In Reply to: Booking hotel direct posted by tunaman on Wednesday, 3. March 2010 at 16:19 Bali Time:
1st you need know how much the travel agent will charge. egh check out holiday planet dot com. That is the price you have to beat.
2nd You need to a good price on a flight eg the Air Asia deal that was on today.
If you want a particulat hotel then check that it is available for your dates, before you book your flights. That can be hard if you are going for a cheap airfare as that may dictate when you go. Remember the hotel gives you a per room cost . The travel agent gives you a per person cost(usually)
The good thing about booking a hotel seperate is that you don't have to pay for the hotel until you either check in or out. They do ask for your CC number though.
Sometimes a hotel with give a discount if you are a regular.
The planing can be fun as you can do thins like stay in Ubud, Candi Dasa and Kuta all in one holiday and you researh the hotels yourself.
Good luck