I love it when other blogs do my job for me 🙂
Check out this entry on WalletPop for five great budget travel tips (SniqueAway, which I mentioned a few days ago, makes the list…)
Bis bald, friends!
Category: Money
Have You Heard of Snique Away?
I’m always game to hear about new travel sites that offer up deals and discounts—it’s pretty much the only way I can afford to travel.
That’s why I was psyched when an email from SniqueAway.com landed in my inbox today. It’s a bit like all of the other savings sites getting about these days—Groupon, LivingSocial, et al. But it’s for travel, and some of the deals seem pretty great. For example, todays locations include a myriad of places, from Miami to The Grenadines to Nashville to the Caribbean. Love the diversity.
And the discounts themselves are pretty hot, as well. Rooms at The Bodyholiday LeSport resort in st. Lucia, Caribbean are down from $386-$506 per night for a single garden view room to $245-$315 per night. Not too shabby.
I’m also digging the lineup on the right side of the screen that shows you the upcoming sales for the next three days, that way you can start planning and pricing out flights.
While membership is free, it’s currently by invitation only. If you want to be invited and haven’t received an email, though, there’s an optional “I Want To Join” button on the sign-up page.
Bis bald, friends! I’m off to Rockywold-Deephaven Camp in Holderness, NH in a few weekends for my cousin’s nuptials. Should be an awesome time!
In the News: In the Market for a Timeshare? Now’s the Time to Buy
Check out this video from MSN Money about why now is the best time to snatch up some prime timeshare properties (One man was even forced to give his away. As in for free. I’ll take a free timeshare in Hilton Head, thank you very much!)
The one point that the video makes is that while yes, there are fabulous deals to be had right now, don’t forget the added monthly costs that come along with owning a timeshare. They can really add up—and that’s why some of these people are being forced to sell their properties for rock bottom prices.
Bis bald friends! Hope you had a fabulous Memorial Day!
In The News: The Best Airlines For Miles
Check out this WSJ article for a list of the best U.S. carriers for miles (Southwest Airlines and jetBlue are tops) and the worst (hello US Airways and Delta).
I’d throw United/Continental on that list as well 🙁 We all know the troubles I’ve had with them.
Bis bald, friends—have happy summer flights!
Cabo San Lucas and Grand Solmar
So as you may or may not remember, I was invited a while back to attend a press trip in Cabo San Lucas for the grand opening of the new luxury Grand Solmar Resort & Spa. Having never been on a press trip before, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect.
Turns out I should have expected a pretty amazing time—because that’s exactly what we had. On top of the awesome hotel, the breathtaking views, the flowing drinks, and the tasty food, we also had a few days-worth of really fun off-site adventures, and the other people on the press trip were totally sweet and fun, as well.
Our Delta flight had us flying out of JFK at 6:20 a.m. on Thursday, which is obviously super early, but at least that meant that we would arrive by 12:30 Cabo San Lucas time, so that was the good part about it.
And here’s the thing about Grand Solmar—when they say luxury, they really mean luxury. Grand Solmar is not a hotel where I could ever afford to stay in the future (unless of course I become a wildly successful travel writer some day 🙂 ), which means it was that much nicer to stay there this past weekend, and Steph and I could appreciate it so much more. The views were beautiful, and the rooms were spotless (complete with comfy robes, turn down service, and tasty treats left every night), with huge porches overlooking the ocean. As this was not an all-inclusive, meals and drinks were a bit pricey (I bought two bottles of Fiji water for almost $20, people. $20). But everything that was included by the press company—dinner at restaurant/tequila bar Hacienda El Coyote (which, by the way, is owned by the same family who owns Grand Solmar) in the town on Thursday night, the outback camel safari with Cabo Adventures including lunch and tequila tasting, appetizers and drinks on Friday night, swimming with the dolphins and a fancy, ocean side dinner on Saturday night, were all amazing. The food was quite tasty—and this time, no revenge (knock on wood!).
