To Europe by car. Independent travel in Europe

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Experienced travelers are convinced that traveling does not require a lot of money. Enough desire to wander and the ability to seek information.

website summarized tips from travel bloggers that will allow you to see the world at minimal cost. At the end of the article you will find a bonus in the form useful information for every tourist. And may you have more travels in the near future!

11. Travel on your own

Traveling on your own, and not through travel agencies, is both more profitable and more interesting. Yes, you will be solely responsible for any problems. But travel agencies do not solve much in such cases, preferring to shift the blame on the airline, force majeure, the receiving party, and the like.

On your own, you can lay out the “same” dream route, choose a cheap flight option, book the best-priced hotel with a convenient location for you, and pick up a transfer.

4. Rent out your own accommodation while traveling or go on an “exchange vacation”

An exchange vacation is an opportunity for free accommodation while traveling, and maybe even a chance to meet your love like the characters in a movie.

2. Don't buy what you can get for free

• WiFi. When booking accommodation, immediately choose an apartment or hotel with free Wi-Fi. During the day, use free Wi-Fi in restaurants and cafes, gas stations and shopping malls.
• Area maps. Free cards are available at counters in many hotels, apartments and hostels. The map can also be picked up at the Tourist Information Office. As a rule, they are located in the city center or near the main attractions. Download electronic maps of the city and a guide to your phone in advance.

Water. In Europe, you can drink tap water everywhere. Drinking fountains have been installed in many cities, and you can safely drink from them. To check, you can look at

What do you gain by deciding to organize your own trip?

First of all, the opportunity choose exactly what you like, and not what the travel agency has in stock in this moment. You can go on a trip to Europe in a rented car, drive on a budget non-tourist cities Asia or arrange a tour of the places of your favorite book or movie. You can come up with any individual program for yourself, if the organizer is yourself.

The process of organizing and planning is the work that travel agencies used to do for you. By doing it personally, you insure yourself against other people's mistakes and misunderstandings.

In order to make the trip successful, you often have to spend a lot of effort, but as a result of such work, you experience a huge satisfaction.

Recently, another one has been added to the list of reasons to do everything yourself. By making your own reservations, you unlikely to encounter in which our compatriots who became victims of bankruptcy several major tour operators.

What do you need?

Required to enter most countries international passport, validity which ends no earlier than 3-6 months after the end of the planned trip.

If you plan to visit several countries in one trip, make sure you have enough clean pages for visas. Some visas require an entire page and do not fit into nearly full passports.

It is better not to catch your breath immediately before the trip, but to deal with the documents as they become unusable. At expiration next passports it is better make a new one ahead of time, and not a month before the planned departure, since new passports are issued for ten years. Expired passports with visas can be useful when design some visas.

Your presence banking(credit or debit) cards will greatly simplify your life. Many banks are ready issue you a debit card without service charge subject to opening an account.

Smartphone or the tablet let you always have navigator, map and guide at hand (they can be found on the Internet), go to internet free from most wifi-equipped cafes and hotels and use travel apps.

Where to begin?

First of all, you need choose where and when You want drive and what to do there.

When?

seasonality imposes restrictions on certain areas. If you don't have a special purpose, don't go to the Caribbean in hurricane season, to the tropics - during the rainy season, to hot countries - in the midst of the heat and to cold ones - in the slushy off-season.

If your budget is small, better don't go to country in most high season(prices for hotels and flights skyrocket at this time), and choose the time at the very beginning or at the end.

Where?

Reading thematic forums and reports about other people's trips helps to determine the direction. More can be found online blogs visiting a region you like travelers or people living in countries of interest to you, look through magazines about travel and countries (for example, "Around the World", "Geo", "National Geographics"). Beginners should not start with difficult countries like Burma or Ethiopia. Countries South-East Asia and Europe more suitable for a novice traveler.

Training

How to get a visa?

