of sites that have more than 100 properties….there aren’t that many decent selections on Oahu, or any of the other Hawaiian islands, on the market. The more a service exceeds 100 properties, the greater the odds you’ll end up in an overpriced, undesirable vacation rental. Here’s another great hint. If a reservation service states that they have hotels or condos available in Kailua, or will have them soon, choose another service. Since, by zoning law, Kailua does not allow hotels or condos, you should realize that once again, this is a service that wants your money, not your piece of mind. Always ask the reservation service person you are talking to where they are located. Someone based in Las Vegas or Los Angeles won’t have a clue about how to give you the best property for the vacation experience you have in mind.

With the standard vacation rental property terms being no refunds after you’ve paid your deposit, you absolutely want to make sure you make the right choice. A good reservation service will ask you questions about what you want to do and see on your vacation and will actually try and talk you out of a property you had in mind if they don’t think it appropriate to what you had in mind. This is not an attempt to upsell you, it’s more a matter of matching your vacation desires and needs with the perfect choice of vacation rental venue. One vacation rental reservation service that meets all these requirements is Pacific Islands Reservations. They are owned and operated by Ingrid Carvalho, who was born and raised in the islands, as were her parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. She has been serving visitors to Hawaii vacation rental needs since 1996. She currently represents ninety vacation rentals on Oahu and another 90 vacation rentals on Maui, Kauai and the Big Island. She has actually been to each and every property she represents–she even took most of the photographs of the vacation rentals you see on her web sites. She doesn’t take credit cards but she’s happy to spend time talking with you to make sure you get the right property to maximize the value and enjoyment of your vacation.

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By admin, July 29, 2010 6:44 am

One of the most challenging aspects of planning a trip to an unfamiliar destination is the booking of your hotels accommodation. When you try to search for the ideal hotel, you may be overwhelmed by the sheer number of hotels that vie for your attention. 

Selecting a hotel that suits your expectations is important to get the most out of your entire trip, as a good hotel can complement your visit with the right amenities and location. Also, expensive hotels may not always be the best choices when it comes to good service and convenience as there have been great improvements in hotel standards all around. Hence, some research is needed to select the hotel that is right for you, with the following helpful tips below to aid your search. 

Setting your hotel budget 

Setting a budget for your trip should involve deciding how much of it would go towards spending on your accommodation. This would help you to shortlist an accommodation type which you would be most comfortable with, whether it is cheap budget hotels or more expensive four and five-star hotels. Thus, it would be much easier to continue your hotel search within this smaller field. 

Besides looking at the room rates of various hotels, you should also bear in mind their inclusions (or lack thereof) in the room rates to get a more accurate picture of what exactly you are paying for. These inclusions can be meals, facility use, in-house movies or parking fees, to name a few. 

Choosing a good location 

Choosing a good location for your hotel is essential for getting the most out of your hotel stay. Before doing so, do consider the purpose of your visit. If your visit comprises mostly of sightseeing or business in a certain area, you can consider choosing a hotel in the vicinity. This would help you to save on potentially expensive commuting costs. Staying near public transport networks is also a good idea if you rely heavily on public transport for travel. 

Another factor that you may like to consider is the noise levels of the hotel’s surroundings. If you would like to relax in a quieter environment, do consider a location further from the main traffic and nightlife areas to enjoy an uninterrupted night’s rest. 

Considering what amenities you need 

When booking your hotel, you should also consider what kinds of amenities you need that would be helpful to your trip and which ones you are willing to forego. This will assist in your hotel selection such that you only choose the one that provides you with the most convenience. 

For example, you might want to consider a hotel with 24-hour room service if you wish to satisfy your hunger at night without purchasing many snacks. If easy accessibility to the airport or downtown areas is what you need, you might wish to consider a hotel with shuttle services to these areas. 

The range of amenities in the hotel should also meet your needs, so be sure to check if it has gyms, spas, swimming pools, conference facilities or other facilities that you need. Lastly, an important consideration when you are bringing your family on your travels is whether the hotel has family-friendly amenities and services such as children’s activity or day care centres and swimming pools for children.

