You don’t have holidays often enough, so you have to enjoy the ones that you do get. But how do you make sure that your next holiday is to a great destination and not something that’s just OK?

Know yourself

Before you can even begin to look for a great destination you have to have some idea of what sort of holiday you’re looking for. And, to do that, you need to know what it is that you do and don’t like in all sorts of things. Think about things like the sort of temperature you prefer, whether or not you like crowds, if you want to go somewhere that you can’t necessarily speak the language, how much travelling you want to do and what sort. Then consider the types of things you really enjoy doing, not the sort of things you think you ‘should’ enjoy, but the ones you really like. There’s not much point saying "galleries" when what you really like is "shopping".

Research

To be able to pick a great location you are going to need to know about some great locations, and for that you will need some research. Probably the best thing to happen to holiday planning is the internet. There is a nearly unbelievable amount of information available on all sorts of web sites; including reviews and ratings, blogs, best of lists, ebooks, and more.

Top ten lists

Get some inspiration from others people’s great locations. There is a "best of" or "top ten" (or twenty or fifty) list for just about everything on the internet these days. Try looking at lists like "Top 10 places to visit before you turn 100" or "Best beaches in the world" or any other such phrase. You’ll find lists compiled by professional travel writers, lists compiled from surveys, and lists that just appear to be one person’s opinions.

TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor advertises itself as the most popular and largest travel community in the world. TripAdvisor’s contributor community alone numbers more than 32 million people, who have written over 75 million reviews and opinions of hotels, restaurants and attractions. Despite some controversies in recent years about the veracity of reviews, TripAdvisor remains an excellent way to get tips on destinations and attractions and even to discover new destinations.

Talk to a Travel Agent

If you’ve managed to come up with a list of the things you do and don’t like and the sorts of things you are interested in doing on your next holiday – then go talk to a travel agent. A good travel agent will be able to take your thoughts, ideas, preferences and even dislikes, and come up with destinations and activities to suit. They will also know what’s hot and – always importantly – what’s not, at any given time. They will also understand the style and demographics of numerous locations, and can ensure that you don’t end up dodging teenaged ravers on the English side of Ibiza when what you really wanted was the European elegance of the Spanish section.

Ultimately a great holiday location is one that is everything that you want, so get started on that list of great location requirements and see what you can come up with.