by Ann Marie Dwyer

Created on: November 23, 2008   Last Updated: February 03, 2009

Using the Internet to book your travel plans can be a relaxing adventure before you ever leave your home. In 2007, 49% of all travel in and from the United States was booked online. 2008 may see the trend over the half-way mark. Make the most of your Internet booking by learning about your destination, booking websites, travel reviews and website reviews.

Visiting travel booking review sites can help you choose the perfect website for online package savings unavailable at your travel agent's office. A scroll through hotel, resort and city reviews can give you a traveler's view of your destination. Search engine sites can get you good deals on fares. Before you book your flight and hotel, take some time to surf.

Choose your destination.

Where do you want to go? This has to be the first question. Before making that choice, visit www.CDC.gov/travel/destinat.htm to ensure no medical restrictions or warnings prohibit travel. Some locations are not advisable due to outbreaks of infectious disease. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) keeps a current list of all countries the United States warns against for health concerns.

If your heart's desire is to visit Spain, visit sites with information on Spain. One of the first places to find information is the national governmental web site. Type your destination country and "government website" into your search engine. Learning the terrain, political climate, weather and current events will help you choose a restful destination. This keeps you from vacationing in the middle of an election stop city or the recent wake of a tornado.

Next, search your country's tourism. Many national tourism websites contain links to city tourism websites. Here you can discover the locals best kept secrets. Theaters, community events and festivals are posted so you can plan your activities.

If you don't have your heart set on a destination, do you have it set on an activity? Your choice of what to do on your vacation may dictate the destination. You simply cannot snow ski on Maui. But if surfing, hiking or kayaking is your bag, searching your hobby and "destinations" will get you reviews on the best locations.

Destination reviews and guides.

Websites with reviews and guides are helpful in making your final destination choice. Many sites offer reviews of popular or novel destinations. Professional review sites, like ConsumerReports.org and Hotels.com, have reviews of destinations, hotels and resorts written by travel industry professionals. While

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