Pick a location, book the holiday, have the best time on holiday. This may be a simple formula, however, new research has revealed Aussies are investing 500M+ hours each year researching the holiday alone, making it one of the top five life admin time-suckers.

The study, conducted by Expedia, highlighted that for a week-long break, Aussies are spending approximately seven hours researching with one in five (23%) committing to 10 hours or more. Taking this to the next level, nearly 10% of women spend upwards of 30 hours! The time that goes into holiday planning is almost double the time Aussies are spending on future planning and retirement and is also ahead of career development.

While researching a holiday may be fun for some, getting a good flight and hotel deal is most important for Aussie travellers (80%) and many (84%) feel the more time invested the greater the chance of getting a deal.

“For some Aussies, organising a trip can be stressful and also a big time-sucker – we know Aussies can conduct up to 50 searches for a flight alone!” says Lisa Perkovic, Travel Expert at Brand Expedia.

“Our data also shows if Aussies could have a spare hour or two, they would spend more time with their loved ones, which is so important. It doesn’t have to take hours to find a good deal, you just have to be strategic.”

To help Aussies reduce the time spent on travel admin, here are Expedia’s top time-saving travel tips:

1. Sign up for price watching alerts - don’t stress about finding the ideal price yourself, set up alerts so you know when prices have decreased!
2. Guarantee a discount – Close to 20% of people state they don’t have funds to pay upfront. By booking with the Expedia Add-on Advantage, Aussies get access to deals by simply booking a flight, which unlocks up to 51% off hotels right up until the day they fly.
3. Save newsletters and information in a folder – Sign up to newsletters and file relevant ones in an email folder so you know where to find them when you need them. Saves on research time!
4. Loyalty – Signing up to loyalty programs provides access to member-specific discounts and sales. As an additional bonus, you are building up points that can save you money on your next holiday!
5. Mobile – if you commute to work, use the opportunity to do your research and book your holiday. Bonus, you can tap into mobile-only specials.