Happy New Year for 2011. After the excitement of Christmas and New Year, I need to book a holiday. A weekend city break, some luxury travel, I'm booking it up right now. But when it comes to buying cheap flights, finding a luxury hotel or a weekend city break to somewhere like Paris, London or New York, it's not always easy. I travel a lot and would like to share some tips and advice on how to get ahead when booking a holiday.

Best travel destinations in 2011

Avoiding other tourists and cheaper prices aer two excellent reasons to seek out alternative spots. A better one is the adventure of discovering something first, and who you might meet there. Yes, I mean a woman, not a dreadlocked hippy sparked-out on a beach in Goa. My tips for 2011:

1. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is hitting its stride in the build up to the 2016 Olympics.
2. Costa Rica is upping the game for luxury eco-tourist heaven, with excellent surfing too, it's a hip spot to hang out.
3. Cape Town, South Africa is revelling in wine and food tourism and remains cheap.
4. Iceland for its natural wonders and cheap currency, it really is a bizarre one-off.
5. Ireland's legendary hospitality is a real crowd-pleaser, and with the economy taking a plunge, there are bargains to be had.

Timing is everything

When you go can be as important as where. I always avoid the traditional school holidays (April, July, August and December) when everything's a bit, well, more. More expensive, more people and more children. I steer clear of the hottest months - heat and humidity ruin a sharp shirt and most locals head off to leave the travelling hordes to it, so what's the point? This is especially true of Mediterranean favourites like Rome and Barcelona. I choose times of the year when the seasons are changing.

How to book flights

The most useful travel sites I know are the mega-searches of Kayak and Skyscanner - they search all the other search sites to bring you the cheapest flights. You can even monitor historical prices and set up alerts. I've also learnt:

• Airlines are smart - their prices fluctuate constantly with demand. Book on a Tuesday mid-afternoon (that's the booking, not the flight) as it's the cheapest time of the week. Let the rest book on a weekend or a Monday morning when flights are most expensive.
• When booking for large groups, break them down into smaller bookings - airlines sense the chance for profits when you specify large numbers. Your mates will thank you.
• It's cheaper to buy flights in certain cities. Bangkok is famous for this - so try to route through there and buy tickets from a local agent.

Finding a great hotel

Personal recommendations from trusted friends are worth their weight in gold. Otherwise, refer to Conde Nast Traveller along with travel guides Lonely Planet and Rough Guides. Time Out is especially good for cities. Peer review sites like Trip Advisor can be helpful, but individual comments I usually ignore - they're just not, well, me.

The key to getting a good price is to never accept the rack rate - no-one who knows anything pays top price. Feel free to haggle, coerce, persuade, whatever - ask for a free night if you book more nights and check whether your work has preferred hotels for a corporate rate. Book via sites like Hotels.com and scour for the best deals. If, like me, you're pretty laid back about arrangements, you can always just turn up and wing it - if they're not full, you'll probably get a great deal, and you'll be able to see your room first. What other circumstance do you not try before you buy?

Of course, where to go, how to get there and finding somewhere to sleep when you're there, they're just details. It's all about trying something new, meeting new people and having nights to remember. And a few to forget!