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Slice the Price
On Travel
Family-Friendly
Vacations—and Deals
There’s no doubt about it, planning a vacation for a family of four
or five can be financially prohibitive. To the rescue: a mom who
started a travel agency and Web site catering to families, after
having problems planning her own affordable family vacations. Her
site,
www.vacationkids.com, a full-service travel agency now run with
the help of other moms just like her, offers best deals at
“baby-friendly resorts,” “family of five friendly resorts” and other
packages. Plus “Ask Mom” family travel advice and a family travel
library of information.
—Nicole
Pugliese
A Getaway, Just
for California Girls
Need
to get away from the stress, the kids, the husband? There’s nothing
like a little pampering and relaxing with friends at a spa to change
your outlook. And if the spa is located in the heart of wine country
so much the better. The masseuses at Wilkinson’s Hot Spring Resort
in Calistoga, California, will work the kinks out of your tense
muscles without putting a dent in your wallet. Choose from a range
of relaxing treatments, including mud and mineral baths, facials and
massages, ranging in price from $55 to $149. Rooms run from $109 to
$199. Or try the special summer package (available July, August and
September): stay overnight Sunday through Thursday, with use of all
mineral water and therapy pools, plus one treatment, for only $299
($149.50 per person, double occupancy). For more information or to
make a reservation, visit
www.drwilkinson.com.
—Nicole
Pugliese
Diners’
Delight
Heading out of town and hoping to snag a seat at one of the hottest
restaurants in your destination city? Let the Internet be your
concierge. SavvyDiner.com, recently written up in The Wall Street
Journal, will book a table for you in advance. Here’s how it
works: Go to the site (www.SavvyDiner.com)
and sample the menus of the various restaurants listed. Select your
dining pleasure, choose a date and time (24 hours in advance), and
SavvyDiner.com will call ahead for you to make the reservation.
Often, the restaurants they list reserve tables just for SavvyDiner
customers, so you’ve got a good shot at getting seated. After you
make your reservation, SavvyDiner will send you an e-mail
confirmation.
Now, to save
money on your meal, surf on over to
www.restaurant.com and see if the restaurant you’ve chosen is
listed among the 5000 establishments on this site. Then purchase a
Dining Certificate, at half price or less, towards the cost of your
meal. For instance, $10 will get you a certificate for $25 off a
meal at Bleu Martini in downtown Philadelphia. Bon appetit!
—Nicole
Pugliese
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SLICE THE PRICE
On Travel
oin the jet
set—without owning a jet—by taking advantage of Jet Blue’s
50-percent
sale. Sample
fares—$49 each way between Boston and Fort Lauderdale, Orlando,
Tampa, and Fort Myers, Florida; $69 each way between New York and
San Juan, Puerto Rico. Flights must be
booked by Jul 29, 2004 for travel completed between Sep 7, 2004 and
Dec 15, 2004. The airline recommends that you book mid-week flights
to ensure availability. Order your tickets on
www.jetblue.com and receive $3 off each way. With prices this
low, tickets make great gifts; gift certificates are available by
calling 1-800-JETBLUE.
Visit the site even after July 29, for more “SuperFly”
fares, posted regularly on its Special Offers page.
To find the best deals available on airfare,
hotel, car rental and cruises, visit
www.BookingBuddy.com, where you can conduct simultaneous
searches on Expedia.com, Travelocity.com, Orbitz.com, Hotwire.com,
Priceline.com, Cheapairlines.com, and more. A recent search for
round-trip airfare from New York to Miami came up with fares ranging
from $352 down to $273—a $79 difference.
College students and faculty seeking good deals on
summer and fall getaways, visit
www.studentuniverse.com. Be prepared to verify student/faculty
status before ordering your tickets.
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SLICE THE PRICE
on Travel
This Spring
“April in Paris” isn’t just a classy melody; it’s the perfect
destination for a spring break. James TravelPoints (www.travelpoints.com)
has a two-for-one deal that’s hard to resist: Three days in London
and three in Paris, including round-trip airfare, six nights’ hotel
accommodations, continental breakfast, and a seat on the Eurostar
train, which will transport you under the English Channel from one
city to the next. Prices (per person, double occupancy) start at
$1,378 and are valid until June 15.
Virgin Airlines (www.virgin-vacations.com)
has a similar package (but it throws in a one-hour Seine River
cruise), starting at $1,538 per person.
