Cheap Vacation Travel Packages versus Independent Budget Travel

							Title:
Cheap Vacation Travel Packages vers
us Independent Budget Travel

Word Count:
543

Summary:
When planning your next vacation, i
t is important to compare the price
s between an all-inclusive vacation
 package and independently booking
your airfare, hotels, and events.


Keywords:
budget travel, cheap vacation packa
ges, travel, vacation package


Article Body:
When traveling on a budget, one of
the most often asked questions is w
hether it is best to travel indepen
dently, reserving your own airfare,
 hotel stay and sightseeing reserva
tions, or choose a package tour whe
re everything is set up for you in
advance.

Unfortunately, there is no easy ans
wer to this question. It is largel
y dependent on the location you hav
e selected and dates of travel. Fo
r instance, travel to European dest
inations are often less costly to b
ook on your own, especially when th
e airlines are running specials of
European airfares in the off-season
.

On the other hand, travel to many e
xotic locations, like Egypt, Morocc
o, Kenya, South Africa, Thailand, a
nd India, are often much less expen
sive when booked through a vacation
 package company or travel agent.
That is because these tour operator
s often have special deals with the
 national airlines of these compani
es, and with very nice resort hotel
s, to provide considerable discount
s in exchange for a steady flow of
business.

For instance, with a little bit of
shopping, you can book a vacation p
ackage from New York to Egypt for
a grand total of $1,100, including
airfare, an excellent hotel, daily
breakfast, airport transfers, and d
aily sightseeing tours, including g
uided tours of the pyramids of Giza
 and the Sphinx. This is far less
than you would have paid if you had
 booked this trip independently.

Similar deals exist for other locat
ions, notably India, China, and Tai
wan. So be sure to check on the av
ailability of these package deals w
hen shopping for a budget travel de
al.

Of course, some great deals can be
had on your own as well, and this i
s often a great way to go, especial
ly if you are a solo traveler. Sol
o travelers often have difficulty g
etting those great deals on package
 deals, since the required single s
upplement can often ruin the deal.

It is also important to find out ex
actly what is, and what is not incl
uded, in any package you are consid
ering. Many package deals have opt
ional excursions built in, and thes
e extras can add considerable cost.
  Be sure to ask for a detailed dai
ly itinerary to determine if you wi
ll be left on your own if you fail
to take these optional. Also ask f
or a detailed list of these optiona
l excursions, including full descri
ptions and prices, and then careful
ly compare the total price to what
you could find on your own.

If you are traveling on your own, b
e sure to start shopping early, esp
ecially if you are traveling by air
. The important thing to remember
is that airlines allocate only so m
any seats for those advertised low
fares, and if you fail to act quick
ly, you may be out of luck. It is
important to book the airfare, and
the hotel, as early as possible to
ensure the lowest possible prices.

Ultimately, the decision of whether
 to choose a vacation package deal
or independent travel is up to each
 individual traveler. It is import
ant to carefully compare package pr
ices with those for independent tra
vel to the same location. It is al
so important to consider your own p
ersonal travel style. Some people
are more comfortable with a package
d tour, particularly to an unfamili
ar location, while others relish th
e freedom from schedules that indep
endent travel provides.