Timing is everything. Avoid busiest times of the year: holidays, spring and summer vacations, and large vacations.

If you can, before you decide on a hotel, ask about pricing on “extras”: extra beds, cribs, rollaways and extra occupants and about any extra charges for local phone calls, cable TV, and Internet connections.

Compare all factors before making your final decision.

Ask your hotel for free funbooks, which often include two for one dinners and shows and discounted drinks.

Ask for everyone about discounts, special offers, freebies, comps. These are available at most Las Vegas hotels and casinos, but you need to ask for them.

Join the MGM Mirage Players Club and or “The One Club” to accrue credits for comped food, beverages and rooms.

Buy your own water and drinks at outside discount stores. Bring along a small ice cooler to keep your water and drinks cold and a hot pot to brew coffee or tea. This could save you $10 or more a day in refrigerator rental fees.

Use the free monorail system that goes between the hotels and casinos and the free public bus system. Ask for a schedule at your hotel or casino.

If you rent a car, ask your hotel and the casinos about free parking. Most hotels and casino’s offer free parking as a perk if you ask, because they want to give you a good reason to stay.

So where do all of these people plan to go?

Domestic Destinations
According to AAA of the United States, here are the top destinations based on the number of bookings for each location.

Florida
Orlando is the top destination for fairly obvious reasons but Ft. Lauderdale is also in the top ten. Florida offers a wealth of activities and options for families, singles, and all types of traveler. Perennial favorite Disney World will attract hundreds of thousands of visitors between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, while other Florida attractions like Gatorland, Kennedy Space Center, and the Everglades will also be popular. It is also common for the beaches of Ft. Lauderdale to be filled with vacationers during the holiday season, which is second only to spring break in terms of number of tourists.

It is not too late to check out some of the great last minute deals throughout Florida. With a little research and a willingness to be flexible, you can still enjoy Florida this holiday season.

California
California has three cities in the top ten travel destinations this holiday season — Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego. All three offer a wide range of activities for tourists of all ages, and the generally pleasant December weather in California makes it a favorite place for vacationers from colder climates in need of sunshine.

The Los Angeles area is the gateway to Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm, two extremely popular amusement parks. Just a short drive to the south and east is San Diego, a relaxing area that is home to a laid-back lifestyle of beaches, surfing, and shopping.

If an urban experience is more to your liking, opt for San Francisco, where you can enjoy international culture, a ride on the famous cable cars, a visit to the Golden Gate Bridge, and a winding trip down Lombard Street, touted as the “crookedest street” in the world.

Other great holiday escapes
Some of the other most popular holiday escapes in the United States include New York City, Chicago, Boston, Nashville and Las Vegas.

The holidays are legendary in New York City, with ice-skating in Central Park and the elegant decorations around Rockefeller Center. In Chicago, visitors flock to the Navy Pier Winter Wonderfest as well as the famous holiday window display at Marshall Field’s department store. You can’t beat Boston, though, for a traditional New England holiday vacation. Check out the Prudential Center Christmas Tree, walk the Freedom Trail of historic Revolutionary War era sites, or do something entirely different and take Boston Duck Tour on a World War II era amphibious vehicle.

Looking for something a bit different? Consider Las Vegas for the holidays, where the abundance of holiday lights dwarfs even the normal profusion of neon and color. Every casino along the strip works to outdo the others with lights and decorations, with some of the most amazing displays located at Caesars Palace, the Bellagio and the Monte Carlo.

One of the most relaxed holiday destinations in the U.S. is Nashville, home to the “down home country Christmas” festivities at the Opryland Resort and Grand Ole Opry as well as special holiday programs at the Country Music Hall Of Fame. Nashville’s historic homes are also dressed up for the holidays, so think about taking a bus tour of the city to enjoy the spectacular lights and decorations.

International Destinations
International travel is always popular around the holidays, and Americans are flocking to destinations all over the globe this holiday season.

Australia
It is icy and cold across much of the northern United States, but summer in Australia! For cultural attractions and urban festivities, tourists stop in Melbourne and enjoy some Christmas Carols at the Myer Music Bowl, or visit the famed Opera House in Sydney.

Since Christmas falls at the beginning of summer in Australia, many holiday visitors spend their vacation at a spectacular beach location such as Shark Bay, where diving enthusiasts can swim with dolphins and sharks, or along the Queensland Gold Coast, an area with over 30 kilometers of beautiful sandy beaches plus great restaurants, shopping, and an ever-present nightlife.

If you want a truly amazing holiday experience, go to Australia’s Christmas Island, a pristine island that is largely a National Park and home to amazing plants and animals. You can scuba dive with whale sharks, enjoy the peace and quiet of a bird watching excursion, or seek adventure with a sport fishing trip in search of sailfish, tuna and wahoo.

Corsica
This is one of the jewels of the Mediterranean, offering an amazing array of food, activities, and traditional holiday celebrations. Corsica is famous for its hospitality and beautiful lands, so it definitely belongs on your “short list” of exotic holiday getaways.

Corsica is home to varied landscapes, ranging from sparkling beaches and Mediterranean ocean reserves to towering mountains and nature parks. Traditional holiday festivals include the renowned Fiera di a Castagna, or Chestnut Fair. This annual event attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year, who are treated to arts, crafts, food and entertainment related to one of the islands main products, the chestnut. It is a holiday tradition for tourists from across the European continent, and well worth exploring on your holiday vacation.

