When You Travel, Don't Forget to Make Reservations

The past few weeks I have been travelling like crazy. Within just 14 days, I was travelling from Bacolod to Cebu to Mactan to Manila and back to Bacolod then to Iloilo and back again. The great thing about it is that I was travelling alone and with a limited budget and with no contact persons to help me find a place where I can stay, the internet became my best friend. Through the web I was able to book tickets, browse over maps and surf through available hotels in the area and made reservations. Nowadays, online reservation is the most convenient way. When I booked my plane ticket to Manila, I had it done online and what I carried was only an e-ticket. So even if I lose the e-ticket I can just let the counter browse over my name, present to the counter a valid i.d. then get my boarding pass. Whereas if you lose your paper ticket, then you really lose your ticket.

Hotel reservation is another thing and online reservation is really very helpful. There are many online sites which offer various services when it comes to hotel reservation. During one of my surfing, I was able to come across a site called Hotel Reservations. While going over the site, I immediately realized that this site is great for international travellers and tourists. What I loved about the site is a feature called Road trip search which suggests fantastic destinations just a short drive from where you are.

If you are planning to take a vacation in the U.S. or Europe, Hotel Reservations is the best site you can use to make your hotel reservations in advance. The website alone is already simple to navigate and very user-friendly. You can either book online or call their office. Their numbers are prominently displayed in the site, easy for travellers and tourist to access from anywhere in the world. If you don't know of any particular hotel to stay, you can search for an available hotel in your area of destination. Simply key in the dates you are planning to spend in your area of destination, the number of rooms you may need or persons with you and the site will give you a list of hotels available.

A list of hotels will be displayed and you can choose from the list. Included is a picture of the hotel, the rates and other information you may need. Once you have chosen a hotel, you can then book it online. You can even make your search more specific like you intend to stay in a hotel with swimming pools available or fitness centers available. The search results will also tell you the number of rooms available and even a map of the locality so you can have directions to the hotel.

The same site offers more than just hotel reservations. They also offer vacation packages, flight reservations and even car rentals. All of these can make your trip or vacation easy and worry-free. And what is great with Hotel Reservations is that you can save as much as 70%!

If you are still in the planning stage of your travel, the same site offers a Destination Guide which can give you some sort of an idea about each place you may want to go to. In fact it has an interesting review about the Philippines. It gives you a city-by-city guide about the place. For example, if you wish to go to Bacolod, if gives you a picture of the city from a tourist's viewpoint, including some practicalities like how to get to the airport or the nearest seaport.

"Bacolod Airport is 5km south of the city on Araneta Street. Turn left outside the airport to pick up a jeepney going to the city (P20). WG&A and Negros Navigation both sail from Manila to Bacolod. There are also regular departures between Bacolod and Iloilo, Cebu City and Cagayan de Oro in Mindanao. Sea Angels runs fast ferries from Bacolod to Iloilo. Ferries arrive at and depart from Banago Wharf , north of the city on San Juan street. From the Ceres North Terminal on Lopez Jaena Street in Bacolod there are local buses to Dumaguete, Silay, Victorias and other coastal towns on the Negros Coastal Road. It's 313km to Dumaguete and the trip takes about eight hours. Make sure you take an express bus, which avoids many stops at the barrios. There's also a service that travels clockwise around Negros starting from Bacolod and calling at towns en route before boarding a roll on-roll-off ferry for Toledo on the western coast of Cebu and continuing on to Cebu City."

Of course, it gives you the listing of all hotels available in the area.

The same site also gives you information on tourist spots in a particular area, including where to dine, where to party and including money matters and costs. It also gives you a picture of your destination's safety, public holidays, festivities and even medical care and emergency facilities, all information which a first-timer tourist or traveller might find very very important.

You can also make group bookings. So if you are planning a wedding or a business seminar or a reunion with friends, the HotelReservation.com will help you find a hotel in a destination of your choice.

I am very much convinced that HotelReservations.com is another useful tool for tourists and backpackers. It offers more than just hotel reservation. So for those who are in the mood for travelling, try using hotelreservation.com and hope to see you here in Bacolod just in time for the Masskara Festival!