So on Friday morning, Steph and I set out on our camel and safari ride with the group. We took a huge open-air truck through the jungle and hiked up along the mountains. Then we headed to the beach where we literally rode camels, and then it was off to a tortilla making class, a great lunch, and a tequila lesson (the best tequila will have bubbles that last for at least 30 seconds when you shake it. And also, there is a certain type of tequila that people take a shot of and then follow with a cooked cricket chaser. Yes, really. A cricket cooked with salt, pepper, and garlic. I abstained from experiencing cricket on my little Mexico adventure).
Saturday we headed back over to Cabo Adventures for our session to swim with the dolphins. If you know anything about me, friends, you’ll know that I’m an animal lover. I wanted to be a veterinarian for a long time, have always volunteered with animals, and am a vegetarian. So heading into this little adventure, I was a bit apprehensive, to say the least. But still, it was something I’ve always wanted to try, and why not try it when it’s free, right? Who can blame me?
Unfortunately our little session only proved me right in terms of feeling apprehensive. Don’t get me wrong—the actual rides with the dolphins (which included a “belly” ride where you hold on to their fins as they swim upside down and a “dorsal fin” ride where you ride on top), and the kisses and the “dancing” you do with them, all of that was super fun. Dolphins are cute. And friendly. And apparently very patient.
Except for that Saturday. These dolphins seemed to have about had enough. It all started when the first dolphin that Steph was supposed to ride with absolutely refused to come over and be a part of our little show. He wasn’t feeling it. Maybe he had a fight with his girlfriend that morning—who knows. Then, a girl in the group next to us had her foot cut on the tooth of a dolphin who came up behind the one she was riding and she accidentally kicked into his mouth.
That was the first time we were ordered out of the water.
The second time we were ordered out of the water was when the same girl (poor girl!) and her friend were taking their photo with the dolphin. Another dolphin came up behind the one they were taking photos with and tried to start playing with him. Both dolphins got antsy and jumpy, the girls got knocked in the head, and we were yet again ordered out of the water, this time so they could “let the dolphins be dolphins for a while,” meaning let them swim around crazily and play and not perform.
All in all, a bit of a sobering experience. I say—let the dolphins, free people! It’s not that important to take photos with them, and they clearly aren’t all that happy being held in captivity. Just let the dolphins go!
After our morning with the antsy dolphins, Steph and I headed out to the marina where we found a restaurant on the water that had $1.50 fish tacos with a fixin’s bar that allowed you to throw on all the guacamole, salsa, cole slaw, and other goodies that you could ever want. Delish.
On our final night we attended a ribbon cutting in honor of the naming of their new check-in bar area—Infinity (a Grand Solmar Facebook fan had won the contest to name the bar, along with an all-expense paid trip to the hotel that same weekend. Oh the wonders of Facebook), then we all headed to the ocean-front dinner, complete with live music and “casual elegance” attire. We had five courses, along with different wines for each course and a tequila liquor to finish it off.
Cabo, my friends, is everything everyone says that it is, and I can certainly see why celebs love the place. The only sad thing, if it can be called that, is the fact that it’s hard to find a spot in Cabo where you can actually go in the ocean. The waves are monstrous—I mean really, monstrous. Much larger than anything I have seen in Hawaii or Australia.
Still, I plan to go back some time friends, and I would highly recommend a trip there for anyone who loves the sun, appreciates fabulous Mexican food, and enjoys tequila.
Bis bald, my friends!
From the Archives: The Road Trips Of My Childhood
On the Huffington Post today, Millie Kerr faces her impending 30th birthday with a look back on her travels over the years—and specifically on what she calls the “never-ending road trips” that she and her family would take.
Millie’s own memories got me feeling a bit nostalgic, as well as a bit sad.
When I think back to all the “never-ending road trips” that I took with my own family, I can’t help but wonder how the rise in gas prices may be depriving Americans of something they might not even have considered—the epic, memorable family road trip. While the majority of my “adult” traveling life has been engineered by boats and planes, my childhood was peppered with family road trips that included little more than the four or five of us (depending on which family it was), the car, some good books and toys and music, and the open road. We never headed too far—Boston, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and the Jersey Shore were all favorite haunts of ours. But it wasn’t even so much the destination (although don’t get me wrong, those were amazing as well) as it was the journey and the shared experiences that kept us packing it in the car for more every year.