Most countries Europe and former English colonies visas for citizens of the CIS. Most countries South-East Asia and Latin America visa-free or issues a visa at the border. If you do not want to apply for a visa in advance, you can choose a visa-free country or a country where you can apply for it at the entrance. On the map:

- bright purple Colour - visa-free countries

- pale blue- countries, visa which can get at the border(this is paid, but apart from a return ticket, they are unlikely to require anything)

- green- countries, visa which can get online electronic

- grey- countries whose visas are required formalize in advance at the consulate

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If you have chosen a visa country, study list of documents needed for a visa(here's a good resource with document lists and consulate addresses), and read the forums, which tells about the experience of obtaining a particular visa. Explore entry rules to country. In some countries, at the entrance you may be asked to show return air ticket, money(or card), name the address places where you will stay and demonstrate vaccination certificate from yellow fever (for some countries South America and Africa).

How to find cheap airfare?

It is easier to find a ticket on the Internet through search engine(for example, SkyScanner). Search engines, as a rule, do not take any commission in excess of the carrier's price. Moreover, sometimes ticket price found in the search engine will be below than buying from an airline.

Look where to eat direct flights from your city and from where you can fly to the city you need, you can (the site is in English, but everything is simple there: enter the name of the city into the window and press search).

Search cheap tickets- a topic for a separate article. Here are some rules:

The closer to the departure date, the more expensive the flight will cost, so it's better to start search for tickets not later than one and a half to two months before the planned trip.

If you realized it too late and there was only a week left before departure, check the air ticket exchange. Sometimes there are very cheap tickets to popular destinations.

AT weekend regular flights usually more expensive than on weekdays.

If all flights to the city you want to go to are very expensive, and you want to save money, it makes sense to look other nearby airports and get from there by land. Here is a good English language resource for that.

Price ticket not always directly depends on distance. A ticket to popular airports is usually cheaper than to small ones. Keep this in mind when planning your route.

AT peak tourist season tickets usually expensive, how straightaway after him or directly before him. Do you want to go to Brazil but don't have enough money? Check prices on tickets right after the carnival.

The ticket you have chosen suddenly has risen in price? Clear cookies in the browser and open the flight page again. Perhaps the price after that "magically" will again be the same as it was.

Pay an air ticket purchased on the site can usually be done in several ways (by bank card, through one of the payment systems or at the office). At the airport, you may be asked printout air ticket, but often enough passports and booking numbers(do I need a printout, it is written on the ticket or on the airline's website). If the ticket is paid card to another name(for example, a friend who has a credit card bought it for you), they may require photocopy of his passport and scan credit card. This can be found on the airline's website.

Many airlines allow register for a flight online. This is great saves time. After registration, you need print your boarding pass. On the day of the flight, you can check in luggage at a special counter (usually without a queue) and go straight to the departure hall. If you didn't succeed print boarding pass, contact the airline employee - this can often be done in the airoport.

How to move around the country?

Most Asian countries have cheap intercity buses and low cost airlines, the most famous being Air Asia. She often has sales.

In Europe, public transport is quite expensive, especially trains. At the same time, air travel purchased in advance from discounters (EasyJet, RyanAir and others) can cost only a couple of tens of euros. Passenger car search services are another budget option.

If you are a motorist and like to be behind the wheel, then why not go to road trip in your own car? List of required documents.

Another option is . In the US and Europe, this option for groups of several people is often cheaper than public transport. Can rent car right at the airport- this will save on transport from the airport to the hotel. To rent a car you need to have bank card and rights. Sometimes required international law.

How to find a hotel yourself

For those, who does not want to pay for housing and will be glad to get to know the life of the local population closer and participate in it, Couchsurfing is suitable - a site for hospitality exchange. On the site you can find people who are ready to shelter you for free. You are required respect their orders, find time for communication with owners and common interests and be open to new. Receiving guests in return is not required, but encouraged. registration on the site free, paid account verification is optional (this is an additional option to increase security). Site contains feedback system and warranties making its use safe and convenient.

Security

Main guarantee your security- Your brain. Use them, and many troubles will bypass you. listen to intuition.

Do not leave things unattended.