Visit
www.gate1travel.com and click on “Hot Deals” for other
super-affordable spring getaways.
Can’t afford any
of these? For some retro fun, just rent the 1952 film, “April in
Paris,” starring Doris Day.
Heading to
Boston anytime soon? Check out the “Go Boston Card” at
www.gobostoncard.com. It’s on sale right now at 10 percent off
its normal price: $35.10 buys one-day free admission for one adult
to 31 top tourist attractions, a trolley pass, 20 percent off on
shopping and dining at select locations, plus a 132-page pocket
guidebook.
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SLICE THE PRICE
On Travel
TRAVEL FLASH:
FREE February Getaway
Adventures in Good Company, Inc., a woman-run travel packager
specializing in active vacations for women, has just announced that
one slot has opened up in its Feb. 21-25 Ely, Minnesota dogsled
trip. This vacation, which was featured in the “Loafing” column of
the Nov/Dec issue of MAKING BREAD, is
valued at nearly $1,000. We’re told that a ticket holder had to
cancel and, rather than try to resell her ticket, she’s decided to
offer this all-expenses-paid vacation free to the first caller. For
details, visit
www.goodadventure.com/trips/Dogsled1.html. Or call Marian
Marbury at 1-877-439-4042 (toll-free). Mush! (Note: Too late... This offer
already taken. It was claimed in the first five minutes.)
If
you can’t take advantage of this incredibly generous offer from one
woman to another, check out the other nature trips Adventures in
Good Company has planned for Spring and Summer at
www.goodadventure.com, ranging from paddling the Yukon to hiking
in Provence, France. While they’re not free, they’re all very
reasonably priced and come highly recommended
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SLICE THE PRICE
On Travel
Whether
you’re a sun-seeker or a snow bunny, there are some sweet travel
deals to be had this time of year: Visit
www.orbitz.com and check out its Florida hotel deals, starting
as low as $35 a night in Disney World’s back yard, Orlando. But
don’t stop there, because there’s more to see in Florida than
Mickey, and you’ll find reduced rates statewide, as well as other
“winter escapes to sunny places”—like Acapulco, Jamaica, Cancun and
Oahu.
Check
www.ski-europe.com for its seven-night Innsbruck, Austria
package, priced at $695 per person, including round-trip airfare
from New York to Innsbruck, three-star hotel and buffet breakfast.
Dates: Jan. 23 to 31.
You’ll
find hotel rates starting as low as $51 in the French Alps on
www.expedia.com, and if the white powder of
Stowe,
Vermont,
is more to your taste, consider the Three Bears at the Fountain Bed
and Breakfast, where a three-night, two-day package at this charming
inn starts at $267.50 per person (http://www.threebearsbandb.com/SkiPackages.html)
Or
visit
www.snowpak.com, select your ski destination worldwide and find
a package that fits your price range and skiing ability. Schussing
in New Zealand, anyone?
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SLICE THE PRICE
On Travel
As the geese
take wing this fall, our own thoughts turn to finding the best
airfares so that we can see family and friends over the holiday
season. It’s not too late to book great rates, particularly if your
destination falls within reasonable driving distance of cities that
discount airlines like jetBlue, Spirit Air (www.spiritair.com)
and Southwest Airlines (www.southwest.com)
service.
To find the
lowest “SuperFly” rates available on jetBlue, go to
http://www.jetblue.com/specialoffers/superfly.asp. Deals on
airfare and hotel packages (like the current “Miami Mambo” sale,
featuring hotels from $48 a night) change frequently, so check back
often. Getaways also make great holiday gifts. Call 1-800-JETBLUE to
purchase gift certificates, valid for one year.
After
Thanksgiving comes “Black Friday”—the first day of the frantic
holiday shopping season. This year why not consider outlet stores as
the best source for the perfect gift at the perfect price. To find
an outlet store near you, visit
www.outletbound.com. Happy saving!
Finally, if the
Land of Recalls is calling you, now might be the time to go west and
check out Arnold’s magic kingdom. Hotels in San Francisco from $44
are listed on Expedia.com’s Fall & Holiday City Getaway
Sale List.
Rates are good from October 1 through December 31, 2003.