There is something to be said about waking up at the crack of dawn and piling your bags by the trunk of the car in the driveway so that your dad or step-dad could systematically load them in, or sleeping under one blanket with your sisters as your dad or stepdad continues the drive through the night.
There is something to be said about sitting, elbow to elbow, with your sisters in the back seat of the Dodge Caravan or Subaru Outback, verbally sparring for more room, but secretly not minding too much.
There is something to be said about the miles we traveled while writing stories to ourselves in our notebooks, belting out lyrics of songs we listened to over and over again in our Walkmans, and then our Discmans, or looking out the window at the countryside rolling by.
There is something to be said about the pit stops along the way, the fast food you ate that never quite tasted the same when you weren’t on an epic family road trip, or the snacks that your mom and stepmom packed for you for the hours-long ride.
When I think about my future and having kids of my own some day, I’m saddened to wonder if I will be able to afford giving them the same kind of memories. How much money would an epic road trip like the kind we used to take cost now that gas prices are topping out over $4? What will the vacations of my children’s futures look like?
I’m saddened to think I might not be able to give them everything my parents gave me on those bumpy, windy journeys we took years ago—with the windows down and the wind blowing in our faces.
I think they gave us more than they may even know….
Check Out a Traveling Pro’s Tips
The Wall Street Journal offers a glimpse into the incredible traveling tips of Alice Shin, the advertising copywriter from Miami who beat out 600 applicants to become the launch blogger for Pei Wei Blog Asia. For the job, Shin had to blog while on a three-week, all-expense-paid trip to eight cities in Asia.
Check out her helpful tips and steal some for your own.
Get Your Miles to Work for You?
As you all already know, I’ve jumped off the frequent flier miles bandwagon. At least I’ve jumped off the bandwagon I was currently hitched to—who’s to say if I’ll jump on another should the occasion arise?
There is, however, a compelling argument to actually use them in today’s NY Times frugal traveler. Take a peak for some sage advice.
Bis bald, friends! I’m off tonight to an informational session for Projects Abroad volunteer work. I will report back forthwith.
Cancun, Mexico—Complete!
Well friends, we’re back! And Mexico was, I must admit, pretty much everything I thought it would be and more. The beaches were the most unbelievable blue. The people were so ridiculously friendly. Our all-inclusive hotel was, well, the epitome of all-inclusive (to include a mini bar and liquor cabinet that was refilled every two days).
Click below to read more about my amazing birthday trip to Cancun, and my recommendations for you should your travels ever bring you there…
The Best Time to Take a Trip
Thanks to this entry from Go Frugal Blog, I now know the best time to take a little trip for 70 destinations around the world. For example: It’s expensive to travel to Africa from May to July, but less costly from mid-October to mid-November.
Not all destinations are so exotic, though—Albuquerque, Boston, and California all make the list as well.
Bis bald, friends! Only eight more wake-up days until Mexico!
In The News: Face lift for airline miles?
Well according to this WSJ article, it’s true. For those of us who have ever been burned by airline miles (I’ve complained on at least one occasion, myself), apparently the airlines are dipping into a new way to make pay-offs—including plastic surgery, big-screen TVs, lawn tractors (?), and even dinner with the New York Yankees.
Seems odd, to me, but then again, I could use a big-screen TV?
Would you cash in your miles for something other than, you know, miles?
Bis bald, friends!
Photo illustration via
In the News: The Allure of the Package
I admit it—I’m a package traveler. What I mean by that is that I love me a good package deal travel Website— Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity—I’ve used ’em all. Well in today’s New York Times, yours and my favorite, The Practical Traveler, debates whether or not vacation packages can actually save you money, and whether or not the concessions you sometimes have to make (ickier hotels, early morning flights, etc.) for those savings are worth it.