- Do not go in the dark in disadvantaged areas unfamiliar city.

- Check data that you enter in the visa application and booking forms.

- Save tickets and reservations on a computer or phone to have to them access when there is no internet. Save phone numbers and other important information from your smartphone in case the phone breaks or is lost.

- Do not check in luggage fragile things and things that can spill or break, staining other things.

remember, that responsible for everything that happens to you - You and no one else.

Many banks(for example, "Sberbank") offer preferential medical insurance for cardholders traveling abroad. Medical insurance can be helpful if needed contacting a doctor. Remember that most insurance companies require call first them, and only then seek medical help.

If you need accept certain medicines, take them with you. Don't expect to buy them locally - you might not be able to. If you accept something that you need to buy recipe, take it too. first aid kit can be supplemented with medications for widespread travel diseases(diarrhea, insomnia, headache, chafing on the legs from long walks, hygienic lipstick) and (if you are going to sunny country) sun cream. Do not take with you "just in case" medicines which you don't know how to take and against what.

How not to take too many things with you?

Mistake that many novice travelers make - heavy suitcase, filled with unused things. remember, that the less things you take with you the less have to carry. If you are planning move between cities big bag you quickly tire. As a test, you can several times raise put it on the sofa, then take it off the sofa and put it on the floor. Hard? During a trip it won't get easier especially if you plan to buy souvenirs and gifts along the way.

If you want to travel budgetary, remember - most cheap airlines take separate money for luggage. Collecting everything in hand luggage (small suitcase or backpack), you can save up to half the cost of the flight. Shampoo and other liquids, however, will have to be poured into containers up to 100 ml(sold in hardware stores and some large supermarkets).

Many paper things can be replaced files on a tablet or laptop. I gave up paper guides, books and maps a long time ago in favor of electronic.

To reduce the number of clothes, it is better to opt for things that go together. Saves space and weight well extra pairs of shoes. In relatively warm countries, I take with me only slates or open sandals plus sneakers. Give up strongly rumpled and very voluminous clothes in favor of practical and light weight.

If you are traveling to warm country, take with you light windbreaker or thin sweater. In public transport, there may be a malicious air conditioner, and the weather can suddenly deteriorate.

The most important thing not to forget is documentation(passport, driving license) and money. Good to have with you charging from the equipment that you take with you, compact tee(otherwise you will have to buy adapters for each device or charge your tablet, camera and phone in turn), car charger (if you are driving). Extra battery to the camera will not prevent lovers of taking pictures a lot.

I wish you good luck in your travels!

I would be glad if experienced travelers supplement my advice with their comments in the comments!

We have compiled a list of the main services that provide the opportunity to participate in various events and projects in different countries the world, including volunteering, training programs and helping local residents for accommodation and food.

Help Exchange

On this resource, locals from around the world invite travelers who are ready to help them with housework or small business in exchange for free housing, food, sometimes excursions or even yoga classes. A great way to not only visit a new place, but also learn about the local culture. Just choose the type of work that suits you and contact the owner. For example, you can join the Italian farming, spending only two hours a day on it.

WWOOF

Here you can find ads local residents in different countries of the world that are engaged in organic farming and need free labor. Another way to travel is by working for lodging and food.

Sudan Volunteer Program

A UK-based charity is sending graduate and undergraduate language students to Sudan as volunteers to teach English to Sudanese children. You can join a useful business and get good practical experience. Preference is given to candidates whose native language is English, but if you have practical teaching experience, your application will also be considered.

SE7EN

On SE7EN you can find a volunteer program or project in almost any country. For example, go to the Bahamas to work at an independent research station studying lemon sharks.

VSO

Another international charitable organization that offers many volunteer programs around the world in the fields of healthcare, ecology, economics, education and others.

Youth in Action

This educational program of the European Union for young people (under 30) annually gives grants to non-profit organizations for their projects in different countries, including Macedonia, Great Britain, Turkey, Georgia, Latvia, Azerbaijan, Croatia.

