This document provides six steps for planning the perfect vacation: 1. Decide on a destination based on interests and research unique options. 2. Book flights on discount travel sites 6 weeks in advance on Wednesdays for lowest prices. 3. Book hotels on discount sites and sign up for loyalty programs. Consider Airbnb or hostels to save money. 4. Plan intercity and local transportation like buses, trains, rental cars, or rideshares. 5. Use maps to familiarize yourself with locations of hotels, attractions, and transportation. 6. Research top attractions, restaurants, and nightlife through online reviews and social media to plan an itinerary.

1. Six Steps to Plan
the Perfect
Vacation
Mohammad Hijazi | @mhijazi @mhijazi89

2. Why is it better to Plan your
Vacation by yourself?
• Tailored in details to your own preference
• Gets you more involved
• Fun to prepare
• Cheaper

3. Steps to your Getaway…
• Step 1: Deciding on your destination
• Step 2: Flight booking
• Step 3: Hotel booking
• Step 4: Inter-city and in-city transportation
• Step 5: Getting familiar with your destination
geographically (map map map!)
• Step 6: Finding and deciding on top attractions, top
restaurants and top wild night spots

4. STEP 1: Making a decision
• Determine your interests:
http://www.minube.net/
• Ask questions:
http://www.trippy.com/
• Set your dates
• Research unique vacations
• Set your budget
• Visa free countries? There’s a
list for that:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki
/Visa_requirements_for_Leban
ese_citizens

5. Step 2: Flight booking
Best websites to book cheap tickets from:
• www.momondo.com
• www.cheapoair.com
• www.Travelocity.com
• www.expedia.com
• www.edreams.com
• www.kayak.com
(always search in incognito mode)
When using these websites filter by:
1) Least number of stops
2) Shortest duration
3) Lowest price
4) Good airlines
However, an agency could be contacted at
an early stage to book an unconfirmed
ticket just in case any change in the dates
occurs. Later on, this ticket could be
cancelled and booked online using the
above websites with a lower price.

6. Step 2: Flight booking tips
• Try to stick to one airline alliance for all your trips and claim
your travelled miles with one of their airlines.
• Sometimes it's worth it to mix and match especially from
the same alliance. Most airlines now sell one-way flights at
reasonable prices, meaning one might be cheaper for the
outbound flight while the other works better for the return.
• You could even fly to one airport and depart from
another.

7. Step 2: Flight booking tips
• On international flights, book window seats so you
can rest your head on the bulkhead.
• Book seats close to the front so you can beat
everyone to the passport control line. Also, you
will get your food first.

8. Step 2: Best times to book
• Leave on a Wednesday: It's the cheapest day to do it, says
FareCompare.com. Per the website: "The day with the
most seats is likely to have better supply, and thus ... more
empty seats that require discounting to fill the plane—
meaning they'll have to release more seats at their
cheapest price point."
• Book Six Weeks in Advance: A
revealing study from Airlines
Reporting Corporation found
that the best time to purchase
your airfare is about six weeks
prior to travel. The reason:
Around this time, prices drop
below the average fare.

9. Step 3: Hotel Booking Tips
Best websites to book cheap stays:
• www.hotels.com
• www.booking.com
• www.momondo.com
• www.travelrepublic.co.uk
• www.trivago.com
When using these websites filter by:
• Distance to city center
• Cancellation option
• Price before and after cancellation
• Stars (1 – 5)
• Rating (1 – 10)
• Whether a bus station or any other form
of transportation is next to the hotel

10. Step 3: Hotel Booking Tips
• Choose a selection of Hotels and pick a few
based on the criteria mentioned in the
previous slide.
• Use Google maps to see the Hotels chosen and
check for any bus station next to them.
• Book a room with a free cancellation option
(even if the price was higher than booking it
without this option). Later on, this booking can
be cancelled when the whole trip is 100%
confirmed and another room without the
cancellation option is booked instead in order
to benefit from the lower price.
• Book several “free cancellation” hotels and
decide which hotel you want a few days before
your trip to better accommodate your
itinerary.
• Book business hotels on weekends and
summer, prices are usually cheap because
demand is low.
• Ask for a corner room because it is usually
bigger and quieter than regular rooms.
• Sign up for a hotel’s loyalty program and try to
book hotels with their chain if you can to get
rewards.
• You can usually find coupon codes for hotels
on Coupons.com and DealIsPlus.com

11. Step 3: Other options
• Airbnb: Find local short-term
accommodations. Travelers can choose
a wide range of shared rooms, private
rooms and entire apartments or houses.
• Tripping is platform that connects
travelers with locals who are renting
out their homes around the world.
There are over 750,000 rental spaces
ranging from luxurious penthouses to
rustic beachside stays.
• Hotel Tonight: For last-
minute lodging deals, a free mobile app
available on iOS andAndroid devices.
• Hostels.com allows you to book a bed
in a shared room at hostels in 180
countries.
• Couchsurf for free with people
who share their homes, cities and lives
in profound and meaningful ways,
making travel anywhere in the world a
truly social experience.
(Couchsurfing.org)

12. Step 4: Intercity and in City
transportation
• Inter-city transportation:
• Airport – Hotel transportation
• Hotel – Hotel transportation (when visiting more than one City
in the same Country)
• In-City transportation:
• Hotel – Restaurants
• Hotel – Beach
• Hotel – Night Spots
• Hotel – Attractions (Museums, Churches, Mosques, Historical
areas, etc..)

