HolidaysPlease

I am often asked whether it’s best to buy a package holiday or to do it yourself. The theory goes that people who do it themselves can hunt down those cheap flights and best hotel deals without the need for a tour operator or a travel agent.

While the answer may not be clear cut for small, unimportant holidays you have to be very very careful when you are planning your honeymoon. I would suggest that a honeymoon package is essential for the following reasons:-

• With a package holiday everything is handled by professionals. This way you are sure that you are going to the right place at the right time of year. The last thing you want on the first day of your honeymoon is to have an argument over whose fault the rain is!
• Package holidays are usually protected by ABTA and ATOL licences. ABTA covers the advice you have been given by your travel agent and ATOL financially protects you should the airline or hotel go bust. When you book things yourself you rarely have this protection.
• Honeymoon package holidays may actually be cheaper. Don’t forget that major tour operators have more purchasing power than you and will invariably get a better deal from a hotel than you can. The hotel can’t afford to give customers the same rates otherwise the tour operators will stop using them. The tour operators can pass some of this discount to you therefore making the holiday cheaper.
• Package holidays have better “added extras”, especially as a honeymoon couple. Tour operators often have special offers such as upgrades for honeymoon couples. They know which hotels will upgrade you on arrival or greet you with a bottle of champagne. So if you like your perks they will be able to help. They want to create a good impression so that you come back time and time again. If you book direct with the hotel they know that you are unlikely to book with them again (not many people holiday year after year at the place where they went on honeymoon) and so they won’t be as inclined to upgrade you.

Do you agree? Are you thinking of booking your honeymoon yourself or going with a package? Let us know your thoughts

Some 65 per cent of holidaymakers set aside money in their budget to pick up tax-free items for themselves at airport duty-free shops when they travel, new research has indicated.
 
According to the figures, published by Direct Line Travel Insurance, traditional duty-free shops remain the most popular retail areas of airports, in spite of the “vast array” of shopping outlets now available in places such as Heathrow’s Terminal 5.
 
Chris Price, head of the travel insurer, said there are “hundreds of pounds to be saved” on a holiday if travellers are willing to shop around.
 
“For instance, by visiting countries outside of the eurozone and America, you may find that you can still get good value for your pound this summer,” he explained.
 
Mr Price added that early bird bookings and tax-free goodies at the airport are also good options for thrifty holidaymakers.
 
Perfume and aftershave were ranked as the favourite tax-free treat to pick up at the airport, while other popular items included sunglasses, cosmetics and other toiletries, cigarettes, cigars and alcohol.
 
However, a recent survey carried out by Tesco Money Card indicated that some 40 per cent of people returned from their holiday regretting their choice of souvenir.
 
The supermarket published a list of the ten “most regrettable” purchases made on holiday, including straw donkeys, mugs, novelty T-shirts, shot glasses and national costumes.

Travellers enjoying a luxury holiday in Mauritius may wish to take a break from soaking up the sun to enjoy a new spa at the Four Seasons resort, according to a writer for the Times.

Nick Wyke said the facility is “a model spa with everything just as it should be” and added that it has a “cool, contemporary feel”.

Honeymooners, he wrote, might be particularly keen to make sure of the private over-water spa treatment pavilions onsite or enjoy a freshly-prepared spa meal served “by super-attentive staff”.

For who would prefer to spend their afternoons out on the links, the spa facility is open until 22:00 local time and offers a golfer’s restorative massage for people keen on unwinding after a day on the Ernie Els-designed course.

The Four Seasons Resort Mauritius at Anahita is located east of Madagascar.

According to the hotel, the island is said to have inspired heaven and treatments at the spa have been developed using the surrounding region as inspiration.

Salon services – including makeup application, facial treatments, manicures, pedicures and hairstyling – are also available at the facility.