I may not be a British traveler but it pretty much lined up with what my favorite vacation travel wants entail except I would look for a couple beach vacation spot closer to my departure point in the USA in the middle of winter with activities that included snorkeling.

This is a good graphic to help you decide what is most important to you when you look for a place to take your vacation. Once you have a list of the things that are important to you then it is easier to go shopping for the best destination, happy hunting.

Thoughts from Debbie:
There are things that you can do personally that will make your travels much easier and smoother. What you take with you or don’t take with you really does make a difference.

Things to take with you on the plane:

• IPod or music device
• Tablet or computer
• Ear phones to plug into plane
• Snacks for the plane so you don’t have to buy meals
• Chapstick for dry lips
• Gum to clear your ears on takeoff and landing
• Coat or sweater if your airline charges for blankets
• Pillow or head neck rest
• Purse, Small backpack, or bag for a carryon in case your larger carryon is gate checked.

Your preplanning and attitude can make all the difference to your enjoyment. Planning enough time to arrive at the airport will decrease the tension between couples. If you do get to the airport early have games or reading material with you to take up the time.

If you are abrupt or rude to the TSA or other airline officials and employees you can expect that their attitude toward you will not be as nice as if you were pleasant and cooperative.

Do what you can yourself to improve and help make your vacation pleasant, fun, and enjoyable.

A good place to find information from other travelers about the airline that you plan to book your vacation on is on the airlines Twitter, Facebook , airline blog page, Youtube or review sites like Travel Advisor.

It is a growing trend for travelers to share their experiences, likes and dislikes with social media. Just remember that a lot of the comments are negative because more people post their negative experiences than the positive. What might bother one person might be viewed by another as something that could be expected to happen in the course of travel.

Are travel deals really worth the restrictions that they come with? I would have assumed that people only book if they get a deal on travel. That isn’t always the case especially at holiday times.

The percentage of people that look for a deal or travel bargain are fairly large but the number of those that search for deals and then book using a travel deal are small in comparison. I would assume that it is because they have specific dates and times they can travel during holiday times. It is a busy time so the availability for those specific dates and times probably don’t match up.

We would all like to pay less for our vacation or holiday travel but in reality during busy or high season times we may not be able to do so.

There is an art to picking airplane seats. Make sure the size of your bag will fit in the overhead. Different sizes of planes hold different sizes of bags. I have been on planes where they take all but the smallest bags and check them at the gate. If there are things you want with you on the plane in the cabin make sure they are in your purse or small baggage item.
Have you ever sat in the seats next to the bath rooms? Not such good seats. People standing over you, bumping you and then there can be smells. I stay away from that area.
The bulkhead seats offer a little more leg room for those with long legs but you can’t put your bag under the seat in front of you. It will be in the bin overhead.
Aisle seats let you get out to the bathroom without having to ask people get out. Be careful of the people and carts going up and down the aisle. You can get bumped.
Window seats give you not only a view out the window you also get a place to rest your head to sleep.
The back row of seats generally do not recline so they can be uncomfortable. In some planes the seats get closer together the further back in the plane you get.
If you don’t like the seats you get when you check in go to the gate counter to see if they can change your seats. Try to pick your seating when you book them. You can do it online or view the seats available online and then call and have an agent assign them.