Package or DIY?
 

Regular participants in this group might be aware that Herself and I
take a number of short-break holidays each year.

Sometimes we buy a package, and sometimes we put things together for
ourselves.

When I am tempted by a package, I look at the deal and check how much
it would cost to book the components myself (usually just flight and
accommodation). In only one case that I checked out could I get a
better deal that way. I might do better by being flexible on
accommodation, but I find that the travel company I most often use is
good on hotels, and confidence that the accommodation will be good is
worth something. Other advantages of buying a package are convenience
(a minor point, to my mind) and the legal responsibility of the tour
operator if things go wrong (in the EU, consumer protection law on
package holidays is strong -- but I am not particularly litigious, so
it is a consideration to which I do not give a great deal of thought.

Yesterday I read a piece in "Consumer Choice", a publication of the
Consumer Association of Ireland (something like "Which?" in the UK)
which concluded that it is almost always cheaper to go the DIY route,
and sometimes more than 30% cheaper. I am a little suspicious of the
piece because of the way in which some tour operators in Ireland
calculate their headline prices: oddly, you can buy some packages more
cheaply than the published price if you choose dates with good
availability of bargain flights.

So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

--
PB
The return address has been MUNGED

Re: Package or DIY?
 

Padraig Breathnach <[email protected]> wrote:

[]
    > So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    > or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

I've never done a package from the UK. The only time in the past that I
took a package was on a trip to Egypt (so not in the realm of r.t.e) and
that was because we got a heavily subsidised travel agent discount.

I will be interested in the responses of others too. Where I have
_considered_ a package was to various mediterranean islands, as the
flights alone can often be much cheaper than when booking yourself. (We
figure we'd just stay somewhere else if the hotel was rubbish.)

--
David Horne- www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk

Re: Package or DIY?
 

"Padraig Breathnach" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Regular participants in this group might be aware that Herself and I
    > take a number of short-break holidays each year.

    > So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    > or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

I have taken packages in the past in Europe when it was
much cheaper mainly because it was the only way
of getting cheap air fares, I havent done this
for several years although I do sometimes buy
fly-drive deals which include just the airfare and
car rental, in fact I'm off on one of these in June
although its to Canada and not Europe.

Keith



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Re: Package or DIY?
 

    > So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    > or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?


I do a mixture of both, last week I was in Goa on a package, its the
convienience that makes it worthwhile, nothing to think about and usually a
fair price.

For European short breaks I almost always put it together myself based
around a cheap flight.

Re: Package or DIY?
 

On Thu, 21 Apr 2005 12:00:20 +0100, Padraig Breathnach <[email protected]>
wrote:

    >Regular participants in this group might be aware that Herself and I
    >take a number of short-break holidays each year.
    >Sometimes we buy a package, and sometimes we put things together for
    >ourselves.
    >When I am tempted by a package, I look at the deal and check how much
    >it would cost to book the components myself (usually just flight and
    >accommodation). In only one case that I checked out could I get a
    >better deal that way. I might do better by being flexible on
    >accommodation, but I find that the travel company I most often use is
    >good on hotels, and confidence that the accommodation will be good is
    >worth something. Other advantages of buying a package are convenience
    >(a minor point, to my mind) and the legal responsibility of the tour
    >operator if things go wrong (in the EU, consumer protection law on
    >package holidays is strong -- but I am not particularly litigious, so
    >it is a consideration to which I do not give a great deal of thought.
    >Yesterday I read a piece in "Consumer Choice", a publication of the
    >Consumer Association of Ireland (something like "Which?" in the UK)
    >which concluded that it is almost always cheaper to go the DIY route,
    >and sometimes more than 30% cheaper. I am a little suspicious of the
    >piece because of the way in which some tour operators in Ireland
    >calculate their headline prices: oddly, you can buy some packages more
    >cheaply than the published price if you choose dates with good
    >availability of bargain flights.
    >So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    >or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

I have done only two package deals, one to London from NY for 3
nights with a room at the Holiday Inn in Bloomsbury and another
from NY City to Washington DC over Thanksgiving for four nights.
In each case the airfare was very low on a per person rate. They
were last minute deals booked on the Internet. The London trip
was in April and I don't think one would find comparable prices
in full season. The London trip was $421 per person and the
DC trip $240 per person. Airfare from NY City to DC is normally
$200 or more per person RT and the train is about the same.