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By admin, July 19, 2010 6:37 am

No matter whether you are out on a honeymoon or just to have fun by visiting some touring destinations, one thing that you have to be quite serious about is choosing a right hotel for you as well as your friends and family. Of course, since people will be looking forward to find star hotels based on two factors like quality and budget, this task could be quite difficult to do. However, there are also some cases, wherein people have been successful in finding top quality hotels or self serviced apartment within their budget. Hence, of course there will be some tips in order to find good hotels within the budget.

Given below are some tips to consider for finding a perfect hotel.

Knowing what you want is the first thing that you have to do before choosing a hotel. In fact, you could also go through the reviews posted by the visitors to those hotels. Going through the reviews is the best thing to do in order to get to know about the reputation and quality of service of any hotel. These reviews posted on the quality of deal offered by all sorts of hotels including lodges, self serviced apartments, luxury hotels, Bed and Breakfasts, Star hotels and of course budget hotels, will be available over the internet. Almost all budget or star hotels will be rated with some number of stars out of five. The more number of stars will tell you that the star hotels are absolutely worthy to choose. However, in most of the cases, as the number of stars increase, the prices of the luxury hotels also increase. That does not mean that you will not be able to find top bread and breakfast hotels within your budget. In fact, all that you have to do in order to find the top budget hotels to carry out a brief research.

You might be quite confused regarding how to get to know about the quality of hotel you are dealing with. If this is the case, then make just sure whether the hotel or lodges that you are looking forward to choose are offering the following facilities

. – Luxurious air conditioned rooms- Outlet adapters available – Equipped with Audio Visuals – Conference suite – Currency exchange – Electronic key – Concierge services – Laundry room – Gift shop – Hi-speed internet access – Free parking services – Complimentary dining services – Fitness centers and health clubs

In fact, when you are quite used to traveling, you might be of course aware of all top star hotels and budget hotels located in various places. When you are not much sure about where exactly to find the reviews posted about various star hotels, lodges or self serviced apartments, then one piece of advice for you is to make the most of the benefits offered by the search engines. Once you have enjoyed the service of any of the top budget hotels or lodges, make sure to leave your comment, as it could help some other people to find perfect star hotels, which suit their pocket. Obviously, you will be able to find hundreds of hotels in all major touring destinations of the world. Picking one among them will be a difficult task if and only if you are new to a particular destination. On such cases, feel free to take the advice of some people who have already visited that place for quite a few times.

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By admin, May 19, 2010 3:01 pm

Nowadays, choosing the right hotel to stay in is quite a challenge. With the multitude of promotions, deals and programs that can be found in the Internet as well as in hotel brochures, one can find it too overwhelming. Sometimes, the way it was presented on the website was too good to be true. So you ask yourself,” How will I know if the hotel I have chosen is indeed “The One?”

We all know that every traveler has different needs when searching for a hotel. Some of these needs are the hotel’s proximity to commercial establishments; the price is within the planned budget, a swimming pool for the kids to enjoy or a spa for an ultimate relaxation. According to the combined wisdom of several online websites dedicated to travellers, the following are the common determining factors in choosing a hotel:-

Price: There are several websites that offer major booking online that gives you the option to sort your results by price (i.e. Travelocity.) Travellers may opt to use the booking engines to see what’s available and test rates, and then go straight to the hotel’s website to book directly. Most hotels guarantee the lowest rate when you book on their website.

Location: Determine if the hotel you will be staying in is near to your favourite place such as the shopping malls, boutiques, parks, restaurants and bars. Websites like Kayak and PlacetoStay will allow you to check out the location map of the hotel of your choice. This will help save your travel time and maximize your time to unwind.

Amenities: Are you a fitness buff? Are you a swimming enthusiast? Or want to have some gastronomic experience? Hotels.com and Travelocity websites make the process easier by allowing you to compare several hotels side by side so you can easily weigh which hotels offer the best fitness center, swimming pool and restaurant.