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SLICE THE PRICE
On Travel This Summer
Want a good
travel deal, but too busy to scour the Internet to find it? Visit
www.ShermansTravel.com, where the site’s editors have done the
searching for you and give you their picks plus more. You’ll find
deals on everything from houseboats to safaris, along with the more
usual vacation destinations: How does four nights in Paris (per
person, double occupancy, including round trip airfare) for $559
sound?
Speaking of Paris, our Parisian correspondent, Laurie Lesser, wrote
us recently to offer her tips for finding the best deals on
last-minute travel:
“I
usually wait until the last possible minute to buy my plane or train
tickets for one simple reason: I like to have the option of changing
my mind. Most cheap advance-purchase tickets are non-modifiable.
(Some, for a fee—$100 on transatlantic flights for example—do allow
you to change the dates.) I've never found the fares to be higher as
the dates get closer; the real risk is finding there are no seats
available on the flights you wanted.
"If you've ever monitored Web fares, you'll notice that
those prices change all the time. You can check them in the morning,
see the perfect flight/fare match, spend the whole day readying
yourself to make the purchase—and the trip—only to find that your
fare has disappeared, sometimes to be replaced by an even better
one, sometimes, alas, not.
"I have often used
www.lastminute.com, a British-based online company that
offers departures and services from France and other countries in
Europe,” she says. A quick check of the “USA Offers” at the site
found round-trip fares from New York to London for 218 pounds, or
approximately $345. The site also has a “Great Giveaway” feature,
whereby each deal “comes with free extras, upgrades, perks and
freebies.” Definitely worth checking out.
Once you’re in France, there are other ways to stretch
your dollars, Lesser points out. “Air France (www.airfrance.com)
has a system—they call it 'coup de coeur' —whereby every
Wednesday they discount a whole slew of unsold seats to various
destinations within metropolitan France. I know people who planned
a week's vacation from work, packed their bags and left on a
Thursday to whatever destination they were able to book. Talk about
"last-minute" travel!” Bon voyage.
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SLICE THE PRICE on Travel This Summer
Where Can You Get
the Best Hotel Rates?
In
a test conducted by Consumer Web Watch to determine which Internet
sites offer the lowest rates for hotel rooms,
www.Travelocity.com beat out such competitors as
www.Orbitz.com,
www.Expedia.com,
www.Hotels.com,
www.Lodging.com, as well as the various sites maintained by national
hotel chains, providing the highest number of lowest rates (29% in
150 tests). Orbitz delivered the best rates 21% of the time and
Expedia 18%
of
the time. The sites maintained by hotel chains themselves compared
unfavorably overall, beating all competitors and providing the
lowest rates 1 out of three times only when customers inquired
about rates at individual properties rather than relying on the
specific chain’s national site.
Cheaper by the Dozen?
Well, almost. In this day and age of retro chic
everything, why not bring back bus travel? Yes, bus tours were
satirized in the 1969 movie “If It’s Tuesday, This Must be Belgium.”
Still, there’s no getting around the fact that they offer good
value, saving you up to 40 percent off the cost of going it alone,
according to one travel source; hotels, meals, and admission fees
are all included in the price. Many offer the flexibility of staying
behind to explore cities and sights on your own, while the rest of
the group takes a day trip. More to the point, some tour companies
now offer one free ticket to anyone who can organize a group
(generally 20 people). So if you can sign up club members,
co-workers, church members, or family and friends, you can go
free—or split the money saved with your fellow travelers. If a tour
company doesn’t offer such a deal, and you can put a group together,
ask if you can get a free ticket.
To get an idea of the wide range of destinations and
reasonable prices available, visit such sites as
www.caravantours.com,
www.shoppingsafaris.com,
www.affordabletours.com,
www.tourvacationstogo.com (which has some specials offering $1
companion airfare), and, for the adventure-minded,
www.greentortoise.com.
Send an Inner-City Kid to the Country
Visit
www.freshairfund.com and give a New York City child a summer
vacation in the country by donating money or becoming a host for a
week or two. |
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SLICE THE PRICE on Travel This
Spring
Cruising takes a down-home, nostalgic flavor on the
Delta Queen steamboat vacations available at
www.deltaqueen.com. Theme-cruise packages, ranging from the
“Spring Pilgrimage Vacation”—a glorious way to tour the antebellum
south of stately mansions and gardens—to “Jazz Celebration
Vacations,” “Civil War Vacations” and more are available. Fares
start at a very reasonable $525 per person, double occupancy, for
three nights.