As part of this program, over the past two years I have visited Macedonia and the UK. The essence of the program is that it provides free education, pays 70% of the flight, visa costs, internal transport, accommodation and meals during training and education. Plus, you always have extra days in the country, but at your own expense. In fact, to become a participant, you need to submit an application form for one of the training programs. Each training is dedicated to a specific topic. So, last year we learned tolerance towards representatives of other countries in Wales.

Inna, participant of the Youth in Action program

Conservation Volunteers

And this organization will appeal to ecotourism lovers who dream of visiting Australia or New Zealand. The goal is to protect nature. The site has many volunteer programs in different parts of Australia and New Zealand for both short and long periods.

Couchsurfing

Do not forget about this rather popular resource, where you can easily find free housing and new friends in different countries. Personally, I often use Couchsurfing to get to know local life and people in new places where I visit. For super savings, you can combine Couchsurfing with .

United Nations Volunteers

In addition, you can become a UN volunteer if you are over 25 years old, have a higher education and are fluent in English, Spanish or French.

AIESEC

An international youth organization that provides various internships, exchange programs and volunteer opportunities for students and graduates in 113 countries around the world.

Appalachian Trail

Another non-profit organization accepts volunteers who love nature and are ready to take part in preserving the heritage of the organization (and this is 250,000 acres of land from Maine to Georgia in the USA).

We hope that this list will inspire you to a new travel format, not only to relax and lie on the beach, but also to join a useful business and gain new experience and acquaintances.

Tell us, have you ever taken part in public initiatives in other countries and what other ways do you know to travel almost for free?

Many people are afraid to decide to go on a trip, because they do not know the actions that need to be taken for this. I will say that there is no need to be afraid and preparation for the trip will not take much time and effort. Especially for visitors to the site, I made a plan, following which anyone can travel. Take a notebook and write down the solutions for each item.

1) Decide which specific place you will go to. Many burn that they are going to go (fly) to Thailand, but do not know where exactly. Choose a city, a place, and then it will be easier to plan a trip.

2) Decide how long you will stay there. The number of days that you need to travel largely determines the cost of the trip. Yes, and you need time to get acquainted with the sights, if it is not very much, then it is better to visit only the main sights, and leave the rest for later.

3) Decide what type of vacation you like best. Whether it is an economy trip with minimal expenses or a luxury trip with visits to casinos, expensive restaurants and parties or hiking in the mountains - different types of travel require different costs.

4) Calculate how much you will spend "on the spot". Will you go to restaurants or cook yourself, live in a hotel or hostel, use a taxi or public transport. You can find prices for many goods and services on my blog. Write at least a rough cost estimate, and plan at least 10% for unforeseen expenses.

5) Start earning more or save. You can afford a trip in which you will not deny yourself anything. It's more enjoyable to travel without worrying too much about how much money you have left. I wrote in more detail about making money for travelers.

6) Start using the Aeroflot bonus card. Thanks to the bonus program, you can fly to anywhere in the world with huge discounts, in some cases you can fly to another country for 2 thousand rubles. In details .

7) Get a passport. After submitting the application, you need to wait about a month to get a ready-made passport. The sooner you do this, the better.

8) Find out which days to fly cheaper. It often happens that the price of tickets to the same place varies greatly depending on the day of departure, and the time difference can be only a few days, and the price difference is 20-40%. To search for air tickets, use the service, and for hotels -. You can look on the Internet for other services, but I recommend these ones (it’s better to sign up for the mailing list of burning offers from these services, there are very attractive options).

9) Buy a ticket. Select the date of departure and act, use bonus program Aeroflot.

10) Book your accommodation. Decide where you will live (hotel, hostel or somewhere else) and book this place.

11) Make a plan for visiting places. Write down the main places you want to visit, this will give you more accurate budget and free time forecasts.

12) Pay fines and pay off debts. If you have debts to the state, you will not be allowed to go abroad. Pay and fly.

13) Visit the bank. Find out about settlements abroad from your bank account, what are the commissions on the card, they will tell you a lot of useful information.

