3. Look at flight options

Before you dive into booking your trip, I find it's best to do a quick flight search first to get a rough idea of costs.

Search comparison sites like Skyscanner and Kayak seem to be quite popular when searching for flights. However, I tend to look directly at budget airline websites first, like EasyJet.

If you can be flexible with dates, remember to try re-searching on a slightly different day. For example, flight prices might just be that bit cheaper if you fly Thursday to Sunday, rather than Friday to Monday - It's always worth giving it a check.

I also search for different dates between the rough time period or month when I want to visit. For instance, when researching my weekend away to Gdansk I checked all the weekends in late January and early February. By doing this I was able to find the cheapest weekend to go away and was able to save nearly £100!

4. Research accommodation available

Now that you have a gauge on flight costs, it's time to look at how much accommodation will be.

Firstly, I recommend doing some quick search on the city you’re looking to visit, to see where the city centre is and what the best areas are to stay in, etc.

Once you have a rough idea of the area you would like to stay in, now look at the different accommodation options available and relative costs.

If you're wanting to stay in a hotel, search sites like Booking.com, Agoda, Expedia, Hotels.com, and Trivago are all good to use. It can seem overwhelming to search through each, but prices can differ for even the same hotel. So if you're looking for the best deal possible, it does make it worth it!

They can also include other accommodation options, such as hostels and apartments. If you're looking for a self-catering place, it's also good to look at Airbnb and HomeAway. Hostelworld is a good search engine if you're looking for more budget accommodation and are happy to stay in a hostel.

Remember to not just take the initial price shown on your search, as this will be the cheapest possible price. I.e. it may not include breakfast in the price and it's normally the 'pay up front' price. So if you want to have free cancellation or a pay later option, the price might be slightly more.

7. Buy Travel Insurance

Even if you booked your trip on a credit card and it's ATOL protected, it's still important to make sure you have travel insurance.

Travel insurance will cover you for all the other elements of your trip, like medical expenses, lost luggage, delays, or cancellations...

If you think you already have travel insurance, check your policy to ensure it is valid and covers this new trip.

If you don’t yet have travel insurance, make sure you get some! I normally research travel insurance options through search comparison sites like MoneySuperMarket or CompareTheMarket.

Things to remember when looking at different deals:

• If you're thinking about taking more trips through the year, it might be worth getting either an annual multi-trip (normally covers Europe) or a worldwide travel insurance package. Don't forget to check the T&Cs for things like the number of individuals trips allowed, and the maximum duration of trips.
• Don't just opt for the cheapest option available - look at the packages available in detail to make sure you get the right level of cover and inclusions you need.
• Check out the Defaqto rating of the travel insurance provider as well - I normally filter them for at least 4 stars...

8. Do some pre-holiday research

I think I may possibly love the planning and research of a holiday as much as the actual trip… Yes that’s right. I AM A PLANNER!

Before embarking on your trip, I recommend doing some pre-holiday research.

Things to research could include:

• Top things to do and see; I find it helpful to have an idea of the places I definitely want to go to, so I don't miss out on anything! Such as the top cultural spots, museums, galleries, buildings, parks, etc.
• Places to eat and drink; Seeing as I'm a huge foodie, I always like to look at what the best places are to eat and drink. It's also worth looking into so you can make a reservation for any really popular spots.
• Day trips; Some European cities have nearby places or things to do which you can do as a day trip. For example, when I visited Krakow for a city break, I did a couple of day-trip excursions to nearby Auschwitz and some salt mines! Sometimes it's good to book these in advance as well if you need to do it like an organised tour.

9. Finalise other holiday arrangements

The following are things to remember to sort prior to your trip. It's worth thinking about these at least 1 month prior, although some like getting currency are fine to do nearer the time of your trip.

Other holiday arrangements to make:

• Plan your transport to the airport - Look into whether you need to book transport to the airport in advance, such as airport parking, train or bus tickets, or a taxi.

Tip: If you have a super early flight time, or live quite far from the airport, then it might be worth looking into booking a hotel room at the airport. Also worth noting that some hotel stays also include free airport car parking!

• Check-in to your flight online - The earliest date that you can check-in online differs between airlines. But EasyJet allows you to check-in as early as 30 days before your flight!

Tip: Save paper and download your flight boarding pass directly onto your smartphone... As we say at work; *Think before you print!*

• Order Currency - It's worth ordering some currency for where you're going in advance. Be sure to avoid getting money at the airport as you won't get as good an exchange rate.
• Check how you can get from the airport to your accommodation - I recommend looking into the different local transport options from your airport destination beforehand, so you have an idea of how you can get to your accommodation when you land. If your flight lands late at night, then remember to check what times local transport runs until.

Remember to check if your hotel booking includes a free airport transfer!

• Download all your travel documents - It's a good idea to have a copy of all your important travel documents with you on your trip. Such as your travel insurance certificate and policy information, and flight and accommodation confirmation. If you can, download them onto your smartphone to save paper.
• Check your flight baggage allowance - Before you start packing, remember to check what baggage allowance is included with your flight booking - whether that's hand luggage or a suitcase.

10. Pack for your city-break!

I must admit, I really do HATE packing. It’s the thing I dread the most about going away.

I’m also definitely the worst panic packer - AKA I add 100 extra items in my bag at the last minute… because “just in case I need it”. 

A packing list is about the only thing that keeps me focused when packing. You can check out my ultimate packing list below. 

I go through it and immediately cross out all the items I definitely do not need. E.g. if I’m going on a winter city break, then I know I won't need a pair of flip flops!