When Margo Ratafia makes travel plans, she often makes tripadvisor.com her first stop.

"People will tell you about if the beds were comfortable, they'll tell you about the thickness of the towels, I mean you'll get a lot of feedback." said Ratafia

While hotel Web sites have lots of information about the property itself, Trip-Adviser has travel reviews from recent guests.

"This past Christmas, we were down in Aruba and from going on Trip-Adviser, they had recommended that we bring floats down for the lazy river at the pool. And if we didn't bring them down, we probably would have had to pay double or triple for each float for all the kids." said Ratafia

But Lisa Lee Freeman, editor of Consumer Reports ShopSmart, says don't hit the "Buy" button yet. There are other sites that are great resources too, like TravelZoo.com. Perfect for last-minute trips, TravelZoo digs up discount prices for airfare, cruises, and vacation packages, then posts a weekly Top 20 list of the hottest deals.

"You have to move fast though because with 12-million subscribers, there's stiff competition for the best deals." said Consumer Reports' Lisa Lee Freeman

If you've got time to plan ahead, FareCast.com can help you size up whether you're getting a good deal on a flight. IT gives you historical lows and highs on airfares from 75 different cities, and even tips you to buy your ticket now, or wait for prices to drop.

So hitting a few choice Web sites before you head out on your next trip can save you money and hassles.