Whether you are holidaying at home in the UK or abroad, where you stay is a key decision to make when booking your holiday. Choosing the right hotel can make the difference between a good holiday and a fantastic holiday. There are several factors you should consider when booking your holiday to ensure you end up staying in a hotel that suits you.
First of all, and perhaps most importantly, location. Where you stay can make or break your holiday. Sometimes, looking at a hotel website can be slightly misleading as often websites will quote they are a short walk from the city centre or the beach, only to find upon arrival that it is actually a good 45 minute walk. We recommend checking the hotel on Google Maps - many websites will have this facility built in but if not, find their post code and search manually. You can then see if the claims are really true and if you would be close enough/far enough from the facilities than you want to be. For many, being close to amenities is key. If you are only on holiday for a week, you don't want to be spending alot of your time walking to and from the shops/beach/bars - delete as appropriate. Others may want to be outside the hustle and bustle of a tourist resort and so in this case it is good to find somewhere outside the busiest areas. So - the old saying "location location location" is true when booking your holiday.
Secondly, the quality and facilities a hotel offers are obviously important. You can usually get a rough guide from the star rating of a hotel - generally if you want somewhere fairly nice a 3* or 4* hotel should be OK. However you do sometimes see 2* hotels that are arguably better than 3* hotels - it can really depend. Of course if you are on more of a budget, look around for cheaper hotels or hostels. Look for facilities that may be important to you - usually a hotel should advertise features like a swimming pool or gym prominently on their site.
Thirdly - price. This should usually go hand in hand with the facilities and location. A city centre hotel will usually be more than a similar hotel on the outskirts of town, and a posh hotel will usually be more expensive than a more downmarket hotel. Price is of course important as unfortunately most of us must have a budget on holiday. So set a limit for your price range andsearch for a hotel accordingley. If you are set on being in the centre of the action, you may have to comprimise on the facilities/star rating. Similiarly, if you want to be in an upmarket establishment, you may have to comprimise on location if you can't afford both. It's a trade off.
The Travel Directory has a great selection of hotels, hostels and villas for many holiday destinations in the UK and abroad. Browse the catagories in the left hand side for hotels and holiday businesses in your holiday destination.
If you have a hotel and want to submit your site in our directory, visit the submit a site page if you want a listing or email us at: thetraveldirectory@gmail.com if you have any questions.