The use of the term "holiday cottages" can be considered a little bit misleading. This is because the term is actually used to cover a range of property types as well as a cottage, such as a house, townhouse, flat, etc. However, it is generally understood to mean self catering holiday accommodation where you are the sole user of the accommodation.
If you feel the need to get away from the daily routines of modern life, holiday cottages are a great place to escape to. There are many options available to suit virtually everyone: from families with young children, family pets, or aged parents; groups of friends; or romantic couples.
To find a holiday cottage you can use one of the two main options available:
Go to a travel consultant and let them do all the hard work;
Find one yourself via the Internet.
Whichever option you go for, it is a good idea to write down a checklist for your holiday cottage selection criteria. If you use a travel consultant you will need to communicate your requirements to them. If you do the searching yourself, it is very useful to have your checklist available as you search. You should be able to save time and effort by comparing properties against the criteria on your checklist.
Selecting Holiday Cottages
Selecting a holiday cottage can be considered an iterative two stage sequence:
Find a suitable website;
Search the website based on your selection criteria.
If the website does not have anything suitable for your holiday then find another website to search. Here are the two stages in more detail:
1 - Find Websites - Firstly you need to search for websites that have holiday properties available. There are three major criteria to consider:
Location - In order to find a website you need to decide on the location of your holiday, including country, region and vicinity. Knowing this you can search for websites that have properties for the location you want to stay in. An example might be that you want to go on holiday to the country of England, within the region of Cornwall, in the vicinity of St Ives. If you decide to use vicinity search terms like "St Ives holiday cottages" or "St Ives self catering accommodation" you are more likely to get websites dealing in a smaller amount of local properties. If you decide to use region or country terms like "Cornwall holiday cottages" or "Cornwall self catering accommodation" you are more likely to get websites dealing with a larger number of properties.
Payment Options - The website you choose to deal with may also depend on your payment preferences; and also how comfortable you feel when dealing with the website. If it is a small website or an individual property website, credit card facilities may not be available. To make a payment you may have to send a cheque; make a direct bank transfer; or use PayPal.
Availability Checking - The website may not have a fully automated availability checking facility to provide up to the minute availability information. In this case, to check availability you may have to send an email to the website or make an enquiry to the appropriate telephone number. This will therefore slow down the process of finding a property.
If you want to maximise security and minimise hassle during the booking stage, it is best to use a website that has credit card facilities and a fully automated booking system that provides up to the minute availability information. This would probably mean you need to use one of the larger websites that deal with many properties.
Like me, once you have successfully and satisfactorily used the services of a large property provider, the chances are, you will continue to use them as the first point of call for future holidays. That is, unless they cannot provide you with a property in the location of your choice. My preference is to use "Cottages4You" that deal with properties on a national and international basis. If they do not have what I want then I use another large property provider.
2 - Finding Properties - Having found a website to search you can then undertake the detailed task of finding suitable holiday cottages or self catering holiday accommodation. This is where it is useful to have a list of criteria available to compare properties against. Here are some criteria you should add to your checklist:
2.1 - Holiday Reason - Once you know the reason for the holiday you will get a feeling for what kind of property you want. Being aware of the reason will help you decide on your other criteria:
Is it a romantic or activity based break for a couple?
Is it a group or a celebration holiday?
Is it a quality time family break?
2.2 - Vicinity Scenario - Having used you location in terms of country, region and vicinity to find websites to search, you also need to decide on your vicinity scenario. This will most likely depend on the personal preferences of the people going on the holiday. It will be best if you discuss what you want as a group. However, these are a few common vicinity scenarios:
Population Centres - Do you want to be in or near a city, town or village? Do you want easy access to a variety of eating establishments like restaurants, bistros and coffee shops?
Amenities & Services - Do you want to be close to a beach, a park, or other visitor attractions? Do you want to be close to supermarkets and high street shops? Do you want medical facilities close at hand just in case there is an emergency situation or an illness?
Isolated Locations - Do you want to be in the countryside; near mountains; by a river; or in an isolated coastal location?
