So, your going away for a night, or a weekend, or a 2 week holiday to somewhere you have never been before, you have no idea where to start, it can be very easy to look on one website find a price and book it.

Now that method is great if you have deep pockets and your time is short and you want to make the process quick and easy, but unfortunately that means you will most likely end up paying more, than if you spent 30 minutes searching a few websites.

We’ve all been there, you don’t know where to start? Well hopefully I can provide you a few tips and tricks to help you find a hotel at a good price and in a good location.

Whenever I need to book a hotel, there are a few websites I always look on first to get a base price, a starting mark if you will. Just a quick reminder, I’m based in the UK, so some of these websites might not be best for people outside of the UK.

Hotels.com – This website is great as a starting point. They always have good deals on, and if you sign up you get special members prices, as well as when you book 10 nights, you get a night free. One downside is when you click on the map view to search, it brings up hotels which aren’t available, and you specifically have to click a button to now show them.

Booking.com – Again, this is another good website. The one downside I have with this website is, when you book a hotel in USA it doesn’t add the tax automatically, so you can get a bit surprise when you go to book. Also for most bookings you pay when you get to the hotel, which is great if you want to book somewhere but don’t have the funds immediately available. The downside to this is some hotels will then charge a deposit, and then charge the rest when you check out. I’ve it happen twice now when the hotel has taken the first night before I arrive, and then charged me again when I check out, which is a pain, but is easily rectifiable, by always requesting to see the invoice first.

Secret Escapes  – I love this website for booking a last minute luxury break. I like that you can narrow down choices by selecting if you want a break in the UK, Europe or the rest of the world.

Travelzoo.com – I’ve booked so many cheap breaks away using this website. I love the weekly email with their best offers. I’ve even booked really cheap flights as well. The one downside is, you buy a voucher and then have to contact the hotel directly, and sometimes what is says is available on their website, it’s always still available when you go to book.

Trip Advisor – This website is a classic, and now you can book hotels on it. I always trust trip advisor reviews, and now I can search hotels available by their reviews, so I know I’m booking somewhere good.

Hotwire.com – This website is great if you’re not really fussed on the hotel and you happy to gamble. Now, I’ve used this website three times, and I’ve luckily had 3 good hotels and had no complaints with either of them. This website works by not showing you the name of the hotel until after you book, which means you get amazing deals. I saved over £700 when booking this this website on a trip to Orlando. The same hotel would have cost £1600 for 10 nights, and on Hotwire we only paid £900. But you take the risk of getting somewhere not right for you. I wouldn’t particularly use this website if you are travelling with kids, as you don’t get to pick the room size and beds etc. But is great for couples or solo travellers.

If any of you have any good websites, please let me know in the comments xxx