Low-cost tailoring
With so many ways of finding a holiday at our fingertips, how we choose to book our trips can change as quickly as the August weather. Sometimes we want to book it ourselves; sometimes we want it all done for us; the next minute, we want a bit of both. Lowcost Holidays (lowcostholidays.com) allows you the latter option. What it does is create millions of package deals that match unsold hotel rooms with cheap plane tickets and you get to take just the bits you like.
You could think of it as a package deal in reverse as, rather than build a trip from scatch, you choose a ready-made holiday, complete with flight, insurance, hotel and excursions and then take off the bits you don't need. Prices are cheap, but just be aware that many come without airport transfers. The point being, because there are now 21 different lowcost sites, you are meant to tailor additional costs by visiting sister sites such as lowcosttaxis.com and lowcostholidayinsurance.com. Or add bits found on other sites.
Wiki's world
Wikipedia, the free repository of human knowledge, has already inspired a number of like-minded sites that allow travellers to collectively write their own online travel guides. After the success of Wiki Travel and World 66 (the two merged earlier this year), comes World Wikia, a for-profit offshoot of the online encyclopedia. The site launches properly next week, but you can start uploading views on your favourite destinations right away. There's controversy in the air, too, as the site will also take content from commercial publishers like Smartertravel.com and hostelsclub.com.
Ones for the road
There's no need to fly solo these days. Following on from the success of sites like couchsurfing.com and gusto.com, companions2travel.co.uk, puts you in touch with like-minded people looking to share their trip. You can sign up for a free trial and full membership costs £5.
