If you want to come to Maui, and need to keep your trip affordable, here's how to create your own Maui vacation package. Use the Internet to do your research and save money by renting quality accommodations directly from the owner. Follow the steps below to plan your perfect Maui vacation.
1. Dream! This is when you become creative. Where would you like to visit? What time of year do you enjoy traveling? Assuming you've chosen Maui, read all you can about our island. Choose a home base for your Maui trip, and then select your desired travel dates. It's best to be flexible on dates and length of stay, so you can get the best deals possible.
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2. Do Your Research. Armed with your intended destination and preferred travel dates, you're ready to start the next step researching two things: where to stay and how to get there.
Where to Stay: Privately-owned accommodations are plentiful on Maui. There are several ways to locate these, the most popular being websites with vacation property listings. You'll find the least expensive deals on sites that offer free vacation rental listings, since property owners don't have to build the cost of ads into the rental, but larger "pay" sites also offer good variety.
Choosing only property listings with availability calendars allows you to narrow down your search quickly. Once you've found several possibilities, call the owners to learn more about the properties. Take good notes for future reference.
How to Get There: As you begin deciding where and when you'd like to stay, it's time to check flight availability. Online travel sites make this simple and one of the best is Travelocity, with its user-friendly search function and quick response time. They offer lots of flight options for most travel dates. Make a list with all possible airlines, ticket prices, number of stops and travel dates and times.
If your flight dates and times aren't matching with property availability, or you're going to be over-budget, adjust the dates, time or amount of money you'll spend and do another search. Spend no more than twenty minutes the first time you search for accommodations and flights. I normally go two to three times through the process before finding what suits my needs.
3. Fine Tune Your Plan. Compare your list of potential rental properties and your list of available flights. Now narrow the property list down to four to six attractive properties that require more research.
4. Confirm Property Details. With your narrowed-down list of rentals, call the owners back and ask for specific details on every property. This is the time to confirm the property is definitely available during your stay. Request a detailed quote that includes rental rate, any additional fees and applicable taxes. At this stage, identify yourself as seriously interested in each property, so the owners will respond promptly with a quote. I normally wait no more than twenty four hours before requesting the information again.
As you receive rental quotes, it's time to narrow the list down to the two to three best properties. I contact the owners of each and let them know I'm considering one or two other properties but that I'd like to put theirs on hold for twenty four hours. This allows me time to book my flights. This is also the time to ask each owner to email you a copy of their rental agreement.
5. Book Your Flights. With the homework you've done in Step Two, all that's left to do is book your flights. This step will be quick if you're using a travel site like Travelocity.
6. Finalize Property Reservations. Your flights are booked and you're ready to seal the deal on a vacation property. You requested rental agreements in Step 4, so select the property you like most and send the owner the signed agreement and your deposit. Be courteous and let the other owners know you won't be renting their properties.
7. Book Your Rental Car. Seeing Maui by car is the optimum experience. For great rental car rates, I go back to Travelocity knowing the size of car I'd like to rent. They'll give you a list of options sorted by rate. Note their best price, then go to Priceline, where you can bid on available car rentals. I start by bidding 30% less than the price for the same car on Travelocity.
That usually gets me a great deal the first time around, but if not, I change the rental date or type of vehicle and try again. It may help to wait a few days before bidding again. This bidding method always results in great car rental deals for me, but be aware that Priceline requires immediate, non-refundable payment. You can also work directly with car rental companies where payment isn't made until the date of rental and cancellation is allowed up to twenty four hours in advance.
One more transportation detail: not everyone likes to drive while on vacation. If you're in that group and need a ride to and from the airport, I always recommend using SpeediShuttle. Their door-to-door service is great, and they offer fare quotes on their website.
8. Minimize Your Risk. One more step to go. Don't let airport closures, family emergencies or lost baggage steal your vacation investment. Protect yourself from financial loss caused by unforeseen events by arranging travel insurance through a company like Travel Guard. Because Travel Guard covers more than six million travelers every year, I've found them to be a great choice for my own vacation plans. Knowing you don't need to worry about trip cancellations, travel delays or emergency medical expenses will let you truly enjoy your vacation.
This foolproof vacation planning process has worked for everyone I've shared it with. Why pay money to a travel agency to book your vacation package? In eight simple steps, you can have the Maui vacation package of your dreams.
Budget Travel to Maui - Build Your Dream Vacation Package PRICELINE
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