I think these "deals" pop up in off seasons, never in full tourist
season. And they don't last long -- you have to be ready to go at
a moment's notice, as it were.

Re: Package or DIY?
 

"Padraig Breathnach" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Regular participants in this group might be aware that Herself and I
    > So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    > or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

I never took a package (though I'm thinking of taking one to St. Petersburg
this year, I do not feel confident with the paperwork), mostly because what
I want from traveling (lots of roaming around) does not come in packages.
From what I've seen of packages, they seem a good deal if you want what they
offer (three-star hotels, flights at peak times, lots of food, rental car,
whatever). But when I travel, I need few of those things, and can do with
cheaper alternatives.

inge

Re: Package or DIY?
 

On Thu, 21 Apr 2005 14:18:17 +0200, "Ingeborg Denner" <[email protected]> wrote:

    >"Padraig Breathnach" <[email protected]> wrote in message
    >news:[email protected].. .
    >> Regular participants in this group might be aware that Herself and I
    >> So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    >> or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?
    >I never took a package (though I'm thinking of taking one to St. Petersburg
    >this year, I do not feel confident with the paperwork), mostly because what
    >I want from traveling (lots of roaming around) does not come in packages.
    >From what I've seen of packages, they seem a good deal if you want what they
    >offer (three-star hotels, flights at peak times, lots of food, rental car,
    >whatever). But when I travel, I need few of those things, and can do with
    >cheaper alternatives.
    >inge

When I travel alone I never look at package deals. They are always
much more expensive than I can do on my own. They add on a hefty
charge as a single supplement. With two people traveling, a very few
really "good deals" can be found if one checks regularly on the Internet
and is willing to take off on a moment's notice. but I would never book
a package that included touring as well as airfare and hotel. I have
no interest at all in being part of a group. And the good deals are
almost always for short term stays. One can do far better shopping
around for cheap hotels for longer trips. Especially for the single
traveler.

Re: Package or DIY?
 

I tend to make the decision based on the amount of travel. If I am
going to a single city or sites around a single city I will usally go
DIY. However if it is a multi-location trip with alot of travel
between locations then bundled is the way to go.

The reason for that is that if I am going to alot of locations I am
going to be spending alot of time getting hotels, waiting for
transportation, find ways to store my stuff,etc. With a bundled trip
that is all worked out.

Re: Package or DIY?
 

Padraig Breathnach <[email protected]> wrote:
    > So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    > or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

I always put together my own travel from scratch, whether for a weekend or
for a month or two. Partly because I save a lot of money (more than you
might think since I regularly mix in hostels and such rather than hotels)
and because I just plain love the planning part.

I took a two week package tour last May for the first time in my life in
Italy because I was going with a group from my church. It was great to
have all the logistics taken care of but really, really expensive. With a
really large (36 of us) group of friends it was the only way to go.

--
Julie
**********
I could be wrong. My experience is limited to my experience.

Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at
http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm

Re: Package or DIY?
 

sadly (for the tour operators) I have not booked a 'package' for ages. it's
so much fun planning your trip and making enquiries using this tool. I also
enjoy looking for cheap flights and sometimes will go to a destination just
because it's easy to fly. forums are sometimes excellent source of local
savvy. next trip is to Spain courtesy of a 99 p plus tax each way Ryanair to
Jerez home of Sherry and beautiful dresses. then Krakow courtesy of
CentralWings cheap flights from Gatwick. I have also been very comforted by
the email communications with the hotel in Krakow. they think of everything.

Re: Package or DIY?
 

On Thu, 21 Apr 2005 12:00:20 +0100, Padraig Breathnach
<[email protected]> wrote:

    >So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    >or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

The last package I took was 20 years ago, visiting Rwanda and what was
then Zaïre. This was because I'd never been to Africa before, so I was
unfamiliar with independent travel and in any case I had limited time.
It was actually a fantastic experience and the tour-leader was an
English guy living in Kenya who was familiar with local conditions,
customs and languages..

As I sometimes work as a tour-manager on European package tours with
UK customers, I wouldn't want someone like me telling me what to do
(!!) so for Europe and the US I've arranged my own itineraries.




