Summer vacation plans

Everything that we do in this life has some pros and some cons. It is all about weighing up both sides and deciding what is right for you.

Booking next year's Summer vacation early has many advantages such as :

• If you plan to travel abroad there are only so many brilliant places to visit and stay. Leave it too late to book your summer vacation and the best places will have already been picked over. You could be left with a second rate hotel in a second rate resort.
• If your choice is very popular it will soon be fully booked.
• In order to attract customers travel agents are offering special discounts this year.As businesses struggle to survive it is certainly a "buyer's market".
• It is easier to budget for a vacation if you plan early. You will have plenty of time to save up the balance of your holiday payment and some spending money.
• Early bookings usually offer the option to pay a very low deposit payment.

I was prompted to create this page having today, December 27, booked a vacation for us  for next year. Wanting to return to the same place, resort and hotel meant that places were tight. It is a small hotel with only around 40 rooms, which is part of the appeal of course. Many visitors return year after year after year and so booking early is a must.

The added bonus was booking online early meant that there was a special discount. All in all not a bad deal for us. Early booking means that you get the deal that you want.

One final consideration could also be the fact that some travel companies are struggling to survive. In the UK travel giant Thomas Cook is having to close some of its stores and restructure its business affairs. The current economic crisis could see some travel companies fold meaning there will be less choice available.

This is why it is very important to only use reputable, long established companies. Thomas Cook's financial problems have highlighted that no company is safe but at least those in the UK that are ABTA bonded mean your money is safe, should the worst happen. Presumably other countries offer similar protection for would be vactioners.

If you book early the bonus will also be that you have a Summer Vacation to dream about when the cold winter months of a New Year begin to bite. Roll on Summer, indeed.