Can anyone help me please? I have never booked a foreign holiday before.

Barracuda7

I'm new here so hi to all! I couldn't think where else to join in order to get some good advice....I have never booked a foreign holiday before and I am finding even the research a bit mind boggling!

I want ideally to book a week in Spain at the end of August...it's for two adults and two children aged 4 and 7...I don't want a packagey type hol. though...rather something quiet and traditional.

Obviously I want the cheapest thing I can get without resorting to...resorts! I would like an apartment of basic but nice hotel... don't want luxury or anything!

Beaches are preferable...where on earth do I start? Do I book everything separately? Go to one provider? Aaagh...it's all to much!

mcfisco

As it's your first time booking a holiday, maybe using a travel agent would be wise
As for suggestions - I can heartedly recommend Calella de Palafrugell on the Costa Brava

http://www.havenonearth.co.uk/country/spain/costa-brava/calella-de-palafrugell.html
http://www.siestaholidays.co.uk/resorts/resort=12

I've never actually used Siesta before so I'm not recommending them, just the area, it's stunning

richardw

Look at places on the coast in the middle bit between Valencia and Tarragona. Then look at their local tourist info website.

Mr_Wang

Give me the monies and your bank account details........

SaveTheEuro

Maybe you should talk to a travel agent. Tell them what your budget is and stress that you want a quiet resort. Let them give you three suggestions. Before booking anything go home and look at the places on the net.

Make sure you understand what the quite includes. Many operators add extras to the basic flight -- for hold luggage, meals on board, transfers to the resort.

Spain is a big country with a big coastline so there are plenty of options. Often you will find a quiet hotel of character in a village a few miles inland. If it has a pool that may be sufficient for you, and you can always have a trip to the coast if you are in need of fish and chips and a cup of tea.

stevesb52

Yeah, an agent's always the easiest.

Just to through it into the mix though, you could always look into renting a villa/farmhouse (check out sites like holidaylettings and holiday-rentals) - though generally a bit more expensive than hotels, they tend to be a bit more secluded and private, and there are some real gems. Flights with budget airlines are easy to come by, and most airports have some sort of online booking system for taxi transfers or car hire associated with them.

Bob_the_Saver

One tip, Do your research FIRST, make your mind up and stick to it.
Don't try to change anything afterwards. This forum is full of people
who do that and then wonder why it will cost them a fortune to
change things.

Have a good holiday.

benjus

By all means use a travel agent if you want to, but there's nothing hard about DIY holidays these days with the Internet to help.

If I want to keep the costs down, I would normally start by looking for cheap flights to the general area you want (i.e. Spanish Mediterranean coast), then look for somewhere suitable to stay near the destination airport. There are lots of nice quiet places along the Spanish coast, even on the most tourist-ravaged areas like the Costa Blanca & Costa del Sol. You will also need to work out how to get around when you're there, e.g. if you want to hire a car, take public transport or arrange a transfer from/to the airport.


Remember that if you're flying with a budget airline like Ryanair/Easyjet, the headline price will JUST get you a seat on the plane with a small cabin bag. Anything else will cost extra. There's plenty of information on this site about the fees and how to avoid them. Be VERY careful when entering names, dates, passport details etc as changing them afterwards can be at best a real pain, at worst very expensive.

zagfles

If you want beaches and somewhere not too touristy you could look at the north coast of Spain, perhaps getting the ferry to Santander or Bilbao then you could take your car, it'll probably be more expensive than flying but you'll have your car there which will save on transport costs/car hire.

benjus

zagfles wrote: »

If you want beaches and somewhere not too touristy you could look at the north coast of Spain, perhaps getting the ferry to Santander or Bilbao then you could take your car, it'll probably be more expensive than flying but you'll have your car there which will save on transport costs/car hire.

Northern Spain is great, especially if you like good food, although if you want more-or-less guaranteed sunny and hot weather the south coast is probably a safer option.

Neilandrewhall

Hello , I am a travel agent my self, I do all my work from home - and I am 23 years old, I have been a travel agent since 17 - I am completely ABTA registered - So if you want PM me ill help you find something .
Neil