14) Collect the bag. Make a list of what you need and pack it.

15) Set off on a journey in a good mood. The more positive your attitude, the more successful the trip. Take your documents, things and go on an adventure.

So, in just a few steps, you will start your journey. Take action and enjoy life.

Video about beautiful places on the planet

Country selection

Choosing a place to travel is a purely individual thing, I usually focus on several points when choosing a country for a new trip. Firstly, it is desirable that it be a new country for me or a place where I have never been, and secondly, you need to think about what you can do there, what attractions are there or what you can do there (I prefer leisure), and thirdly, you need to pay attention to various promotions from airlines, when the price of tickets to a certain place can be very profitable. Sometimes the choice of a country happens completely by accident: friends can invite, or get caught cheap ticket on a plane or I can read some interesting book about this country, there can be countless reasons, for me it doesn’t really matter where to fly, the main thing is that it be interesting. You can find basic information about different countries on the website.

Flight search

The next step after choosing a destination is to find a suitable and preferably cheap air ticket. First of all, you need to check whether discount airlines (low cost airlines) fly in the chosen direction, for example, in Asia it is AirAsia, and in Europe Ryanair, such companies usually offer the cheapest flights, but this is not profitable in all cases. After checking low-cost airlines, it is imperative to search for air tickets on regular airlines, it is impossible to check all airlines, so it is better to use search aggregators that collect price information from many airlines and ticket sales agencies and issue it to convenient way. With the help of such flight search engines, it is very easy to find the cheapest options (offers are sorted by price) in the desired direction. There are several such search engines and for the most part they all have similar functionality, but I'm used to using it and have been looking for and buying tickets through them for 3 years now. Search cheap airfare very simple, just enter the direction we need and select the flight dates. (You can check out detailed instructions About, ). Promotions are also posted on the site. Special offers from airlines - this is very convenient for those who have not yet decided where they want to go on a trip. Sometimes you can fly to Europe for 5000 rubles with all round-trip fees for the promotion of some airline.

I have been buying tickets exclusively on the Internet for 4 years now - it's much easier and more convenient, the whole buying process takes no more than 5 minutes and you don't have to go anywhere. During this time, I have bought hundreds of air tickets via the Internet and have never had any problems with this. To purchase, you only need a bank card that can be used to pay online.

One more piece of advice, for those who do not live in Moscow or St. Petersburg - check the price of an air ticket with a departure (arrival) from Moscow (or other places closest to you). major cities), which can be much cheaper.

If you are looking for a flight ticket to a popular tourist destination, you can also check last minute flight deals at charter flights, this can be done for example .

Hotel search and selection

Different hotel booking sites work differently, someone offers to pay for the hotel right away, and someone books without prepayment, and you need to pay directly upon check-in, the first option gives more guarantees that the room will be booked for you, and secondly In this case, it is easier to cancel the reservation.

The process of searching and booking hotels is similar to searching for airline tickets, the main difficulty is finding the most suitable option (in the case of hotels, reviews can help).

Getting a visa on your own

There are 130 countries in the world where Russians do not need a visa or a visa is issued upon arrival - this is more than half of the world! (WITH complete list visa-free countries can be found on Wikipedia)

At the same time, there are countries that are of great interest to travelers, but where you need to get a visa (USA, Europe, China, etc.), but the process of obtaining a visa is much simpler than it seems at first glance or how they want to present it travel agencies. I independently obtained visas to the USA (2 times), Europe (to France), China, Myanmar, and in this case, in no case was there a need to contact a travel agency. All the work of travel agencies is to send documents to the visa center and for this they take quite a lot of money. When I needed a visa to France, I saw offers from travel agencies that reached 500-600 euros for assistance in obtaining a visa, this is just a robbery! I collected myself Required documents and went to the visa center of France in Moscow. After 3 days I received a ready-made Schengen visa, it cost me 70 euros (35 euros consular fee and 35 euros for visa center services). You can contact the consulate directly, then the visa process will take longer, but you can save 35 euros.