Early booking bonus:
reserve a six-night or longer steamboating vacation six months or
more in advance and receive free airfare. Mention Code Number
WS3A0103.
Visit
www.trip-quest.com for a broad range of discounted cruise
packages (Including 10 to 50 percent off all Delta Queen cruises)
here and abroad.
At
www.buschgardens.com , check out the vacation plans available at
the Anheuser-Busch adventure parks around the country, including
Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia; Sea World in San Antonio,
Texas, and San Diego, California; and Sesame Place in Langhorne,
Pennsylvania. For instance, a three-day, two-night Williamsburg
package, including accommodations and unlimited park admission,
starts at $310 per person, double occupancy.
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SLICE THE PRICE on Travel This
Spring
In
honor of the 100th anniversary of Walt Disney’s birth,
the Magic Kingdom is throwing a party. Special events are planned
throughout the year, and special deals abound. You’re sure to find
one that fit’s your budget like Cinderella’s glass slipper fit her. Visit
www.DisneyWorld.com
and request a free Vacation Planner Video, and register to receive
updates and special offers. While you’re there, check out the
Kingdom’s spring deals: including the $84 per night, double
occupancy, price available at select value Disney resorts most
nights from February 17 to April 9, 2003. That’s a $25 savings! |
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Here’s the perfect vacation for Francophiles who love to cook: the
Paris & Provence Cooking Discovery Tour, available at
www.francegetaways.com, is a very reasonably priced seven-night
package, including deluxe accommodations, cooking instruction, and
even a truffle-hunting option. Available from November 1, 2002 to
February 28, 2003. Prices are $775 per person, not including
airfare. For more information, visit
www.francegetaways.com
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Feel the need of a weekend away to gear up for—or stress down
after—the holidays? Visit
www.exploreVt.com and check out the for-women-only weekend
relaxation retreats offered there. “In the supportive company of
women, learn useful ways to relax, simplify, organize and enjoy
life. Put the joy back in your heart,” say the “Tracks of Vermont”
tour organizers. Their all-inclusive rate of $695 includes three
days and two nights at a hand-picked country inn, all meals,
gratuities, taxes, guided activities, equipment, speakers, evening
entertainment, and transportation to activities. Weekend programs
feature yoga, massage, hiking, skiing, stargazing, snowshoeing and
assorted workshops.
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Here’s a choice offer: Stay at any
of the 3,300 Choice Hotels in the U.S. and the Caribbean and you’ll
receive double miles, if you are a member of
American Airlines
Aadvantage,
Delta SkyMiles,
Northwest
Airlines WorldPerks,
US Airways Dividend
Miles and United
Mileage Plus. The offer runs until December 15. In other words,
you’ll get a total of 500 miles, instead of the customary 250, when
you stay at
Comfort Inn,
Comfort
Suites,
Quality Inn, Sleep Inn, Clarion and MainStay Suites in the U.S.
or the Caribbean; and a total of 300, instead of 150 miles, for
every stay at an
EconoLodge and
Rodeway Inn in the U.S. For more information, visit
www.choicehotels.com.
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Mystery buffs will love the QE2 “Who Done It?” cruise. Guests solve
a murder mystery as clues unfold in dramatic performances aboard the
luxurious Queen Elizabeth 2. A celebrity mystery author will be on
board (no clues provided as to who that might be).
Packages, starting at $1399 per person for a double, include a
six-day transatlantic crossing from New York to Southampton, private
car to a London hotel, and three nights’ hotel accommodations, plus
one-way economy return flight aboard Virgin Atlantic. Purchase
deadline is October 15 for October 30 departure.
Other themed cruises aboard the QE2 include “QE2 goes to the
Movies,” in which guests mingle with British film directors and
actors; and “QE2 British Royalty,” where you can learn about all
things Royal as you cruise the high seas. Visit
www.virgin-vacations.com for more information. |
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A new Web site,
www.7blueseas.com, offers one-stop shopping for the best cruise
deals around. Subscribe to its free “Sail Sale!” newsletter for the
latest and lowest prices available on the high seas. The site also
offers lots of information about cruising with kids and cruising for
first-timers, plus news on the latest trends—think adventure—in this
segment of the travel market. |
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Cherchez-vous a
reasonable (and reasonably priced) facsimile of Paris? Try Canada:
Montreal and Quebec City offer all the romance and foreign intrigue
(French spoken here) of the famed City of Lights for a fraction of
the cost. Meals and lodging are generally lower, and you currently
get about $1.60 Canadian for every U.S. dollar. Visit
www.trips.com,
www.cheaptickets.com, or
www.orbitz.com for hotel packages and airfares to Montreal or
Quebec.
