Travel search tools - Booking.com

Booking.com was established in Amsterdam in 1996 as a company for booking accommodation online. Accommodation includes hotels, apartments, B & Bs, guest houses, villas.

Search by typing the name of a city, region, district or specific hotel in the search box. If known, type in the dates of the proposed stay, the number of rooms required and number of adults and children before using the Search button to initiate the search.

For this exercise Edinburgh was chosen as the destination.

The side-bar contains filters to narrow the search including Star Rating, Property Type, Facility, Room Facilities, District and Chain. In Room Facility I selected View. Further options can be added.

The map shows the location of the hotel and clicking the Show Map option shows the location of the selected hotel to other hotels nearby.

Reviews for the selected accommodation are available.

Use the Show Prices button to see prices. Prices are provided in Australian dollars and are indicative as the dollar value may change when payment is made. The Frequently Asked Questions section provides additional information. Use the Reserve Button if you want to make a booking and provide the required information.

The website can also be searched using the Browse by Destination Theme at the top of the web page. Destination Themes include Fine Dining, Shopping, Sightseeing, Beach, Relaxation and Culture.

Travel search tools - Hotels Combined

Hotels Combined allows users to search and compare room availability and prices from all major travel websites.

Use the search box to enter the name of a city or hotel, number of people, plus, if known, the dates accommodation required. The search in this example was for London. A long list of hotels was located. Use the boxes in the left side bar to narrow the search. Nominate star ratings or a price range. Limit the search by property type or guest ratings, hotel features or themes. The search can be narrowed by selecting a smaller area or the name or partial name of a hotel can be entered in the designated box. A search can also be narrowed by hotel chain.

The search was narrowed by choosing Southwark from the Places box. At the end of the side-bar is the option to search a map which was then selected by clicking Open Map.

From the resulting map I was able to choose a hotel within easy walking distance to the museum I wanted to visit and also not too far from sites on the other side of the river.

Hotels Combined provides a list of prices for different rooms and the name of the travel website offering the best price for the room. A list of hotel features is also provided and a summary of comments made in guest reviews is provided. Clicking on the official site link under the name of a hotel will take you directly to the hotel's website where more information about the hotel can be obtained. Back on the Hotels Combined website, clicking on the name of the room or clicking the Go button will take you to the travel website where you can make a booking. 

Travel search tools - SeatGuru

The parent company of SeatGuru is TripAdvisor. SeatGuru provides airline seat maps, flight information and flight shopping information.

SeatGuru is particularly useful for checking the configuration of seating on selected flights. Type the name of the Airline, flight code and day of flight into the search box to view the seating configuration of the plane.

Comments from users are available as well as a Seat Map Key based on user comments.

Other features of this website include Comparison Charts for different types of  airlines, information about different Airlines and Guru Advice providing information about flying, airports, seat selection, baggage and gadgets used on flights.

There is also a Frequently Asked Questions section of the website.

A recent feature of SeatGuru is the Flight Search section for locating and comparing flights. You are then directed to an online travel agency website to make the booking.

Travel search tools - Webjet

Webjet is an Australian and New Zealand online travel agency. It compares flights to selected destination provided by Jetstar, Qantas, Rex, Tiger Airways, Virgin Australia and also international airlines. The website provides tabs for comparing and booking flights, hotels, holiday packages and car hire.

In this example we are comparing prices for flights from Melbourne to Cairns.

A list of flights available from Melbourne to Cairns is provided starting from the earliest flight in the morning. The price charged by each airline for particular flights are provided. There will be a wide variation of prices depending on the Airline providing the flight, time of day of the flight and whether the flight is non-stop or has a stop-over. When selecting a flight it is necessary to check the baggage limits. Some flights only allow carryon baggage. Click the View Fare Rules link under the Airline icon for information about additional charges if changes need to be made to a flight or if flights are cancelled. Select the required flight by clicking the price link for the selected Airline and time of flight.

Check your selection before going any further with the booking. You can then add bookings for hotels and car hire, if required, and add travel insurance before clicking the Book Now button. After that fill in the forms confirming the booking and providing payment details. The final step is to use the Complete Booking button to complete the booking.

A list of Frequently Asked Questions is provided in the Contact section of the website.

Travel search tools - Zuji

Zuji purports to be 'one of Asia Pacific's leading online travel agencies'.

