Travel Resources
Accommodation, Flights, Tours & Travel Tools
Tools we use to research and book our transport, accommodation and activities.
ACCOMODATION
Should you book direct or use a booking platform? It’s a bit of an it depends answer.
I generally book direct with major hotels and resorts, where I can and feel safe to do so. Especially when I am a member of their program and get rewards or bonuses for staying. I also prefer to have direct contact with the property to organise arrival and extras like parking.
For most other stays I like to use a third party booking providers, they are super convenient to search for options and offer a level of security, especially if things don’t go to plan.
For Hotels & Resorts
IHG Hotels & Resorts
With 20 brands & over 6000 global destinations, IHG offers a a huge choice of accommodation options.
IHG One Rewards: free to join, access to offers & benefits like exclusive member rates, points for stays, free WiFi, and late checkout.
For Self Contained Accommodation
airbnb
For stays of more than a night or two, we usually like to have a kitchen/kitchenette and a little more space to spread out and work.
Airbnb has a large range of options, and the booking process is easy & secure.
Hotels, Apartments & Holiday Rentals
booking.com
Hotels, Apartments & Holiday Rentals
With millions of listings worldwide, the interface allows you to compare options, read views and shows live availability, it’s a real time saver.
When heading to a new location and you don’t know which hotel stay in, booking.com makes it easy.
For Airline Reward Points
Qantas
If I’m chasing points for flights, I will find where I want to stay and then compare pricing options via Qantas for Hotels & Airbnb.
If the rates stack up, the points add up!
FLIGHT RESEARCH & BOOKINGS
For Researching Flights
Google Flights
Great for finding routes, pricing and availability. You can search by dates & travel class, and filter by stops, duration, airlines or alliances.
Personally, I don’t use this as a booking tool. For tips and to see how I use Google flights check out this article.
Skyscanner
Another valuable flight search/comparison tool for finding flight routes and deals, as well as hotels and car hire.
It has a good search function and filtering options.
AIRLINES
These recommendations are influenced by our home base of Australia and our preferred partner One World.
For International Business Class Flights
Qatar
My current favorite airline for International business class flights is Qatar.
Best for in flight service and overall experience. It’s been a few years since flying Qatar, so watch this space for updates!
For Bucket-list First Class Flights
Emirates
The stand out winner for first class in my opinion is on the Emirates A380.
If you are going to splash out with cash or points in First Class, why not make sure it has a shower!
For Australian Domestic & International Travel
Qantas
Do we just love it for the points and the airport lounge? Probably LOL !
Reliable and consistent service is also a winner with good intercity/interstate routes. Qantas is part of the OneWorld Alliance and partners with Emirates for International travel needs.