One of the places I do want to visit is the Bay of Naples and Pompeii. Whereas locations like Malta and Bratislava have been driven by “where’s cheap?” decisions, a flight into Naples and a sunbed in Sorrento are driven by a “when, not if” mentality.
So much so that a couple of weeks back a discussion with my landlord looked like we’d head off together in the Easter holidays. Flight prices were a little on the punchy side but I managed to source a twin room for six nights for £200 including breakfast.
I am a fan of the cancellable hotel booking. While it is often 10% or so more expensive it does allow you to change your plans. More excitingly, it also allows you to check for cheaper accommodation nearer your departure time. This has saved me £hundreds in the past. Just book the cheaper rate and cancel what you’ve already secured. Heads you win, tails you get what you were already prepared to pay for!
Anyway, back to Pompeii. Or not … alas, flight prices have rocketed further so the trip is more likely to take place outside school holidays (or involve a drive to a Scottish airport where out of term holiday prices are often cheaper due to different holidays north of Hadrian’s Wall.
So I went to cancel my hotel and noticed a serious flaw in my booking. Six nights accommodation booked for April 2018! I’ve no idea how I’d managed to book so far ahead but the speed with which my finger clicked on the <cancel> button was pretty impressive.
It’s the kind of mistake you can correct on the ground if you arrive in a location and discover you don’t have a booking for that day, month or even year – although you might end up in a youth hostel rather than the privacy of a hotel room. And it could lead to extra expense, especially if a town is busy at that time of year. More importantly, it’s a sombre reminder to check and double check flight bookings before committing to them. Turning up at the airport on the wrong day, or even in the wrong month, could be an expensive mistake!
February 17, 2017 at 10:26 am
Hi Dave.
Finally had a look on your blog after linking from OWTB. Your story resonates with me as I lost an uncle to lung cancer (secondary after having a slow diagnosis for a sarcoma in his arm!). Love your approach to the situation and these blogs are a nice read.
Your last paragraph in this – we (Maddog and I) experienced this when we went on a road trip of the States. We turned up to a Holiday Inn in Merced California only to be told we didn’t have a room. After a long all day drive through Yosemite from Mammoth Lakes, it’s definitely not what we needed! Turned out I’d booked for the day before. We used the free WIFI and got searching for somewhere nearby and ended up in a Motel 6 for $26, not too bad we thought for a 1 night stopover. We went down the Golden State Highway to Madera to go to a Drive In movie and something to eat. When we got back, the place was full of what looked like gang members having a party across various rooms. Great. Slept with one eye open and made a quick getaway to San Francisco in the morning.
Good luck with everything and enjoy the travels!
Will.
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February 17, 2017 at 10:58 am
Cheers Will.
I loved that drive from mammoth lakes through Yosemite. Hopefully I’ll get to do it again this year. Highway 1 down the coast from San Fran to LA was amazing.
On that trip there was a news story about a murder in a Motel 6 somewhere. I’d already sussed them out as the bargain chain but they often had no wifi so I never booked one.
Being posh it was Comfort Inns and Super 8s don’t you know!
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