Personally, I’ve found these Websites to generally be very helpful. Usually when I search for hotels or flights on their own, I always come up with a much more expensive trip. One difference—Chris’s upcoming marathon in Chicago. When he told me how much he was spending per night for just the hotel (somewhere around $120 per person, if I’m remembering correctly), I thought I’d be sure to find a better deal on a package site.
But then I checked Expedia. Flight plus hotel for the 7th thru the 9th are somewhere around $450-$550. And a quick Kayak search tells me that flights are currently lingering around somewhere around $243 for the same weekend. So with the $120 per night hotel that Chris found, that’s a comparable trip price, if not even a little bit cheaper.
There’s no rhyme or reason to it, that I’ve found at least. Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don’t.
What about you? Have you ever used a bundle site? And were you happy with it?
Bis bald, friends!
I’ve Got Mexico On the Mind
So you might remember that I mentioned a little trip Chris and I have coming up to Cancun? I know I briefly mentioned that we booked with a sale, and I figure I should spread the love. So here’s the deal. If you need a little sun in your life some time soon, Mexico seems as good a place as any. Just head over to here, and get $50 off when you book a minimum $500 order at any resort sold on Mexico.com. Book from now through Feb. 28 and travel between now and Sept. 20.
I think you deserve a little trip to Mexico, too—don’t you?
Bis bald, friends! A friend and I are taking a day trip to New Brunswick, New Jersey this weekend. I’m a firm believer that you don’t have to travel far to feel like you’re on vacation. I’ll let you know how it goes!
Booked—Cancun, Mexico
Well we did it, we booked a trip to Mexico. Cabo turned out to be a bit too far to trek for just a few days, so we went with the classic Cancun instead. Still, I’m beyond excited. It definitely gives us something to look forward to when it’s 9 degrees outside (seriously, it’s literally 9 degrees outside right now).
Anyway, we booked the all-inclusive RIU Cancun in what will allegedly be an ocean view junior suite. That definitely sounds like somewhere I want to be. And I’ve never done all-inclusive before (besides the Toilet-of-the Sea cruise to the Bahamas, of course), but they promise to include everything like daily meals and snacks, unlimited local and imported alcoholic beverages, regularly restocked minibar and liquor dispenser, unlimited non-alcoholic beverages, hot tub access, access to sun loungers, parasols and towels, gym and sauna, nightclub entrance, tennis, non-motorized aquatic sports equipment, entertainment, taxes and gratuities. It sounds too good to be true. We did our research, though, and all the reviews seem to say that it really is what it says it is. I certainly hope so.
The only downside to the experience of booking the trip was discovering just how little our airline miles for United actually got us. First were the blackout dates and restrictions. We were able to book an outgoing flight that was pretty decent, but there was nothing available for purchase using our miles to get us home, so that meant we had to pay for it. Then there were tons of fees associated with booking with our miles. About $55/person, actually. All in all, using miles to book the trip probably saved us about half the cost, or a little more, but I was more than a little disappointed with the flight availability and the ridiculous fees. Next time, I think I’ll be booking with a different airline.
Bis bald, friends!
You Must Sign Up For…
Living Social Daily Deals, if they’re offered in your hood, my friends. The site is in the realm of the Groupon’s of the world, but Living Social has something a bit more fun—travel deals.
In my inbox right now sits a 4-night, all-inclusive deal for two to a spa in Cancun.That’s drinks, food, and even a 1-hour Swedish massage. For $1,335.
That sounds pretty great right about now, how about you?
Bis bald!
In the News: Cut Your Travel Costs
I meant to blog about this a few days ago when I first read it in the NY Times‚ but better late than never, right?
If you’re like me, you spent a lot more money than you have this season on gifts, parties, traveling to and from holiday shindigs, etc. So what we’re left with (or at least what I’m left with) is a dismal looking January credit card statement and a ton of travel plans for 2011 that I’m not sure how I will pay for.
That’s why I love the above article. I mean who wouldn’t love an article titled “11 Tricks to Cutting Travel Costs in 11.” I can’t wait until we get to a later year when the numbers get larger and writers have to give us even more travel cost-cutting tips to match up with the year (99 Tricks to Cutting Travel Costs in ’99 anyone?)
