Click here for more detailsThe Travel Detective, by Peter Greenberg
The good news, according to travel writer Peter Greenberg, is that Americans are traveling more than ever before. The bad news is that we hate the process. Never fear, though, the original savvy traveler has written the guide to end all guides on how to get to your destination and have a good time, too, by beating the airlines, hotels, cruise lines, and rental car agencies at their own games, playing by their own rules.

You can book your travel yourself or you can use a tour agent to book it for you. Once you've decided where and how you want to go, you should book transportation, lodgings, etc., as soon as possible to ensure you can obtain reservations, particularly if you want to travel around major holidays or during peak travel seasons such as the summer school holiday time. The most-traveled holiday in the United States is Thanksgiving -- it often can be impossible to book transportation several months in advance of this particular holiday. The Christmas season is a close second as a peak travel time. If you travel at peak travel times, you'll also likely pay premium rates for transportation, accommodations and other services. For instance, if you want a tropical island holiday off the East Coast of the United States, it's best to go to the Caribbean during the Northern Hemisphere's summer months and to Bermuda during the winter months, because the peak Caribbean travel season is during the winter and the peak Bermuda travel season is during the summer. Other than during hurricane season, the weather in these destinations varies little from summer to winter and you can save quite a bit of money by traveling off-season. If you can be flexible about when you travel, be sure to check into the peak travel times for a destination.

High school and college students can obtain special discount travel fares and packages by joining the International Student Travel Confederation.

Below are sites devoted to booking travel: Travel Agents, All-in-One Do-Your-Own Online Travel Booking Sites, Air Tickets, Accommodations, Auto Reservations and Theme & Special-Interest Travel, Programs & Tours.

All-in-One Do-Your-Own Online Travel Booking Sites

The following sites allow you to book air tickets, hotels and often rental cars in one spot, unless otherwise noted:

Air Tickets

A good web site offering overall comprehensive information on airline reservation systems, booking air tickets, etc., is Online Airline Information Page. Aside from the above all-in-one travel booking sites, below are sites that offer special air booking arrangements and advice:

Auto Reservations

Accommodations

Aside from the all-in-one travel reservation sites above, below are specialized accommodation links:

Travel & Tourism Agents

Theme & Special-Interest Travel, Programs & Tours

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