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February 15, 2009

The best online travel sites

Book your holiday using Web 2.0 tools

Janet Fullwood

When searching for holidays - the web's long been a useful place. You can find cheap flights and hotel rooms, rent cars and even read reviews of you accommodation online.

However, last year the web got even more useful for holiday makers. Dozens of Web 2.0 travel sites jumped in to fill new niches in travel planning. Here's a selection of sites (many of them still in beta testing) that might help with your plans.

When you don't know where to go

These sites can help an undecided planner find a perfect travel match.

Best Trip Choices uses a simple yet highly revealing questionnaire to identify which of six 'travel personalities' you most closely match. After taking the quiz to determine your type, you can drill down to identify destinations and activities that BestTripChoices thinks are suited to your preferences. (You're on your own for booking, though.)

Similarly, TravelMuse, Tripbase and Triporati present destination suggestions based on your interests (which you identify on supplied lists or tags); TravelMuse and Tripbase also factor in your budget, and TravelMuse asks you how much time you're willing to spend en route. All three sites provide reviews, maps, and other content, including links to booking sites.

These sites offer some specialised features, too. Triporati's Facebook app lets you find friends who share specific travel-related interests. Tripbase returns costs for its suggested destinations. And TravelMuse provides tools to help you collaborate on travel plans with friends.

If you're considering a cruise or an organised tour, a good place to start shopping is at Travelbeen.com, which debuted in seven countries including the UK last year with the goal of incorporating every travel website on the planet into its 'social search engine'.

One of TravelBeen's more unusual features is its ability to perform searches for travel suppliers by specialised criteria. If you're looking for an eco-tour in Costa Rica or a 'clean cruise' to Antarctica, for example, you can elect to see only companies that adhere to strict accreditation standards. A shortcoming: Though accreditations are noted, they aren't explained. For example, you can call up a list of cruise lines that belong to the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators, but it's up to you to know how those lines differ from lines that aren't members.

If you're looking for a hotel deal, try DealBase. Its deal analyser technology promises to spare you from having to sift through reams of fine print by presenting the key criteria for each listing - price, savings off brochure price and terms of booking (for example, dates of stay and deadline for booking) - in just three lines of type. Drill down to filter by category or interest (golf, beach, four-star, and so on), bookmark your favourites, and come back to view them as a list. However, the site currently only offers deals from US-based tour operators.

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Comments received

hauteroute said on Tuesday, 17 February 2009

NileGuide (www.nileguide.com) is another great resource PC Advisor's readers may be interested in. We provide personalized travel recommendations, integrated planning and booking tools, and a free customized downloadable guidebook for the trip.

Artur said on Tuesday, 17 February 2009

I may suggest prontohotel ( www.prontohotel.com) where you can get the best deal from all internet providers and webs, saving time because you get all offers in one web.

Chris said on Wednesday, 18 February 2009

Can I suggest (www.nozio.com) a direct booking web portal for hotels with an active community of users interested in travel. Available in 5 languages.

travelbeen said on Tuesday, 24 February 2009

many thanks for the write up on travelbeen.co.uk. We have a long road to go and any feedback is welcome. Take the point on the Accreditations on the search results, although luckily we do have a write up on each accreditation e.g. ABTA and you can get to this info when you see the details of a travel company. Many thanks and any further feedback welcome. Ed Whiting CEO and Founder Travelbeen

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