Anyway, I’ll spare you the details, because you can just read the piece, but let’s say “private sales,” “refund,” and “negotiating” are all words used in this piece.
Bis bald friends! And save up that money to go traveling!
In the News: New York City for $100? It’s possible…
Another classic Frugal Traveler post over at the NY Times has visitors of this great city taking on full Friday, Saturday and Sunday adventures for just $100 (that’s $40 in food, $30 in culture, $20 in subway fares, and $10 for drinks—you’ll need to find a free place to crash to make this work for just $100).
One of my favorite take-aways from the post—pay-what-you-wish admission at the Guggenheim every Saturday afternoon from 5:45 to 7:45. Genius! After my last (and first) trip to the Guggs, I’ve decided that this beautifully built building is definitely one of my favorite museums in the city. And to be able to see it for $1? I may be a jaded New Yorker, but even this has me excited.
Whether you live in this great city or not, the post has some fabulous ideas for totally cheap places to hang and eat and drink.
Bis bald, my friends! Tomorrow, a New Years Eve Eve post looking back on my own personal year of travel…
Oh, and one last thing. If you’re bored, head on over to AOL Travel News to read my first travel post for them.
Photo via
In the News: Have $418, Will Travel
My old college bff sent me a link to an article entitled ‘How to Travel Around the World for $418.’
I was intrigued.
According to the piece, Steve Kamb was interested in traveling around the world (I will raise my hand to this as well) for as little money as possible (ummm, ditto). The difference between myself and Steve, however, is that he actually took the time to figure out how to do it. For $418. His travel includes 35,000 miles, four continents, nine countries, and 15 cities. He’ll be flying to The Rock Boat on Jan. 6th, according to his current itinerary, and finishing off in Buenos Aires around Nov. 30th.
So how is he doing it for $418? It’s all about the miles, people. Keeping them. Tracking them. Using them properly. To be honest, it seems like a ton of work, but hey, if it got me a trip around the world for that cheap, I’d be down to do a little number crunching and get myself a rockin’ trip like he did.
Check out the link for Steve’s full itinerary and exactly how he managed to work his miles.
Thanks for the link, Shawnie! Bis bald, my friends!
Gizmos and Goodies: Great Gift Ideas for Other Weary Wanderers
My love for the Frugal Traveler grows with each post I read. I particularly adore this post about great travel gift ideas from $10 to $60. If anyone out there is considering getting me a travel-friendly gift this year, think No. 2 and No. 7. You can’t go wrong with those.
Bis bald, friends!
In the News: Five Nights in Costa del Sol, starting at $729 with Air
There comes a time in your life, my friends, when you realize that you cannot possibly afford to take every single fantastic trip offer that finds its way into your dreams.
This is, unfortunately, one of those times. With all the trips for this year over, I’m looking forward to next year, but at the same time starting to think—at what point should I be putting this travel money towards something else? Something important. Something like a house. Or a new computer. Or any of the other myriad of grown-up ways that I could spend that money.
It’s not that I ever think travel is a waste of money (not even if the trip doesn’t turn out quite the way you thought it would)—it’s just something I’ve been considering, as of late.
Anyway, I digress. I can’t afford to take this trip, even if it seems like a great offer, but maybe you could. Thank you Frommer’s newsletter for sharing this interesting deal with me:
Gate 1 Travel is offering a five-night trip to Costa del Sol, including round-trip airfare from NYC, for a starting price of $729 (if you depart on Dec. 28 your price will be $729, other dates include mark-up fees). The fee also includes the choice of two tourist/budget-class hotels, daily breakfast and airline fuel surcharges.
If you’re still looking for New Years Eve plans, it’s definitely worth checking out.
Bis bald, friends!
In the News: Airlines Are Actually Making a Profit. Shocker
In case anyone out there was actually worried about the airlines (I mean, why would a company need to charge for crazy things like toilet usage if it was actually doing ok?), it appears they are actually doing okay. The third quarter results are in and—shockingly—the airlines actually made money off of us (insert gasp here).