The process of obtaining a visa is very simple and is described on the websites of the embassies (or consulates) of the respective country. All you need is to find the website of the embassy (or the nearest visa application center if there is one), look at the list of documents required for obtaining a visa and make an appointment (if necessary). Most often, a passport, air tickets, hotel reservations and insurance are enough to obtain a visa. After that, you just need to hand over the documents and wait for the visa to be given to you. There is nothing difficult in this. It is especially easy to obtain a Schengen visa on your own, given the fact that many new visa centers of European countries have recently opened throughout the country.

It is worth noting that in some countries (such as Japan) it is much more difficult to obtain a visa without the services of travel agencies, so in this case, contacting a travel company may be justified.

language problem

One of the main problems that stops people from independent travel is insufficient knowledge of English (de facto English is the international language) language. But it seems to me that most people overestimate the importance of this problem. Yes, not knowing English can make the trip a little difficult, but it cannot make independent travel impossible. I had to go to places where the local population did not speak English language and then I had to explain myself with gestures - this is of course harder, but this makes it even more interesting. Often seen in Thailand Russian tourists who came to rest on a tourist package and do not speak English at all, so these tourists walk around the city perfectly, buy fruits in local markets, while they speak Russian, and the Thais answer them in Thai, and everyone understands each other perfectly . Sign language is a very universal language and can be used to explain almost everything. Let me give you two more examples from my own experience. In China, I once met an Irishman who was going to travel from Irkutsk to Moscow in reserved seat car, during our meeting, he learned five Russian words - that's all he knew in Russian. And another time, in a train compartment, I met a Swiss who was traveling to Tobolsk alone, not only did he speak English very poorly (but in Russia, knowledge of English can hardly help a foreigner, especially in the provinces), so he did not speak at all in Russian, but this did not prevent him from traveling from Moscow to Beijing by train, making stops in many Russian cities and studying them on his own. Upon returning to Switzerland, he wrote to me that he really liked this trip and he was simply delighted.

There is no language problem - there is only fear of this problem.

Search for information. What to do and what to visit.

If you prefer to go on excursions in an organized way, then on most popular tourist destinations such excursions can be ordered on the spot from local companies (with a Russian-speaking guide), most often, it will be cheaper than ordering excursions from the travel company where you bought the ticket. In countries such as Egypt, Thailand, Turkey, there are many local companies that will gladly organize for you excursion program, but I would suggest driving through the sights on your own, for this you just need to arm yourself with a guidebook.

But I would recommend hiring a local guide on your own for individual excursion, it may be slightly more expensive than group tour, but you can get personalized service and, for sure, very interesting impressions. Programs from self-guided guides are often more exclusive and you will be able to visit places that you might never see on your own or with a group. There are several sites where you can find and book a tour with independent local guides, I recommend the Russian site, which has already proven itself well.

Travel insurance and security

Buying a ticket in a travel agency does not give absolutely no security guarantees. Your peace of mind is only in your hands, and the travel agency cannot provide any additional security. Most accidents happen to those who come on an organized tour, as they get a false sense of security and lose their guard.

When traveling abroad, always take out a travel insurance policy, this can be done quickly and inexpensively (less than $ 1 per day). To obtain a visa to Europe (Schengen visa) and to many other visa countries, the purchase of insurance is required. You can apply for an insurance policy in almost any insurance company or, even easier, you can apply for insurance via the Internet. You can compare the offers of insurance companies and apply for insurance online on the website, where you can choose the most profitable proposition from the largest insurance companies (for more details on the instructions for choosing and buying insurance, you can find in the article -). An electronic insurance policy has the same legal force as a paper policy. If you have an insurance policy, in case of an accident, you will need to call the phone number indicated in the policy and they will give all instructions on what to do next, and if necessary, they will call a doctor. Take care of your own safety, no one will do it except you.

What are the advantages of independent travel compared to tour packages?

