💻 Whether I’m traveling solo, with friends or with family, 99% of the time I’m usually the one to plan pretty much the entire trip. What can I say, it just comes natural to me lol. Lucky for my friends and family because if you’ve ever planned any trips before, you know how much work and time goes into it!
Below are some of my favorite resources for planning upcoming trips!
ACCOMMODATIONS
Booking.com – My go-to site and app for booking hotels (nowadays I’m noticing more and more hostels, apartments, and co-living houses as well). They have a loyalty program with different tiers; the higher the tier the better the perks and discounts. I also love that I can chat directly with the hotel that I book through the messaging function on the app.
Hotels.com – Another great option for searching for hotels and joining a loyalty program. They offer 1 free night for every 10 nights stay. Whether you join booking.com or hotels.com’s loyalty program, I suggest picking and sticking to one or the other so that you can gain nights/points quicker.
Agoda – A popular hotel search engine in Asia. The only time I might book a hotel NOT on booking.com would be for Agoda. I occasionally find cheaper prices for the same hotel on Agoda than on booking.com when planning travel in Asia.
Hostelworld – The largest and probably most popular platform to book hostels.
Vrbo – Great for booking vacation homes and long-term stays!
Airbnb – Depending on where I’m traveling to, I often prefer Airbnbs over staying at hotels because I like staying where the locals and cute neighborhoods are and having an actual apartment vs. a hotel room. Although, as mentioned above, I’m starting to see more and more apartments on sites such as booking.com. I’ve also noticed in certain regions (such as Mexico), the taxes and fees on Airbnb have become outrageous which deters me more and more from using Airbnb as much as I used to.
FLIGHTS
Expedia – A popular search engine for flights, hotels, and more. Expedia pulls information from different sites making it easy for you to compare prices and different options in one place. Expedia often offers last-minute deals, 24-hour free cancellations, and the option to make payment plans through Affirm.
Kayak – My go-to site and app to start my initial flight search. Kayak is a great tool for travelers with flexibility as they have an option to explore anywhere if you’re open to different destinations and you can search by entire months if you’re flexible with dates as well. They also offer the ability to combine 2 one-way flights within the same itinerary.
WayAway – Aggregates flights from different sites making it easy to find the best and cheap flights. With a small annual fee, WayAway also gives you cash back for booking flights and hotels!
Skyscanner – A travel search engine that pulls flights prices from different sites making it easy for you to compare prices and flight times in one place. Skyscanner is especially great for travelers with flexibility. They have an option to select ‘explore everywhere’ if you’re open to different destinations and you can search by entire months if you’re also flexible with dates.
TRAINS & BUSES
Omio – Find the cheapest way to get to your destination with Omio which provides train, bus, and shared ride options for easy comparison. This is widely used throughout Europe but also operates in US and Canada.
Busbud – Search and compare cheap bus and train options through Busbud which has the largest global coverage for bus routes.
RENTAL CARS
Discover Cars – Operating worldwide, Discover Cars is a reliable source for searching for and booking great deals for rental cars. Pro tip: Be sure to check the ratings for the rental car company on Discover Cars as well as on Google maps for the location you are looking to rent from. Check out the newest reviews on that specific location.
TOURS
Viator – My go-to site to search for tours and excursions! They offer a vast amount of options with several customer reviews which helps verify the quality and experience of the tours.
Get Your Guide – Another popular site to search for tours and excursions that is widely used in throughout Europe but operates globally as well.
TRAVEL INSURANCE
SafetyWing – Protect yourself with reasonably priced travel and medical insurance. SafetyWing was built by nomads and specifically for nomads.
VISAS
iVisa – Check iVisa if a visa is required for your destination. You can also purchase visas through here as well but I would recommend double checking the local government visa websites. It might be cheaper going through the latter.
RESEARCH
TripAdvisor – Great resource to see reviews and ratings for tours, hotels, restaurants, and more.
PACKING
Away – Get $20 off on your first purchase with my referral link! This is the suitcase I have and use and I love it! It’s design is very chic, they have multiple colors to choose from, the wheels roll ever so smoothly, they have hard cases and soft, you can choose to include a battery pack, and they have a lifetime warranty for suitcases!
Osprey backpack – A great brand to consider for travel or hiking backpacks. I’ve used my Osprey backpack for years and it’s proven to be functional and durable. Travel backpacks are a great option to use over suitcases when traveling to places where you’ll be moving around to multiple places or dealing with cobblestone streets (although they’re so cute they’re also a pain to roll your suitcases on lol).
Airpod Pro – Bluetooth earbuds are a must when traveling (and in general 😄). I love my AirPod Pro and let me tell you having the noise cancellation feature during flights with crying babies is a godsend 😂.
Amazon – Check out my travel essentials on my Amazon storefront!