Exclusive Feature: One of the hardest things about traveling may not be the journey itself, but the preparation – choosing a destination, picking a flight and hotel and knowing just the right things to pack.

South East Asia, Australia, Africa, Europe – with the world at our feet, choosing the place to spend our holidays is the first challenge, length of holiday, cost and connection to a part of the globe all considerations as we sit down and decide.

After taking a look at a map and googling the activities and sights to see in a viable short list of potential destinations, it's important to ask around and get advice from those who have been there. If not friends and family, this is where reviews come in to play – what did people see while they were there? What were their experiences of the communities and culture? How did they get around and what was the region like? Websites such as Tripadvisor.com can help give you an idea of how other people felt about that hotel before you arrive.

Once you figure out exactly where you want to go, the next thing you need to consider is how you're going to get there and where you are going to stay.

While it may be tempting to jump directly on a plane to get to your destination, depending on where you're going and for how long you have, the holiday can be made through the trip itself and what you experience along the way making hiring a car, considering a ferry or traveling by train all attractive options for when you have more time.

But if you are traveling by air, then aggregate websites can give you a good idea of the cheapest flights out there, pulling details from a number of airlines – websites such as cheapflights.co.uk, skyscanner.de and checkfelix.com all being good sites to try.

After mode of transport, the next thing on the list to prepare is accommodation – hotel, hostel, B&B or flat swap – the options are huge depending on whether you are traveling to a big city or an island haven there are a number of places that you can try, booking.com, hotels.com or hostelbookers.com to name just a few that can give you a good range.

Then there are those sites which will offer flight, hotel and even a hire car all in one, with websites such as expedia.com and opodo.com providing a one-stop shop for those who maybe don't have the time to search individual sites for all of the available options.

Where once upon a time it would have been walk-in travel agents providing the options for people to travel, now it is all at your fingertips and online - it's just about knowing where to start looking. But once it's all planned, the only thing you will have to worry about is enjoying your trip and making the most of your holiday.

This is strictly an exclusive feature, reprints of this article in any shape or form without prior written approval from 4Hoteliers.com is not permitted.

Louise Osborne is a correspondent and editor based in Berlin, Germany. She began her career working at regional newspapers in the UK and now works with journalists across the globe as part of international journalism organization, Associated Reporters Abroad (ARA). Living abroad for the second time, she continues to be fascinated by places both near and far, and boards a plane eagerly, as often as she can.

Louise writes a weekly exclusive column for 4Hoteliers.com