If you want to get the best from a holiday, the traditional advice is to book as early as possible. That way, you’ll stand the best chance of getting the accommodation, airline tickets, and restaurant tables you want, at exactly the time you want.
But in more recent years, a rival school of thought has emerged. What if you set aside your preconceived ideas about what you’re looking for, and leap on the opportunities thrown up by the world of last-minute travel?
By deciding where you’re going at the very last minute, you might enjoy a range of advantages that more traditional holidays don’t offer. Let’s take a look at some of the more noteworthy ones.
Cost Savings: Hotels and airlines aim to fill their available seats and are often willing to offer discounts rather than leave them empty. After all, selling a seat at a reduced price is better than not selling it at all. For instance, if you have always wanted to try skiing but find it can be a little pricey, last-minute ski holidays can sometimes be more affordable than those booked in advance.
Spontaneity and Flexibility: Last-minute adventures, however, are about more than picking up a discount. They’re also a means of injecting a sense of spontaneity into travel. When you don’t know exactly where you’re going until days, or even hours, before you book the flight, you get a real sense that you aren’t totally in control of your travels - and this can be a good thing. When you realise that you’re going to have a good time despite a lack of planning, you’ll start to wonder whether the stress of planning was worth it to begin with. You might go through unique and memorable experiences that, had you been left to make your own choices, you might never have bothered with.
Access to Exclusive Deals: In many cases, travel operators put together exclusive deals and packages to help to sell those last-minute places. You might therefore enjoy all of the essential features of your holiday without having to bring them all together yourself. This will make planning much easier, as well as lower your costs significantly.
Avoiding Overcrowding: Often, the best last-minute opportunities come up during off-peak times, since the relative lack of demand makes it more difficult to fill up those vacant places. This might help you to experience a holiday that isn’t blighted by crowds of other tourists.
Opportunity for Upgrades: Last-minute travel doesn’t just mean being offered a hotel room, or a seat on an airline at a discount. It might also allow you to be bumped up to first class or be moved to a superior hotel room, without the extra costs that usually accompany these upgrades.
While last-minute travel might not be to everyone’s taste, it offers a number of substantial benefits that are difficult to discount. If you’re looking for a rewarding, memorable, and cost-effective experience, and you’re willing to embrace a little bit of uncertainty, it might be the best way to travel!