As one Russian author said: "My favorite topic is travelling. No matter where the place is, no matter what time it is. Travelling is something that worth living for, writing books about... It goes without saying that everything can gradually make you feel bored of live. All the situations are repeated. The only question that is always new: what place will I visit next?"
Most of us cannot wait for summer to come( even though it ended just 3 months ago), for holidays, for Christmas, New Year and other stuff that prevents us from going to work, attending school or university. Many of us have used to package travelling. Everything seems very simple and convenient: you come to the travel agency, tell the place where you would like to go, the star rate of the hotel you want to live in, the dates and so on. I'm sure you know how the procedure goes next.
BUT... Have you ever thought how much do you pay extra for this service? Especially when you go to the country for the second/third time?
I will give you an example: This summer I've decided to spend the weekend in Prague with my mum. We went to the travel agency and named the exact hotel( my favorite one) we wanted to stay in. They said : if you want "a convenient flight" (so that the flight to Prague is in the morning and back in the evening) you have to pay more. The price of the tour without any excursions was incredible. In the end we booked the "convenient" tickets, the hotel, taxi by ourselves. And we paid 750 euro less!
So how to organize a self-trip?
1.Tickets
You can book a ticket via internet. It is easy. You choose the airline, your destination and the time. If the something about your flight changes, the information will come immediately to your e-mail. There are also airlines who give discounts , special offers.
http://www.aeroflot.ru/cms/en/special_offers
https://www.tripit.com/
http://www.austrian.com/Info/Book/AdvantagesOnlineBooking.aspx?sc_lang=en&cc=AU
2. Hotel
When you book a hotel via travel agency you are usually asked to pay per person. Booking by yourself, you pay per room.
booking.com
hotels.com
hrs.com
3. Visa
It does not take a long time to find an application form on the website of the embassy, is it? You just the filled questioner and the photo to the embassy, give them your passports and.... the are ready in a small period of time
4.Taxi
It is also easy too book online or at the airport. Taxi driver will give you his telephone number and will be waiting for you after the green corridor.
5. Excursions
Practically in every city you can take a city-tour bus( sightseeing bus).One of the advantages of these buses is that you can choose the language you would like to hear the speech of guide in. The tickets are usually valid for 2-3 days, so you can get off whenever and wherever you want in order to visit the museum or to walk down the streets of the district of the city. The interval between buses is about 20-30 minutes.
It should be noticed that many hotels provide a range of excursion too. And it is cheaper than in travel agency.
Undoubtly, it is up to you to decide which type of travelling to choose. Nevertheless, in my opinion, if you visit the country for the first time it would be better to book a package holiday but if you have been to that place before there is no need to pay extra. And in this case you are your own travel agent!!!!
Enjoy your vacations!
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