When it comes to the best way to book a holiday, there is a world of half-truths and hearsay that leaves many holiday-makers with nagging doubts about whether or not they have paid over the odds, writes Eddie Lennon.

Is it best to rely on a travel agent or try to organise your holiday independently? Should you book as soon as you spot what appears to be a good deal or wait for a better offer? What are the strategies that help you nail down the best deal in terms of quality and value? We spoke to several holiday experts and asked them for their advice.

Go online to get on track

Well-seasoned traveller Michael Collins, editor of the travel magazine, Abroad, says: "It always amazes me how so many people forget to shop around. It's the biggest financial mistake they make when booking holidays. They look at a price and think it looks good, but prices are often structured by travel agents to give that impression, such as €387 for a week's holiday in the sun.

"Just about every operator in Ireland will sell you the same package, but you are likely to fly out on the same plane and stay in the same accommodation as somebody who paid far less. There are often differences even among the travel agents for the same holiday."

It is not always cheaper to book online than through a travel agent, he points out.

Almost every Irish travel organisation has a website, and many of them offer deals from several travel companies, ranging from package deals and sun holidays to flight-only deals, short breaks and adventure holidays.

Websites such as gohop.ie, lastminute.ie, holidaysonline.ie (an online amalgamation of Ireland's nine major tour operators) and his own website, abroad.ie, have hundreds of deals on offer. "Just looking at those sites is a very good starting point; you will open your eyes to a huge range of holidays," he says.

You can research your destination and get often graphic details of the pitfalls of certain resorts. At holidaysuncovered.co.uk, for example, there are more than 40,000 holiday reviews by holiday-makers covering popular resorts and hotels.

Create your own holiday

Why pay more when you can be your own travel agent? Booking flights and accommodation separately, especially on the internet, can save you a fortune, eliminating the heavy premiums some agents charge. There is considerable scope for nailing down a cut-price flight. And hotel accommodation booked online can cost up to three times less than via a travel agent.

"The best deal in airline seats are mid-week from Ireland to Europe; and on aerlingus.com they tend to be early or mid-week," says Mary McGovern, who specialises in public relations for travel products and who has also owned a travel company. "Hold off till the last minute to get the airfare you want - except in the case of ski holidays."

Some websites compare the lowest fares for flights. As an exercise to check how widely flights vary in price, I got five quotes for a return flight to Montreal (where I will go in July), travelling via London with Air Canada. It showed that buying flights online is not always cheaper than through travel agents. The dearest quote was €723 from clubtravel.ie, followed by gohop.ie at €693.54. The same flight with Dublin travel agent Tour America cost €628 - so there is a possible saving of almost €100. (Quotes are from yesterday, April 25th; figures do change.)

Mary McGovern says: "Booking flight and accommodation separately online will save you up to 40 per cent. Not only that, but you can tailor the holiday according to what you want, when you want to go and how long you want to stay. Who says you have to travel Saturday to Saturday?"

On hotels.com, you can book accommodation at reasonable rates in just about every major city in Europe. I stayed at the luxurious Kempinski Corvinus Hotel in Budapest, booked via hotels.com for just €100 per double room per night - substantially less than I would have paid to a travel agent. However, McGovern adds: "Some of the top hotels in Europe are very often offered by Irish tour operators for far cheaper than you get on the internet." She says that it is also a good idea to keep in touch with tour operators for last-minute offers on holiday apartments. "You may be disappointed in high season, but because of the huge supply in privately-owned holiday apartments, this is unlikely. If you want a resort, booking direct can save you around 30 per cent."

However, says Michael Collins, "if you're short on time and want somebody else to do the leg-work for you, and you're not hugely price-sensitive, it's a good idea to book your holiday through your travel agent."

Package holidays

Budget Travel specialises in package holidays to Spain, Portugal, Turkey, the south of France, Malta and the Canary Islands. Spokesperson Niamh Hayes advises holidaymakers to research their package holidays either through their travel agent or on the internet, and then book online. "When we have new offers, specials and last-minute deals, we automatically put them on our website, with full details of what they include." Hayes says it is generally cheaper to book online at budgettravel.com than through the company's travel shops. Consumers can save up to €90 each by doing so.

It is difficult to secure a bargain on package holidays from mid-June to mid-September, when demand for holidays is at its highest. "Most of our package holidays are already booked for July and August. Most people who wanted the best family deals - especially those travelling with small children - booked several months ago.

"There are still very good offers for April and May, such as family self-catering deals for up to two weeks for two adults and one child from €659, or with two children for €799. Overall, it's not too late to book your summer holiday. If you're flexible about where you want to go, chances are you'll get enough options to satisfy what you're looking for."

Michael Collins says parents planning to travel on a package holiday with three kids should learn from the experiences of others who have learned the hard way: "For insurance reasons many resorts and hotels don't allow three kids in one room. There is a limited number of such rooms, so make sure to book up to a year in advance."

Cormac Walsh, director of Joe Walsh Tours, offers simple advice to people with families who want to take a summer break: "Book now. You will, while trying to get the cheapest deal, probably only save about €150 playing around with the bit of free time you have."

But Collins says you can get good deals by booking package holidays at the last minute. "However, if you have to take two weeks off work at a certain time, you could find yourself stranded, especially during the peak school holiday reason (mid-June to the end of August). There is now a huge trend for last-minute bookings. Two weeks is probably the latest you should wait to make sure there's enough to choose from."

Short breaks

The rapidly increasing travel choices available with new air routes, allied to the expanding range of holiday products, means many Irish people are now taking an average of three holidays per year - typically, one week in the sun and two short city breaks to an EU city. Companies such as Topflight and ebookers.ie offer a tremendous variety of city breaks. Cormac Walsh says the best value in short breaks at present are to Italy and Croatia. Both countries are served by low-cost airlines, and offer good value once you get there.

Ski holidays

According to Mary McGovern, "early bird offers - booking early for discounted rates - give the best deals on ski holidays, and are vital for skiers who are really fussy about what resort they want."