United Kingdom
For a unique holiday experience, check out the United Kingdom this year. It is a perennially popular spot due to the many places of historical significance as well as culture and the arts. In London itself, you can see Parliament, visit the Tower of London, hear the sounds of Big Ben chiming the time, or ride a famed double Decker bus all around the city.

Visit Windsor Castle, the largest inhabited castle in the world and home to the British Sovereign for 900 years. You can tour this magnificent structure, getting a taste of the history and tradition of the British monarchy. When the Queen is in residence, you will see her standard flying high atop the round tower, visible from all directions as you enter the town.

If something sweeter is more to your liking, venture to Birmingham’s own Cadbury World, known as the chocolate paradise. There you can learn all about the famous Cadbury Chocolates, enjoy samples, and watch how the chocolates are made, wrapped and packed. Father Christmas is on site throughout the holidays, greeting children of all ages with a present of their very own.

First you need to decide where to go, this year I have decided to go to Holland for my vacation. Once you have decided where you want to go on vacation you can start to plan the things you want to see and do. In Holland I am interested in the Van Gogh museum, the Rembrandt museum and the Casino.

I have always enjoyed casinos, so this is going to be my first chance to go to a casino in Europe, so how can I pass up the chance to play some European Roulette, and I have been practicing at an online casino, ok I have to admit I have also been “practicing” poker and blackjack, please don’t tell my wife.

After you have figure out where you want to go and what you want to do when you are there you can get a feel for where you want your hotel to be.

There are many different websites that offer the best prices on hotels, so make sure to check several of them before making a final decision. Most of these sites will offer pictures of the hotel facilities and the different rooms.

After looking at the hotels pick the top 3 and do a search on the internet for them. Try to find reviews from people that have stayed there before. The hotels site is always going to tell you how great the hotel is, but if someone were annoyed enough to trash a place or tell you how great it was, then you can be pretty sure they are telling you the truth.

The first hotel I was looking at for my Amsterdam trip said it was close to the center of the city, in a nice area, but reading reviews from former patrons told me the area was filled with drug addicts and homeless, and this is not really what I want to see on my vacation, so I found a much nicer location. It is a little farther from the city center but it is near the museums we want to go to, so by being closer to them we can get up early walk to the museums and spend the rest of the time walking around looking at the shops and attractions inside the city’s center.

Now all that is left is packing the right clothes. Unless you are going to someplace where the weather is always a constant, make sure to pack clothes for both good and bad weather. My trip is in a week and the weather is expected to me mostly sunny and in the 50’s but there is a chance of rain so I will be packing a coat for the rain, ad extra socks just in case.

If you are gong to be in Europe and plan to visit a casino you should know that in Europe casinos are more upscale then in the USA. They will not let you in wearing your shorts a T shirt and sandals, most casinos require men to wear a tie and jacket or a turtleneck.

It is also always helpful to buy a travel guide for where ever you are going. Besides having helpful recommendations for things to see and places to eat, many of them offer discounts for attractions.

Even before the new carriers to the island land the existing airlines have been offering return flights at prices seemingly much lower than in the past to try and hold on to their share of the market.

According to on-line travel guide YourMalta.com the airline negotiations have been tempered with the need for the island’s government to see that the national carrier, Air Malta, isn’t damaged as it is one of Malta’s major employers.

Traditionally the UK has been Malta’s biggest market for incoming tourists, often making up over half of the island’s visitors in any given year, but some on the island see even this market as under threat. And property buyers from the UK have accounted for seventy per cent of Malta property sales to overseas buyers in recent years.

A good portion of UK visitors and property buyers for Malta in recent years have been ex-forces who served for the British during WW2 when Malta held out against Hitler’s Luftwaffe, and then in peacetime through to 1964 when Malta became independent, who returned for holidays.

But with the inevitability of this market declining a new breed of Malta’s holiday and hotel entrepreneurs see Malta’s future as less dependent on the UK tourist, and being more cosmopolitan in her outlook.

Declining Market and New Opportunities

Tribune Properties, a UK company specialising in Malta properties, say they have noticed more buyers making enquiries from other countries over the last year. In particular they say they have been receiving enquiries from France, Italy and Germany.

‘The UK remains the foundation for overseas property buyers considering buying property in Malta, but the overall percentage is reducing as more and more people in mainland Europe have visited Malta, and liked it so much they want to either move to the island full time or buy a holiday home.

The arrival of low cost flights to Malta though could reignite British interest as three and four day breaks a few times a year becomes financially viable. If the airlines fly to destinations in Europe too the number of buyers for Malta property could rise in the immediate and medium term’ explains Tribune’s Managing Director, Roger Munns.

For Malta’s tourist industry three and four day visitors in increased numbers will be a welcome boost. There is discussion on the island about extending club’s opening hours beyond the current 4am.

Clubbers in the UK are used to 6am closing, and might be deterred from making a weekend trip with a three hour flight only to find shorter hours available for partying.

‘There are new opportunities for Malta, and it’s for the island to decide whether to embrace them and gain a new generation of visitors – or ignore them and lose an asset for the economy’ agree YourMalta.com

‘Malta has a lot to offer the visitor apart from being a Mediterranean holiday island. Malta has a rich culture and history, and can easily appeal to all generations from toddlers to pensioners. More Italians and other nationalities are discovering Malta as a destination. Malta will become more cosmopolitan. And while some of the older more conservative residents are likely to be against a younger and more diverse mix of visitors from what they have been used to and see change as something to be afraid of, we believe the island will embrace the more cosmopolitan feel, while retaining the features that make Malta a unique visit among her Mediterranean island competitors.’