Family-Friendliness: Travelling with the kids is the perfect time for family bonding. Before taking the kids with you on a trip, you’ll want to check for both special deals and family-friendly policies. You may check out the websites like Family Vacation.com or family travel deals to review the latest family hotel and resort. This will give your family an experience of a lifetime.

Luxury: Want to experience luxury at its finest? Check out the websites like Leading Hotels of the Wold and Five Star Alliance. Who knows, you might be rubbing elbows with the rich and famous.

Ambiance and Local Flavor: Choose an environment that would best suit your personality. If you find the standard hotels boring rather than interesting and you are looking for some alternative hideaway, well, you may choose to stay in bed and breakfast, home exchanges, and homestay/farmstay. And if you still want to try something that is out of the ordinary like staying in a tree house or an igloo, you may visit the website, Unusual Hotels of the World. A bizarre but interesting experience indeed.

Loyalty Programs and Frequent Flier Miles: Traveling and staying in a hotel is not all splurging your hard-earned money. It should also come with practicality. If you are a member of a frequent flier program, it would be better if you join a hotel loyalty program. Not only can you earn points toward a future hotel stay, but you may also be able to accumulate miles if your hotel is partnered with your frequent flier program. You may inquire your hotel or airline Web site to see a list of qualifying partners. Many programs also allow you to redeem points for other purchases, such as cruises, car rentals and entertainment.

Eco-Friendliness: If you prefer hotels that has a minimal environmental impact, check out the websites of Green Globe and Green Hotels Association. It will make Mother Nature very happy.

There may be a lot of choices of the hotels that may best suit your needs. However, at the end of the day, what really matter is for you to have a truly enjoyable hotel experience that is worth remembering.

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By admin, January 30, 2010 2:55 am

When you are planning an overseas trip, choosing and making reservations for your hotels accommodation can be a tedious and frustrating process, especially if you are a first-time visitor. The selection of hotels available is often mind-boggling, and may leave you clueless as to how to go about picking one that is right for you. 

It is paramount that your accommodation can live up to expectations, as you not only are recharged after a good night’s rest, your holiday or business trip can also be complemented by a good location and appropriate amenities. It is also more common nowadays to witness good service from cheaper hotels; hence the most expensive options may not always be the best. Here are some tips to help you select the right hotel. 

Plan your hotel budget 

When planning your total trip budget, you should ask yourself how much you are willing to spend on your hotels. This will determine which categories of accommodation would be the most suitable for you, be it cheap, middle-ranged or five-star hotels. This would effectively narrow down the field so that you need only consider the hotels in that category. 

When studying the prices of different hotels, you should also examine whether important amenities and extras such as meals, in-house movies and parking costs are inclusive in the room rate. This is so that you can better gauge the true cost of booking a hotel. 

Select a good location 

The next step is to select a hotel location that would be ideal for you. If accessibility to main tourist or business hotspots is important to you, you should consider hotels which are near the specific places which you will be going to. While hotels in the downtown or near major attractions could be more expensive, you will still save on time and money for taking transport to these places. If you are using public transport to get around, it would be advisable to stay near a train or bus station. 

If you are a light sleeper, prefer a more peaceful environment or are just seeking a good night’s sleep, it would be a good idea to avoid areas with a high density of nightlife, activities and traffic.

Consider only hotels with the right amenities 

Before you place your hotel booking, you might want to think about which amenities would be essential to your trip and which ones you do not need. This will facilitate your decision-making process by only choosing a hotel that gives you maximum convenience. 

For instance, round-the-clock room service is recommended if you do not wish to carry many snacks with you. If you require transport to the airport or downtown areas and do not want to rely on public transport, shuttle services to these locations would be welcome.

Ensure that the in-hotel amenities can sufficiently meet your relaxation, fitness or business needs in the form of spas, fitness centres or business facilities respectively. Last but not least, family-friendly amenities such as kids’ activity centres and children’s pools are very helpful if you are bringing along your family.