5 useful travel sites you probably don't use - and 5 others you probably do

5 useful travel sites you probably don't use - and 5 others you probably do

A year before we left on our travels, I thought about hosting Couchsurfers in my apartment. I saw it as a way to invest in the Couchsurfing community before tapping into some of the good karma on our trips abroad.

Unfortunately, I was instead seduced by Airbnb with its clean design, intuitive user experience, useful review system, and of course the opportunity to earn some extra money for our trips. Surprisingly, we didn't use Couchsurfing on the go.

Peter and I agree that paying for accommodation makes us feel more comfortable and less beholden to our hosts. That may change when we run out of resources, but for now we remain true products of our decent Western society.

That's basically a long-winded way of saying that you won't find Couchsurfing on the list below, but you will find 10 other sites that are great for long-term and short-term travel.

1. HelpX

This site was introduced to us by a derby girl named Mandy who we met in Tonga. Mandy had been traveling for five years and had used HelpX to find internships in several cities.

This extremely useful site provides an online list of farms, homestays, ranches, lodges, B&Bs, backpacker hostels and even sailboats that invite volunteers to stay with them on a short-term basis in exchange for food and accommodation. It gets around visa restrictions because you aren't essentially being "paid" for "work" but rather are being hosted for helping.

There are limited options in the South Pacific, but we will sign up for the premium service once we reach South America ($20 for 2 years).

helpx.net

2. Crew bay

This is useful for water lovers who want to travel by ship or boat. It is designed to connect both amateur and professional yacht crews with sailing and power boats from around the world. You simply set up a profile with details about who you are, what you're looking for and any relevant experience you have, and either wait to be contacted or proactively search for advertised positions - all for free.

Peter and I are heading in the wrong direction (east) for the season, but our roommate in Suva managed to jump on a boat heading west to Vanuatu. If you have time and want to keep costs down, Crewbay is a great way to see the world.

crewbay.com

3. Busbud

Peter swears by Busbud to find bus routes, prices and schedules worldwide. It was of limited use in the South Pacific (there are no buses from Samoa to Tonga!) but we will certainly use it in South America.

Between all the diving we did in the South Pacific, not to mention swimming with whales (and just getting online in Rarotonga!), we used a bit more of our budget than we had hoped.

Therefore, we need to travel as cheaply as possible as soon as we have solid ground under our feet - enter Busbud.

busbud.com

4. SeatGuru

I've already mentioned that SeatGuru is a great way to ensure you're comfortable on a flight. Particularly useful for long-haul flights, this website provides seat maps for various aircraft to help you avoid being blindsided.

For example, an exit row can be tempting because of the extra legroom, but did you know that on some airplanes the exit rows are smaller, not larger, than other rows?

SeatGuru makes this information clear so you can choose wisely. This may not matter on a quick hop into the Pacific, but believe me, for London to Vanuatu it was a godsend.

seatguru.com

5. Set up

Peter loves camping and although I'm less than enthusiastic about it, I can't deny that it's a super cheap way to travel. Finding good campsites in the South Pacific required a lot of careful research (scouring forums, reading review sites, contacting hosts only to find the sites no longer exist), which is why we'd love to see Pitchup expand its offerings.

Pitchup, which currently covers 5,000 campsites in 12 European countries, allows you to search by date, location and available facilities and create a list of possibilities.

pitchup.com

And now to the better-known, useful travel sites:

1. Skyscanner

When it comes to searching for flights, there's no better website than Skyscanner. Unlike so many other flight aggregators, Skyscanner lets you search an entire month at once - perfect for long-term travelers short on time.

skyscanner.net

2. TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor has become the best way to check the quality of accommodation online. Plus, with its wealth of information about local attractions, it's a great way to help you decide where to go and what to see. We use it all the time.

tripadvisor.com

3. Airbnb

We've been fans of Airbnb for a long time (see Airbnb etiquette: 10 tips for guests and 5 reasons why Airbnb is so popular). While there are a number of niggles we have with its current state (namely the increase in actual hotels there rather than person-to-person listings), it remains unparalleled in terms of variety and value.

Try Airbnb for the first time and save $20 on your first trip using this link.

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4. Lonely Planet

As mentioned in In Defense of the Guide, we firmly believe in the value of a good guide, and so we're not ashamed to turn to the experts for the answers we need.

lonelyplanet.com

5. Hostel world

Hostelworld is a trusted site that we have been using for years, ideal for those looking for cheap backpacker accommodation.

www.hostelworld.com

Main image: Lupo

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