Here’s the breakdown:
U.S. Airways: $420 million profit
United: $387 million profit
Continental: $354 million profit
Delta: $363 million profit
AirTran: $36 million profit
Southwest Airlines: $205 million
JetBlue: $59 million
And while I can’t imagine how much money it takes to actually keep an airplane in tip top shape (and believe me, we want them in tip top shape!), I still can’t help but wonder if all the wacky fees we’ve been hearing about as of late are really necessary….
In the News: Hotels.com launches 2010 Hotel Price Index
Now, I’ve only used hotels.com once before [to book our hotel in Rome, which, if you’ll remember, we ended up LOVING], so I’m not an expert, but I think I would tentatively recommend it to friends.
Anyway, Hotels.com has just launched its 2010 Hotel Price Index, a bi-annual report from the site that reveals average hotel prices in major cities around the world based on actual Hotels.com customer bookings. The first report, just released, shows that “global hotel prices are rising; nevertheless, prices are still low.”
Other information included:
Cities that saw average prices drop this year:
Tampa, FL—down 11%
Sacramento, CA—down 4%
Seattle, WA—down 1%
Other cities where prices were still low included Chicago, Orlando, Honolulu and, internationally, Freeport in the Bahamas, Dublin and Madrid.
Check out the full findings here.
Bis bald, friends!
Something old, something new…
Chris and I have entered into an ages old dilemma when it comes to travel. With a few extra days of vacation left in both of our pockets, we’ve decided to actually take a trip together this year, when we thought originally that this wouldn’t be possible.
So let the decision-making fun begin. There are a few factors we’re using to narrow down the choices:
- We won’t leave the country for this vacay
- We’ll keep the flight and hotel stay to under $500
- We’ll choose a “relaxing” vacation this time, as opposed to something where we’ll feel the need to run around and sight see all the live long day
- We’ll shy away from the West Coast for this trip, since it will only be for a couple of days
We tossed around the idea of picking a place where a specific action would do the guiding—as in “We went to Arizona because they have the best sky diving”—but I think we may have decided against that.
A quick goggle search of the Top 10 cities to visit in the U.S. left me feeling a bit jipped.
1. San Francisco– West Coast
2. Charleston, SC—Been there
3. Santa Fe, NM—Possibility
4. NYC—Live there
5. Chicago—Possibility
6. Honolulu—Been there
7. Carmel, CA—West Coast
8. Savannah, GA—not sure I see the draw
9. San Diego—West coast
10. Boston—Been there
After adding New Orleans and Phoenix to the list, we still only had a couple of good options.
So we threw the list out, and I think we’re going to go with Florida. It’s cheap. It’s tropical. I know my way around it. Now the decision is this:
St. Augustine—where I used to live, but could be fun to show Chris around the place, and I know the best places to go/stay/eat
The Everglades—neither one of us has been, but we’re dying to see some alligators
This might be a tough one….
Installment Four: An Unplanned Day 2 in Rome
Last Friday Steph and I started our day off with a blank slate.
Or, it was a blank slate in the fact that we didn’t have a tour planned or meals that would be fed to us at their specifically designated times. Other than that I had my map, and my list of suggested places to eat from my co-worker, and my own list of all the places we hadn’t hit yet on our tour from the previous day that I had decided we absolutely had to see before we left.
So I suppose it wasn’t totally blank.
Continue reading “Installment Four: An Unplanned Day 2 in Rome”
Installment One: London Calling
Hi friends,
So let’s pretend that we’re back to last Sunday, as my sister and I were boarding our Icelandair plane for London. It’s the day that our whole Euro-adventure began…
With our layover in Iceland, we started a little worried that a certain volcano might erupt and ruin the whole wonderous time that we had planned (and paid for). Lucky for us (and everyone around us…trust me), that didn’t happen. We spent three days in London, a few hours in Paris, and three days in Rome, with a couple hours in Florence stuffed in there as well. In order to give this trip the full importance that I feel it deserves (because believe me, it deserves importance), I’m going to break the blog entries into three shifts—London, Paris and Rome. So let’s get started across the pond….