The main advantages of independent travel are freedom and cheapness. You are in complete control of your journey, you go where you want, not where your guide tells you to go. You don't have to live in the same place for your whole vacation, if you want to move to another place or hotel, you can easily do it. When traveling on your own, you will never find yourself in a situation where your tour company went bankrupt and did not pay for your hotel stay. I think everyone remembers when hundreds of tourists around the world could not return home and were not allowed out of hotels, demanding to pay for their accommodation - this is basically impossible with independent tourism, since only you control everything.

Traveling alone is cheap, the price of your trip depends only on you and your preferences. You don't have to pay for unnecessary services travel companies, you can always choose the best offer. Let's compare the cost of an independent trip and a tour package using a specific example. Let's take one of the most popular destinations - the resort of Pattaya (Thailand) and the largest tour operator TezTour. Let's say we want to go to Pattaya in early November for 7 days (departure on November 6th), one of the tour company's offers includes a flight from Moscow, transfer and 7 nights at the WELCOME PLAZA 3 * hotel with breakfast, the price for this tour package is 68086 rubles for 2 people. Now let's see how much it would cost if we went on our own. We go to the site and look for a flight Moscow-Bangkok with a departure in early November for 2 people, as a result we get a price of 42,880 rubles for two. Then we look for a hotel on the site, enter the name Welcome Plaza and dates in early November into the search bar, we get the price of 9035 rubles for 7 nights with double occupancy. The bus from Bangkok airport to Pattaya costs about 100 rubles per person. Thus, the total cost of the trip independent planning it turns out 52115 rubles, which is 15971 rubles cheaper than the tour package offered by the travel agency. It's simple math, it's up to you.

Or, for example, another popular destination - Cuba. At the beginning of October (departure 10/2/12) a package with a flight, transfer and accommodation at the Vedado 3 * hotel (reviews about the hotel, by the way, are not very good, but you will not have a chance to change it) TezTour costs 113,256 rubles for two. If we conduct a search, as we did above, we get that the flight Moscow-Havana-Moscow to dovih for these dates is for 72381 rubles, and the same hotel for 7 nights costs 11311 rubles, which in total gives 83692 rubles, and this almost 30,000 rubles less than the offer of the tour company.

And if you take a non-standard route, which is very easy to organize with independent planning, then buying it from a travel agency can be many times more expensive.

In rare cases, it happens that in a particular direction there is no cheap flights and then it turns out that using a tourist package can be more profitable. But this happens quite rarely, and over time it will be even less common, especially against the background of the fact that tour operators have significantly increased the cost this year. travel vouchers against the backdrop of bankruptcies of major travel companies and the appreciation of the dollar.

In fact, you pay travel agencies for the following services:

1. Flight. Often old planes with poor maintenance, but you can't change anything and choose an airline.
2. Hotel. You can't change the hotel if you don't like it or if you want to go somewhere.
3. Transfer from the airport to the hotel by shared bus.
4. Visa. If the country is a visa country (and there are not so many of them), then your documents will be collected and sent to the visa center, but they cannot guarantee the successful receipt of a visa.
5. Tours. You may be offered excursions, but the price for them will be many times higher than if you went to the same places on your own or through local tour agencies.

This concludes the services of tour operators. No one will help you communicate with the store or the market if you do not know the language, you should also not wait for help from the guide if you have an accident, they are not obliged to help you, this is not included in the list of their services. Really, after reading this article, you will not be able to organize your trip on your own, making it cheaper and more interesting?

If, however, I still didn’t convince you that it’s better to travel on your own, and you still intend to go on a package holiday, then I recommend that you read the instructions - "" so as not to waste time traveling to travel agencies, but easy and convenient to find and book everything online.

Conclusion

The most difficult thing is to take the first step, but you only need to go somewhere on your own once and you will never want to buy a package organized tours. Do not put it off until later, start planning your next trip on your own and you will see that it is much easier, cheaper and more interesting than it seems at first glance.

PS: If you have any questions or want to clarify something, ask in the comments, it is important for us to know whether this material turned out to be useful and how it can be supplemented. Share this article with your friends via social media, let them also learn how easy it is to go abroad on their own.