Preferences

Always analyze your preferences on the following before deciding to travel, either domestic or international.

1. Type of holiday
2. Destination
3. Best Season/time
4. Transportation
5. Accommodations
6. Food

Type of holiday:

Our preferences for the kind of trip varies with person and situation. It may be that some travelers do not like sudden trips. They need carefully planned holidays with everything meticulously booked. People who like sudden trips do not need to plan much as they make choices on the go. Sometimes you may prefer luxurious getaway while sometimes you will have to do with some budget traveling. Your preference might be a hiking or adventurous trip while others would want a relaxed holiday. The preferences on the type of holiday would also depend on whether you are travelling solo, with family or a group of friends. Hence, what type of holiday you want is first on the list. Since, it considerably narrows down the destinations you shortlist.

Destination:

After shortlisting a few destinations depending on the type of holiday you want this time, you may explore a little bit of each. Every place has something different to offer even though it might be suited to the same type of holiday. Your choice of the destination from the shortlisted ones should depend on your preferences of activities/sightseeing options available at the place. Answer a few questions like the ones that follow and your task becomes easier. Are you a mountain person or a beach person? Are you a party animal or a nature lover? Do you like buzzing streets or serene beaches? Do you plan to explore the cultural significance of a place or want to go on a shopping spree?

This is one of the most important decisions. It will underline your travel plans because every other detail will be based upon the destination you chose like your place of stay or day activities. If you are also a travel newbie, you must already have several destinations in your mind which you would be raring to book tickets to. Some places are worth choosing over others depending on your experiences, but, for a newbie, choose one that requires least hassle, preferably domestic. It will make you comfortable with travelling on your own. Once you are confident enough, then, slowly and steadily embark on new challenges and far out world.

Best Time/ Season:

The major task was finalizing your destination. Once that is off the list, you know what you are planning for and what to expect from the trip. So now you may select what time of the year you like the most to travel. A number of factors affect your preferences. Some people go on holiday trips during the summer vacations or any puja vacation. Some people choose important events like the New Year or Christmas to plan holidays. Also, if you have a difficult boss who might not sanction your leave, pick the time of the year first and then decide on the destination most suited for that season. If the time of the year for your holiday is already decided, then chose your destination according to that instead of the other way around.

Either the destination is decided based on the time of year you are planning your holiday or the time is decided based on the destination you have chosen. The best combination is when neither of the two i.e. destination or time, is pre decided. This affords you complete flexibility with your travel planning and you may make all your trips within budget. Most of the experienced travelers travel in this way and hence, travel cheap.

Transportation:

In our experience, while travelling you can save only one, either time or money! Yes, this is true. Your preferences affect other choices. What we have observed on our trips is that we can either save time by spending more money or save money by spending time. An example of this would be that direct flights are always costlier than the flights with stops and layovers. Budget flights, generally, have long layovers or multiple stops. There is always a trade off. There is no point in selecting an option where you are losing both. So, depending on the cash and time in hand, you would need to choose the best available option.

Your preferences might make a world of a difference in your budget. This is certainly affected by the type of journey you are on: domestic or international, as well as the destination. For domestic travel you have options of flights, trains or buses. While flights save loads of time and allow you to explore more, they may cost a bomb at times. Trains can be a cozy option but they kill your precious time. Buses can be a great option for short to medium distances provided the locations have proper road infrastructure. Taxi can be an alternative to buses if you want peaceful private transfers but they may burn a hole in your pocket.

Some places are inaccessible except for a certain mode of transport. In such cases, you have but no other option. Again, while exploring a destination, It is not necessary to always book a taxi. You may always use public transport. Some places have excellent public transport systems, availing of which you may save a lot of money. Do consider safety and convenience over everything else before making a choice.

Accommodation:

Accommodations make a huge part of your holiday expenses. This is one area which can create a major difference in the budget of two people planning to visit the same destination. We all have our own preferences when it comes to places of stay. For example, if you are on a hiking or adventure trip, most likely you will spend your days camping or in sleeping bags. You might also be choosing to stay over at some local people for bed and breakfast. And if you are on a luxury trip you will choose to book some 3-5 star hotels and resorts or at least a good comfortable stay.

A solo budget traveler will be perfectly alright booking a hostel dormitory bed where they get to interact with fellow travelers and maybe hitch hike. A couple on the other hand would like more privacy and comfort at their stay. Moreover, if you are travelling with family you would most certainly like to book budget hotels that are both comfortable with facilities for every age group.

Therefore, based on a number of factors, like the type of trip, number of people, type of group, or the destination, your preferences may vary. Some destinations might be more affordable than the others. While some destinations might offer variety of options, others might be limited. In our case, we ensure that our stay option is safe and clean. Cleanliness is our topmost priority. We read the reviews thoroughly before booking. Sometimes, we shell out a little bit more on our stays because we prefer to stay around market areas. This has a double benefit for us because it is safer and we get plenty of time to shop.

Food:

Yes, food is of importance while travelling. In India we have multiple cuisines to choose from so domestic travel is not much of an issue. Every place has a unique popular dish to try. Since, Indians use many spices they might have some difficulty in finding tasty food outside of India. Of course, there are Indian restaurants available all over the world and they are not even difficult to locate. But, Indian and vegetarian food is costly outside India. Most of the cuisines outside of India use different spices and except for some South Asian countries, the curry is an alien concept. It becomes quite cumbersome to eat local unless your preferences include exploring the food culture.

Most Indians are vegetarians and food becomes a major issue while travelling abroad. Although vegetarianism is picking up fast all around the world, it is still not as common as it is India. Even if you are a non-vegetarian you will have to be a very cautious of the type of meat you are eating. Indian people do not have all kinds of meat that are available outside of India. Even in seafood, we limit ourselves to only a few options. This is not to scare you but make you aware of what kind of issues you might face with food outside as it definitely affects our budget.

If you prefer to explore local cuisines or might just do with the local available options, you will be saving a good sum of money. So, choose what you would like to be eating. Most of the times, eggs, bread, or instant noodles come to our rescue on a trip. If you are very choosy about your food, your budget might be on the higher side.