According to a researcher from Which? Holiday, Kate Shipp, holidaymakers are finding that booking holidays online is far more convenient than visiting the high street travel agents.

The internet now allows travellers to book accommodation, flights, car hire and everything else they need for their holiday easily and quickly.

The Which? Holiday researcher said:

“You can do everything without having to leave your desk or your office. And it’s also about being able to compare things quickly on price and choice.”

Searching for bargain holidays or luxury holidays online has become far more flexible in recent years.  You can now tailor your holiday to suit your needs and can book your hotel and flight separately online, yet still have the benefit of booking through an ATOL protected travel provider without the hassle of going down to the high street, where often they no longer have brochures anyway because the flight prices change so frequently nowadays.

The high street travel agent still has its place for those who are not so tech-savvy, however, more and more consumers are preferring to sit at home with their family round a computer to find and book their holiday rather than sitting with a travel agent at their computer.

Results from a recent survey showed that approximately 46 percent of British holidaymakers were planning a holiday break during May.  A quarter of those surveyed said that they were planning a weekend break, 18 percent said they would take a full week’s holiday and 10 percent were planning just a one day getaway.

The British are also looking to enjoy a variety of activities in May as well.  16 percent of people planned to visit a cultural attraction, 13 percent would be on the beach and 12 percent intend to visit national parks.

You might imagine that we are all happy about having two bank holidays in May, however, the survey asked about Bank Holidays and two thirds of those surveyed said they wanted to see the public holidays spread more evenly throughout the year.

Even those who are planning just a short break, even if they would not be taking flights, should ensure they have travel insurance as you can still experience holiday problems in the UK and be covered.  According to PHA Travel, around 30 percent of travellers are likely to experience holiday problems.

For those Brits who are considering doing a DIY or ‘do-it-yourself’ holiday without assistance from an ATOL protected travel operator are being warned about the risks involved.

Many people are tempted to book their flights, accommodation and car hire separately and directly themselves, however, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has warned that this may mean they will not be covered by the CAA’s ATOL scheme.

ATOL stands for Air Travel Organiser’s Licensing protection scheme and it means that when you book your holiday with the assistance of an ATOL protected company, usually (more…)

The city of Granada is in Andalucia in Spain, in the low hills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  Granada is a wonderful, historic city to visit and Andalucia is a popular area.  The imposing Alhambra palace overlooks the city.  The Alhambra is a Moorish palace that dates back to 1238 and was built by Muhammed I when he took control of the Granada city.

Granada quickly became a Moorish state of Spain and the finest art and architecture was the result.  The Alhambra nowadays is a series of halls and courtyards, decorated with ornate stucco, wood carvings, paintings and patterns of colourful glazed tiles. (more…)

Barcelona is not only a bargain holiday at most times of the year and the perfect city break, but it is also one of the easiest to get to with the cheapest flights and one of the busiest tourist attracting cities in Europe.

There are major events and festivals in this city all year round, so much so that it is difficult to decide when is the best time of year to go.  In fact, it is one of the few cities that people want to visit at various times of year as it attracts returning holidaymakers year after year, with each trip a different experience. (more…)

On the 21st May 2008, the UEFA Championship League Final will make its way to the capital of Russia, Moscow.  The final is to be hosted at the Luzhniki Stadium.  Moscow is a city that many people would say they never thought they would visit, but now it is open to tourists and is fast becoming a cosmopolitan luxury holiday destination.

Moscow has never hosted a European Championship Final (more…)

Lisbon is perfect for a bargain holiday or short city break to Portugal, although a few days may not seem enough when you begin to explore this European city.

Lisbon is a harbour town at the mouth of the river Tagus (Tejo) and you cannot miss the Praca do Comercio square with its distinguished buildings at the riverfront.  The harbour is still in use today as it has been for over 3,000 years.  Portugal was an incredibly wealthy nation in the fifteenth century as the harbour was used on the sea route to India and made huge profits.  However, by the seventeeth century Portugal was in decline. (more…)

Pamukkale is about 13 miles (20 km) north of Denizli in Turkey, not far from the airport at Izmir.  Pamukkale means ‘cotton fortress’, so named because according to legend, this is where the Titans spread out their cotton crop to dry.

Pamukkale is actually a huge white cliff beneath a volcanic plateau, from which water pours in every direction.  The water appears as though milk because it is full of calcium carbonate and other minerals, which creates terraces and basins.  The terraces appear completely white as the water coats everything in white mineral deposits. (more…)

Jerusalem is not only an archaeologists dream luxury holiday but has many attractions and sites, too many to list here but we will run through a few of them.

For the sightseers, one trip not to be missed is the Hass Promenade at the top of the hills of East Talpiot, from where you can see the entire landscape of Jerusalem and the skyline of the new city.  Jerusalem is also known as ‘the City of Peace’ and is one of the holiest, and oldest, cities in the world.

The old town, as you might expect, is a mass of white stone across hilltops and the old city is (more…)

Despite rising costs of living and financial problems facing many consumers this year, most British parents still intend to take their family on a holiday this year according to a survey of more than 1000 people. Mychild.co.uk is an online information website for parents and conducted the research earlier this year. A huge 95 percent of their respondents said that they were definitely or very probably going to take their family on a holiday this year. (more…)