The coverage of locations, however, is world wide. Like Expedia, on Zuji you can book flights, accommodation and holiday packages and car hire. There is a note on the homepage of the website stating the Zuji booking charges.

Zuji's parent company is Webjet and the reviews provided in Zuji come from TripAdvisor.

The above search was for hotel rooms in Paris available on particular dates. Use the options in the sidebar on the left of the screen to narrow the search - for example select a hotel with free wifi near the Louvre. Information about available hotel rooms is provided. If you want to make a booking, click the Book Room button.

Use the Flight tab to search for and book flights. Select the airport for start and end of the flight and provide dates for one-way or return trip.

You will be presented with a list of options. In this example the flight was from Melbourne to Darwin.

Scroll through the options and check duration of the flight, whether the flight is non-stop and the time the flight leaves its original destination as well as the cost of the flight.

Click the Show Details link for each flight for additional information.

Also check for baggage information allowed for the flight and the baggage charges. Once you have made your selection you can add accommodation, car rental and travel insurance to your booking if you wish.

The Show Details link will provide the full booking price. Provide an email address for receiving a copy of the itinerary then click the Book Now button if you want to make the booking.

The How to Book page provides information using the Zuji website for booking flights and holidays.

Travel search tools - Expedia

Expedia claims to be the 'World's largest online travel agency'.

Use Expedia to search for and, if you wish, book flights, flights and holidays, accommodation, cruises and car hire. The Expedia website can also be used to assist in planning a holiday.

Choose a city, for example Paris.

Use the tabs to investigate Holiday Deals, Hotels, Need to Know, Experience Paris and Suggested Itineraries. Information in Need to Know includes how to get around Paris by train, taxi, bus or boat. Experience Paris and Selected Activities provide information about a selection of sites and activities. Information about the weather and a currency converter can be found in the side bar of the website.

Use the Search for Holidays box to check the availability and price of hotels and / or flights. If looking for a hotel, select the area where you would like to stay and type in the dates accommodation is required. Fill in other information as required. In this example we looked for information about a specific hotel.

Ratings are provided for each hotel and there is also a link to reviews. Click the title link to locate additional information about the hotel. If you want to make a booking click the Book button and complete the online forms.

If you have selected the Flight + Hotel option you can also search for available flights to and from your destination and, if you want to, add the flight details to your booking. Transport charges to and from the airport can also be booked and added to the account.

You will then receive a Trip Summary.

Ensure that you read the conditions of the booking.

If you want to go ahead with the booking you will be provided with details of the hotel and / or flight and / transport that you have booked. Double check that this is what you really want. After that fill in the forms confirming the booking and providing payment details. The final step is to use the Complete Booking button to complete the booking.

Travel search tools - TripAdvisor

One of the first websites to visit when planning a holiday is TripAdvisor.

The TripAdvisor website is designed to help you plan your holiday, locate information about places you might like to visit, explore hotel and travel options and then be referred to other websites where bookings can be made. A major feature of the website is that travellers can post reviews and photos of places visited which may help you decide where you want to go and what you want to do.

To start a search, type the name of a country or city or hotel in the Search box at the top of the screen.

Make your selection from the Drop Down list.

In this example we can locate information about Edinburgh by exploring the travel guides, we can explore the variety of accommodation options in the city, find information about available flights, and find out about places to visit and festivals and other events.

The Before You Go tab in the Edinburgh Guide provides general information about the city including Neighbourhoods, Architecture and Culture, public transport in the city and general information for tourists including banks and money, tipping, making phone calls and the weather. So when planning a holiday it would be useful to explore the information in TripAdvisor about your selected destination.

Trip Advisor is also very useful for selecting accommodation. Choose the city, town or village where you want to stay and then check the accommodation options which have been categorised.

You can search all accommodation options, family hotels, B&Bs, luxury hotels etc.

When you locate accommodation in which you might be interested you will find a rating bar for the hotel created from visitor reviews.

You will also find reviews made by visitors which may assist you in making your choice.

On a previous visit to the UK we used TripAdvisor to successfully locate a variety of accommodation, often in villages off the main tourist routes as well as in major cities.

TripAdvisor also has a section where you can select flights to and from your destination. After choosing the required search option you will be referred to another website such as Expedia to book the flight.