Travel Accommodation: Booking.com, Agoda, Tripadvisor
travel accommodation
Booking.com
A favorite when looking for all things accommodation related, whether local or international. They offer great deals on a daily basis and tend to have the best deals among all travel and accommodation sites. From an abundance of pictures and reviews to narrow down your choice, there is a plethora of information to help you decide. Joining their Genius loyalty program, which is free, also ensures you get additional discounts on select properties based on your reward level starting at a 10% base rate discount. Be sure to have their mobile app for mobile only specials. Often properties that are on Airbnb are also on Booking.com for a cheaper rate! There are plenty of options to filter on, but these are the key ones to use including proximity to the nearest CBD.
Price range - price bands you are willing to pay per night e.g. R0 - R969, R970 - R1930 etc.
Review score - calibrated review score based on previous visitors, Wonderful 9+, Very Good 8+, Good 7+, Pleasant 6+.
Star rating - 1 to 5 stars.
Fun things to do in the vicinity - beach, hiking, gold course, fishing, diving.
Property type - apartments, vacation homes, villas, guesthouses, hotels, resorts etc.
Deals on properties - will only show properties that currently have deals on them.
Property Facilities - swimming pool, airport shuttle, restaurant, spa, fitness centre, room service, pet friendly, free wifi etc, breakfast included.
Room facilities - kitchen/kitchenette, air conditioning, terrace/balcony, TV, ocean view, etc.
Agoda
Another world leader in online travel & related services. There is a similar flow, page layout and filters offered on Agoda but could offer even better deals than what is available on other sites. They have also added a feature to do monthly stays (30 days plus). You can also list your property for vacation rental on this platform.
They have a partner program PointsMAX, where you will earn points with every booking specifically done using PointsMax, notably British Airways Executive Club & Avios miles & points. Agoda also has its own loyalty program AgodaVIP rewarding you with deals. You will be part of AgodaVIP automatically after 5 bookings.
SafariNow
This is a proudly South African site, offering the best in local and African accommodation. If you are looking for those local hidden gems, this is the site for you. The options may not be as extensive but there are deals galore! Travlestart has a majority stake in SafariNow and Travelstart’s Hotel site is powered by SafariNow. All Discovery Bank clients and Vitality Health members can redeem Discovery Miles on any accommodation booked on SafariNow.
Tripadvisor
If you are looking to do all your research on an unfamiliar location, including things to do, restaurants and detailed reviews, then Tripadvisor is for you. When it comes to accommodation, depending on your search, it will show which sites and dates are offering the best & lowest deals. All the common accommodation sites connect to Tripadvisor’s search engine to provide you the best and lowest deals - Booking.com, Agoda, Expedia, SafariNow, Hotels.com, Trip.com.
www.tripadvisor.com Trivago also offers similar hotel and price comparisons as Tripadvisor.
Airbnb
Perfect for booking entire homes for a group trip whilst also offering shared and hotel type accommodation for short or long term stays. Properties listed will tend to be self-catering, consider it a home away from home. it also offers exposure to very unique and upmarket homes. If you decide to place your entire property or a room in your property up on Airbnb, it’s a good option as an additional revenue stream and a great opportunity to meet people from all over the world. Be part of the generous community, offer your extra space for free to people in need of temporary housing through Open Homes.
You can get up to R1,200 ZAR off a qualifying booking when you sign up and book for the first time.
It is always advisable where possible to look into places that offer flexible cancellation (free cancellation or cancellation permitted up to a few days before the trip) as well as places that only require payment on arrival. The great thing about all these sites is that:
You can ask the community questions, as well as the property owners or managers directly prior to booking.
Even after your booking, you can communicate with the property owners or managers leading up to your trip on specific needs to cater to your stay.
You can set up alerts to get updates on a location or specific property in case the price drops or the dates you were interested in become available.
There are detailed reviews from previous guests and pictures to give you a better view of a location & accommodation to aid in your decision making.
Daily deals! Nothing beats being at the right place (in this case website) at the right time and walking away with a bargain.
These are trustworthy sites to use.
You can list you property (partial or entire property) and host guests whilst getting additional funds in the process.
There are also specials offered regularly on these sites, best for local & regional deals, however you might still need to book directly with the hotel in question as these are only package deals, with the deals being valid for bookings within a set timeframe. Before purchasing, rather call the location first and make sure according to the terms and conditions of the deal, you can book for the dates you want (weekends tend to be fully booked as opposed to weekdays) and confirm when there is availability. Once you are sure of this you can proceed to buy the deal after fully reading the terms and conditions of the offer.
Entertainer Getaways Daddy’s Deals
Bushbreaks (Safari & Game Lodges) Club Med
Exploring the world and best accommodation is now detailed and easily accessible, right at your fingertips!