Every traveler knows how great it is to see a major tourist attraction up-close, to try delicious local cuisine, and to engage with a new culture and language completely different from their own. What’s not so great? Having to scroll through hundreds of guidebooks and websites in order to find the best transport, accommodation, restaurants, and museums.
No matter if you’re a student or a retiree, everyone loves experiencing new things but loathes having to do the research to get there! Luckily, many sites will cut to the chase and simply provide you with the information you need to know, completing the difficult work for you! If you’re planning a new vacation soon, then hit up these websites first.
Food, glorious food
If you’ve just traveled halfway across the world, you probably won’t feel like having McDonald’s or KFC. There are a few ways make sure your gastronomy choices are more diverse than fast food. Sites like Yelp are pretty helpful for finding great restaurants and cafes for a bite at lunch or dinner, but if you’re traveling on the weekend, it’s safe to say that things can get busy in any city center. If you’ve found a restaurant you like, check if there are any free reservations using OpenTable. You can see the available times regardless of how many people are in your group, and book everything online simply and quickly. You can also search for new restaurants if the one you want is fully booked.
Checking out the local sights
If you’re in a major city like Paris, for example, then you’ll likely already be aware of the big attractions that every tourist checks out (such as the Eiffel Tower, Moulin Rouge, Arc de Triomphe, and the Louvre). Still, once you’ve visited all those well-known spots and are looking for something different to see, it’s time to call in some help. Get Your Guide is pretty useful for finding and booking some activities in any city, but one site that takes things a bit further is Viator.com. You can usually book the same things as on GYG, as well as smaller, more personal activities, like graffiti walking tours, learning a new hobby, or playing some sports game. Especially if you’re in a city for almost a week, it’s good to know that there are many activities that go beyond looking at tourist attractions!
Sorting out transport
Should you take the train or bus? Which airline and date are cheapest to fly? Should you get a monthly rail pass around Europe if backpacking? Travelers have all sorts of questions related to booking transport, and it can admittedly get very confusing when there are so many different ways to get somewhere… you might feel lost before you’ve even set foot in your destination! One great website for comparing transport options is Omio, as you can get a good breakdown of which type of transport is best depending on your budget and time frame. You can also get a helpful guide on things like getting a Eurail Pass, which many people prefer when traveling across Europe by train.
Where to stay
By this point, almost everyone in the world knows about Airbnb, yet as great as this platform is for booking accommodation, sometimes you just can’t find anything free, it’s all too expensive, or the owner isn’t responding quick enough to your many questions. This is why HotelTonight is a really good alternative. You can find a place to stay last minute and still save some money. The hotels mentioned aren’t crummy, either, and you can book everything with an app if you’re wandering the streets and looking for somewhere to rest your head.
Of course, there are also the many Google functions that work fantastically (Flights, Translate, Maps, etc.) when in a new city, but those sites mentioned above can assist weary travelers in finding what they need in just a matter of seconds.