Keith, Bristol, UK

DE-MUNG for email replies

Re: Package or DIY?
 

On Thu, 21 Apr 2005 12:00:20 +0100, Padraig Breathnach
<[email protected]> wrote:

    >Regular participants in this group might be aware that Herself and I
    >take a number of short-break holidays each year.
    >Sometimes we buy a package, and sometimes we put things together for
    >ourselves.
[snip]

    >So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    >or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

I almost always DIM, except this year we're going on a cruise. We
sometimes take package theme tours offered by groups in our town, such
as a tour offered by the adult school to see the works of artist X in
town Y, and also a bit of other sightseeing. These tours usually cost
very little and have a duration of two or three days. They have all
the disadvantages of package tours, such as little time to yourself,
little choice of things to see, but they're usually fun since we're
travelling with friends and neighbors.
--
Barbara Vaughan
My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it
I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup

Re: Package or DIY?
 

Padraig Breathnach wrote:

    > So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    > or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?
    >

Patrick

You didn't specify whether you were asking the European group members
or our international friends.

For vacationing in Europe I would never even consider taking a
package. The last one we took was nearly 20 years ago. Nowadays we just
throw everything in the car and drive off. Last year we did that and
drove down through Italy to south of Naples to the Cilento area, an
incredibly beautiful area virtually unknown outside of Italy. The year
before we went to Croatia island hopping. We never had any problem
finding somewhere to stay, and we could pick and choose what we liked.

I would consider making an exception for a flight/hotel combination
for a brief city tour. Even then, the last ones we did (Berlin, Naples)
we simply organised ourselves.

And our last trip to Mexico, we just booked the flights there and back.
The only mistake we made was booking one hotel in advance through the
Internet- overpriced, poor location.

T.

Re: Package or DIY?
 

On Thu, 21 Apr 2005 17:39:04 +0200, Tom Peel <[email protected]> wrote:

    >Padraig Breathnach wrote:
    >> So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
    >> or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?
    >>
    >Patrick
    > You didn't specify whether you were asking the European group members
    >or our international friends.
    > For vacationing in Europe I would never even consider taking a
    >package. The last one we took was nearly 20 years ago. Nowadays we just
    >throw everything in the car and drive off. Last year we did that and
    >drove down through Italy to south of Naples to the Cilento area, an
    >incredibly beautiful area virtually unknown outside of Italy. The year
    >before we went to Croatia island hopping. We never had any problem
    >finding somewhere to stay, and we could pick and choose what we liked.
    > I would consider making an exception for a flight/hotel combination
    >for a brief city tour. Even then, the last ones we did (Berlin, Naples)
    >we simply organised ourselves.
    >And our last trip to Mexico, we just booked the flights there and back.
    >The only mistake we made was booking one hotel in advance through the
    >Internet- overpriced, poor location.
You who are situated in Europe have a big advantage over those of us
who are not. We have to look at substantial air fare so a deal that
lowers that and includes hotel can at times work well.

Another thing is knowing the situation for hotels, etc., where you are
going. I know, for example, that in Mexico it is possible to get a
decent hotel room for very little, because I have traveled all around
that country. And thus I'd never book from the Internet that offers only
more expensive, but not necessarily better, places. But I don't know
about various locales in Europe. Hence this group is very helpful.

Re: Package or DIY?
 

Padraig Breathnach wrote:
So I ask: what do other members of our group do? Do you take packages,
or put together your own programmes, or do some of each?

For Europe, we usually made all our own travel arrangements. However,
once we did a trip to Istanbul using a Singapore Airlines deal. I
believe it was slightly cheaper than the combined hotel and airfare,
and also had a few other things thrown in such as airport transfers and
a half day tour. Now, living in Germany, we would probably just drive
the car somewhere. However, it probably is worth checking the paper
for some destinations where combined airfare and hotel might be cheap.

When visiting the US we would take a package deal to Mexico or South
America using travel specials in US newspapers, which oftentimes would
have hotel and airfare for less than the cost of what we could purchase
the airfare ourselves. While driving around the US we once met a
British couple traveling for the same length of time that had gotten
their airfare and car rental for less than what we paid for our
relatively cheap car rental alone. So excellent deals can be found.

And in Asia, we usually make arrangements with an Asian travel agency
to handle personalized tours for my wife and me.

George