13. Step 4: Intercity and in City
transportation

14. Step 4: Intercity and in City
transportation
Types of transportation forms to consider when on vacation:
• Uber: Using Uber application on mobile or using their website:
www.uber.com. Other similar services include Lyft, Sidecar and Careem.
• Taxi: Ordering a taxi could be done from the Hotel or online depending on
the destination.
• Public bus: Google search the public bus schedule and routes based on the
destination.
• Metro/Train/Subway: Google search the train stations schedule and routes
based on the destination. Most cities have their own metro/train apps.
• Rent a car: Google search rental companies based on the destination.
• Internal flights: Big countries such as US, Canada and India have many
airports and many times internal flights are cheaper than land transport.

15. Step 5: Getting familiar with your
destination geographically
Getting familiar with the area geographically helps
a lot in having a sense of direction when you reach
your destination
This will definitely save a lot of time!
The best way to do that is by using:
GOOGLE MAPS!

16. Step 5: Getting familiar with your
destination geographically
Use of Google maps:
• City Center area with respect to the
Hotel
• Bus and Metro stations
• Distance from the Hotel to our targets
(attractions, restaurants, shopping
centers, pubs and night clubs)
• Star all the locations that you want visit.
This will help you cluster nearby
attractions together in the same day.

17. Step 6: Attractions, restaurants
and wild night spots
The best way to find and decide on top attractions,
restaurants, shopping centers and night spots to visit, is
through word of mouth and performing a good search
online.
Contacting a person who lives in the Country you are
planning to visit for the first time is a very reliable source as
well. Even more reliable than what you can find online.
• What are the major attractions?
• What would a tourist most likely won't want to miss?
• Where is it crowded the most in down-town?

18. Step 6: Attractions, restaurants
and wild night spots
The internet is the second reliable source
to find places to go to as you can always
find people’s feedbacks and reviews…
First, always search for a schedule of
events and festivals that are occurring
during the days of your stay at the chosen
destination.
Also, visit the local tourism office (usually
in the airport or at main train
stations). They know about everything
going on in town. They can point you to
free activities, special events happening
during your stay, and everything in
between. Use this resource.

19. Step 6: Attractions, restaurants
and wild night spots
Second, find out what Google lists as top 10 attractions,
restaurants, pubs, and nightclubs at the targeted destination
and make a list of each.
These are the websites that could be used:
• www.viator.com
• www.getyourguide.com
• www.expedia.com
• www.visitacity.com
• www.tripadvisor.com
• www.passeportmtl.com

20. Step 6: Attractions, restaurants
and wild night spots
Third, use social media (Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat,
etc…) to check out the lists made by searching online
through:
• Watching live videos of prior year festivals that are
interesting to attend at your time of visit.
• Watching live videos of parties in the chosen night spots.
• Reading people’s comments and reviews of chosen
restaurants and attractions.
• Check out blogs, YouTube, TripAdviser and Forsquare.

21. Step 6: Attractions, restaurants
and wild night spots
Look for deals:
• Sites like Groupon, LivingSocial & Yipit provide you with
great discounts on many touristic attractions and tour.
• Most big cities have city passes or museum passes
where they give great discounts for a bundle of
sightseeing spots. Examples: CityPass.com, Go City
Card, etc…

22. Step 6: Attractions, restaurants
and wild night spots
Check out these apps that help you make a plan.

23. More tips:
• Always have a scan of your passport, visas and important documents
in your email and Dropbox folder in case you lose them or they get
stolen.
• Don’t exchange money at the airport or hotels, ever!
• To manage who paid what when you’re travelling in a group,
download the Tricount app for your phone.
• Always get behind business travelers when in security lines. They move
fast. Try to keep up. Never get behind families. They take forever. It’s
not their fault; they just have a lot of stuff.
• Research the SIM cards available in each country beforehand. Many
times you can order them online directly to your hotel.
• Take pictures of your luggage and clothes. If your bag gets lost, this will
help identify it more easily and speed up the process of having your
travel insurance reimburse you.
• Take earplugs. Snorers and noise are everywhere and you need your
sleep.
• Tell your bank you’re travelling so your card doesn’t get rejected.

24. Where are you
off to next?
Mohammad Hijazi | @mhijazi @mhijazi89