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In its
July/August issue, Arthur Frommer’s Budget Travel reports
that better air deals to foreign destinations can often be obtained
by flying to London first, then booking flights to your final
destination of choice, whether it’s Sydney or New Delhi, through
so-called “bucket shops,” or airfare discounters. Check the UK’s Air
Travel Advisory Bureau’s Web site,
www.atab.co.uk , for a list of British discounters (also known
as consolidators). And to be sure to get the best deal on the first
leg of your trip, try
www.cheaptickets.com or
www.lowestairprice.com. |
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Orbitz.com has just launched a new micro-site for the gay and
lesbian community, which spent $1.2 billion online on travel last
year. The micro-site features information about gay-destination
cities and events on six continents, specially tailored travel deals
and tips and advice for gay and lesbian parents traveling with their
families. The micro-site will be accessible through the Deals tab on
the Orbitz homepage, at
http://www.orbitz.com/gaytravel.There you’ll
find bargain pricing for such themed vacations as
“Counter-Culture Cowgirls” in Austin,
Texas and the “Michigan Womyn’s Music
Festival,” as well as international travel packages and
deals.
In
celebration of the new micro-site, Orbitz is launching a
“Win-a-Spa Getaway” sweepstakes
where weekly winners will be awarded a trip for two to one of
several spa resorts within the United States. Enter by registering
on the micro-site or through banner ads posted throughout Orbitz.
“Win-a-Spa Getaway” runs through July 17. |
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Looking for an “escape clause” from the daily grind—at least for a
weekend—and good value, too? Marriott International, Inc. and
American Express have teamed to offer
Marriott’s new Weekend Escape! Packages. Guests staying at
Marriott and Renaissance hotels in the U. S. and Canada will receive
a special $25 per night per room hotel-dining credit when they book
and pay for a Marriott Escape! Package with an American Express Card
from June 15 to Sept. 2, 2002. The dining credit can be used for
lunch or dinner at the hotels’ restaurants and lounges, or—for a
private dinner—order room service. Visit
http://www.marriott.com/escape for highlighted packages each month or use the directory to search by
package type (Spa, Sports, Family, Romance or Culture & Events),
destination and dates.
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Make your summer
break special: visit
www.studentuniverse.com offering “Real
travel deals. Just for students and faculty.” Besides rail
and air deals, the site also lists hostels (you can reserve a hostel
bed online), travel and destination guides, trip planners, and
opportunities to study abroad, including volunteer and internship
positions. To take advantage of deals offered, you must be a
currently enrolled full-time student or faculty member at an
accredited college or university, and give Student Universe
permission to verify your status. |
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New York, Boston,
Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Hollywood…if you live
near or are planning to visit one of these cities this summer,
consider purchasing a CityPass booklet for exceptional deals
to each city’s
cultural, entertainment and tourist attractions. Typical savings:
the $38 dollar adult passbook for New York contains admissions
valued at $85. CityPass books can be purchased online at
www.citypass.com or at participating attractions. They are
valid for nine days
from purchase
(except Hollywood, which is good for 30 days), and they’re
transferable. |
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There’s a first time for everyone—and if you haven’t already booked a great
vacation deal on the Internet, a good place to start is at
www.virgin-vacations.com . Virgin Atlantic Vacations is currently offering
a “London 6-night April Fling,” including round-trip Economy airfare on
Virgin Atlantic Airways, round-trip London airport transfers to the city
center via the Heathrow or Gatwick Express, six nights’ hotel accommodations
in London, breakfast daily, and hotel taxes and service charges. Prices
start from $599 per person, based on double occupancy for departures from
New York. Travel is valid from April 1 through April 30, with all travel
booked by April 21, 2002. |
To obtain the lowest fares on domestic
flights, purchase your tickets at least 14 days in advance, and schedule
your departure on Tuesday, Wednesday or Saturday. Most discounted tickets
also require you to stay over at least one Saturday night. Always check the
Internet for special deals and last-minute bargains before you buy. For
starters, try
www.orbitz.com,
www.priceline.com or
www.travelocity.com .
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