Matt and Tom, off of the YouTubez, invited me onto their Park Bench series to talk all things travel for which I was MORE THAN WILLING.
Due to their well deserved popularity, I also smashed through 1,000 subscribers on my own channel (WHOOP WHOOP) so it’s official, it’s not just my Mum watching (hi Mum, I know you’ll be reading this and yes, I am very grateful for your loyal, unwavering support and no, I can’t make it home for Mother’s Day sorry).
The video features loads of travel tips (with a load I’d never heard of before – WHODATHUNKIT?) so give it a watch and make sure you subscribe to the wonders that are Matt and Tom as well.
Lovely.
how many holidays 
Am I so predictable? Your gratitude makes up for the fact you’re not even bothering to spend Mother’s Day with me. I thought the chance to visit Berlin might have enticed you. Great vid by the way. x
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Unfortunately so, Mother dearest!
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Great vid, loads of tips, ta! Loved the balance of price vs comfort vs speed. My holiday hunting spreadhseets are all about this!!! Gotta weigh up the pros and cons 🙂 You should totally have a forum page on your blog so we can trade tips…
And heres a few for you now:
1) Whenever booking a hotel online, even though Trivago is a good shout, it sometimes comes out more expensive than other price comparison sites. I find a mix of Kayak.co.uk, Trivago, and Tripadvisor give me a good overview of the cheapest deal. Most of the time its Kayak that comes out cheapest for the same hotel seen on Trivago. I do a best of three, especially if I’m looking at a couple of specific hotels. Trivago also tend to ‘big up’ the star rating, saying certain hotels are 4* when they are actually 3*. Naughty!
2) Check TripAdvisor for hotel direct discount codes. Example: LaFodia Resort, on Lopud in lovely Croatia, advertise on TripAdvisor in the ‘Overview’ section a bit called ‘Offers and Announcements’. Its got a code ‘lafodiaexperience’ for 20% off if you book direct with the hotel. In this case, a 3 night stay is approx £30 cheaper booking direct with the hotel than the cheapest deal TripAdvisor can find you on Booking.com. Even if TripAdvisor dont have any codes, its worth asking the hotel for a voucher code if you want to stay there specifically. I have been sent secret codes before to entice me as a repeat guest! ;-P
3) Which reminds me, holiday sale websites like Secret Escapes and Voyage Prive. Anyone else see these sites as a challenge? Like the travelator on Gladiators?? After an experience I had with them last year, I ALWAYS look at a deal they offer, and see if I can beat it with the same hotels, especially multi-city holidays + flights. I have spreadsheets littered on my Mac to try and beat the deal!!!
Example: I booked via Secret Escapes to stay at a posh hotel in the UK last year, as the SE price was much less than the hotel website and threw in dinner. It wasnt the sort of place I wanted to ring up and barter (it was a posh castle! I wanted to look like I belonged!!) so I was mega pleased with my Secret Escapes deal. Until the hotel told me next time you come just give us a call, we will always beat the Secret Escapes deal as they take a cut! LESSON LEARNED! You can be a tight arse staying in a Castle!!!!!!!
Anyway, from a fellow holiday planner (but only been on about 10% of the trips I have planned), I hope these help!
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