I’ve always wanted to go traveling. Imagine, the world is in your palm. You have all the time (and money!) in the world to hop from one foreign soil to the other.

But of course, it’s a dream. We all know that money is especially hard to come by, as we’re buggered down by this painful bite called LIFE. /heh

Still, doesn’t hurt to plan ahead and nail down that dream vacation at least once a year…right? Of course, you could always start small and have your vacation trip within the bounds of Malaysia. Don’t think our own country doesn’t have any nice, cool spots for a relaxing trip! On the contrary, I myself enjoy traveling from time to time; even if it means going from one city to another.

If you’re looking to pen down a dream vacation for either this year or next, here’s three tips I’ve garnered over the past few months that may help you in your planning process. Obviously, I’m planning my own vacation too 😛

Save Money Ahead

As redundant as this may sound, it really does help a lot! My advise? Get a metal box, a piggy bank, or even an old shoebox. Anything for you to keep your money in.

Think big instead of small. Every month, or maybe once every two weeks, toss in at least RM50 into that savings ‘bank’. If you’re feeling rather tight in cash that week, put in as much as you can, but try to not go below RM20. Just remember, no cheating! Keep that money safe. Think UP-style 😀

Ideally, this project should start at least 6 months to 1 year ahead. Maybe longer if you’re not that disciplined (like me).

Oh yes, and the amount you should save up on an average also depends on the travel location. Obviously the more expensive that location may cost you, the more you should try to save up a month. Perhaps RM100 notes..? Hmmm….

The aim of this project is to ensure that you have enough cash for your travel, hotel, shopping, and most importantly, food.

 

The Cheapest Mode of Travel

Unsurprisingly, traveling by air is the most expensive. But it doesn’t have to be so! Keep an eye out for good deals, especially during festive or seasonal period. Chances are, you’ll score excellent deals for your return flights to your dream vacation.

To get a clearer idea of how much your trip may cost, try SkyScanner. Simply key in the necessary details and they’ll show you an estimated fare depending on flights available from Malaysia. Cool, yes?

If you’re constantly searching through travel portals like AirAsia, Trip Advisor, or even Air BnB; you’re likely to be targeted by ads related to travel stuff such as cheap flights and/or hotels.See? Win-win situation!

P/S: If you’re planning to travel, remember to insure yourself just in case! I go for Take It Easy by MSIG Insurance cause I can always buy it online at least one day before traveling. Perfect for my procrastinating needs! Though erm, please don’t imitate me on this.

 

Cheap Hotels but NOT Cheap Quality Stay

Let’s face it, who doesn’t love a good deal? I rarely travel out of Selangor, in all honesty. So when faced with overseas travel vacation, I panicked. Which area should I look out for? Which hotels would suit my needs? Would those needs kill my budget in the end? Where should I even begin to look?!

…you can see how silly I sound right now, but it’s the truth.

Most of my friends who travel frequently would advise me to scour through Trip Advisor, Booking.com, even Agoda. And as much as I am an avid multi-tasker, it gets confusing trying to compare good deals between 3-4 (sometimes even more) tabs at the same time.

Seriously. Not fun at all.

Which is why I find i1holiday.com a godsend. Even the URL is a pun!

i1holiday = I WANT HOLIDAY.

What’s this website all about?

Think of it as a  dedicated search engine purely for your traveling needs. i1holiday helps you compare prices of hotels from various hotel websites and/or hotel booking sites FREE OF CHARGE in one website. How cool is that? 😀

It’s pretty user friendly too, so don’t be intimidated by the website.

Imagine hunting for the ultimate deal within one website. Some of the travel sites that i1holiday would trawl are Expedia, Hotels.com, HotelTravel.com, Accor Hotels, Booking.com, and many more. Honestly, I’ve only heard of three travel sites! This gives me way more options than before.

 

So, uh, how did I manage to find this little gem?

A few weeks ago, a bunch of us had the opportunity to have a small chit-chat session with the Darren Tan (Managing Director and founder of World Cloud Ventures Sdn Bhd) and Johnson Yu (Business Development Director) about i1holiday.

As of now, there are approximately two hundred thousand hotels that are listed in this search travelogue. In terms of accessing i1holiday, this portal is currently available on both desktop and mobile browser. There’s no mobile app for this at the moment, though it seems like it’s a work-in-progress for now. Fingers crossed it’ll be up and running soon!

Darren had also mentioned that they’re working on the next phase for i1holiday, which is to compare travel packages that are available in Malaysia. I find this a brilliant move, really, since not only would they cater for the public’s traveling needs; they’re also supporting the small-scale companies that may not be as well known as your usual ‘hangouts’. I really can’t wait for this to pop out!

So yes, if you’re already in midst of travel-planning…don’t waste time any longer and check out the site for the best deals now 😀

Website: http://i1holiday.com/

Facebook: i1holiday

 

In conclusion:

Save Up, Spend Wise, and Enjoy Your Vacation!