Book Hotels Cheaper

Shoes for Traveling

One of the important components to traveling happily is to be comfortable. In my Travel Tips book, I write about such things as dressing for where you are scheduled to arrive (not for where you depart from), dressing appropriately (in case of emergencies) and other such items that lend themselves to your being a happier traveler.

I recently came across a great article from a homeopathic doctor that is titled "How to Keep Your Feet Happy When Traveling". I thought it not only had a lot of common sense to it but it added something to the premise of being comfortable when you travel. The doctor advises to wear appropriate shoes so you don't develop blisters or sores at your destination and to make sure the shoes have adequate support. This will avoid sore feet when your trip is over or nearly over.

The one thing I would have added if I wrote the article is to wear shoes on the plane that are appropriate in case of emergency. Wearing high heels may look fashionable but would be inappropriate if you landed in the Hudson River and had to walk on the wet wing of the plane. The same for hiking boots - you would sink to the bottom is case of a water landing if you had heavy boots on. Taking them off is no answer either - in cold water or weather, you would risk frost-bite or hypothermia if only in bare feet or socks.

For that matter, wearing proper clothes is important too but not the subject of this article so I will forego any more 'preaching'. Follow the link to the article to see what advice he offers and you can thank me later!

Now Is the Time to Book Australia!

You probably do not remember but last Fall/Winter, I announced reductions in fares to Australia for 2009. But I also suggested waiting because of Virgin Australia;s introduction of service to Australia might result in lower fares than what we were seeing in Dec.I noted in November that I saw fares on Qantas of $1160 from LA, though there were sporadic $770 fares available but with 'book-by, fly-by' restrictions.

Just like clockwork, TravelZoo just announced $600 fares (incl. all taxes and fees!) from 'several' airlines serving Australia, also from LA. The better news? The fares are good through ALL of 2009! They did not indicate whether there was a purchase by date but they test booked this fare and found several dates from July through December available. They noted it is best to be flexible with your dates and try to go mid-week for the best savings.

I myself tried Qantas and entered several dates in August and September. While I was unable to get the fare as low as the $601 reported, I easily found rates in the $600s, including on weekends with Sydney as the destination. (Click on the "View Lowest Prices Around This Date" option for the lowest fares) Assuming you get a $49 fare to LA, even paying $725 round trip is as cheap as Australia has been in years. I saw similar fares (albeit higher) for Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, Kalgoorie, etc.

Ironically, V-Australia not only does not have these fares available, I could not even FIND fares from the US on their site. Where it asks for your country and you choose USA, it immediately defaults back to Australia and shows no US destinations or origin cities. So the airline that started this fare war appears to not even be bookable. (What fares I did see from LA in their advertisement is over $900 to boot!)

The Dominican Republic - the New Costa Rica?

While I was researching travel spots in the Caribbean for the Ultimate Honeymoon book we recently released, I came upon something new - at least for me. The Dominican Republic as a valid destination locale. Long saddled with being the neighbor to Haiti, with all the baggage that goes along with that impoverished country, most people dismissed the Dominican Republic as a vacation place, thinking it was a sister country for Haiti. But D.R. has come a long ways and I was very surprised at the world class resorts I found for honeymooners. I was especially appreciative of the prices as well, since they cannot charge the high prices other islands get in the Caribbean until they get more established. This is why I am suggesting it might be the NEW Costa Rica.

You remember when C.R. was all the rage. EVERYONE wanted to go there, expenses were low and it had all the amenities a vacationer wanted; beaches, sophisticated cities, nice hotels, restaurants and resorts and did I mention it was inexpensive too? This is where the Dominican is right now and I suggest it is worth a look if you have been all around the Caribbean and need a new place to go.

One site (DR1.com) has ALL the information you would need to visit the Dominican Republic. Suggestions for golfers, nature lovers, family vacations, bargain hunters, windsurfers and even those in love with alpine mountains (at 10,125 feet, D.R. has the tallest mountain in the Caribbean) are offered on this site. The Dominican even has gambling and of course the real prize: cigars! While this site has a plethora of resorts and hotels to check out, none appear to have room rates available but my earlier research suggested downtown Santo Domingo hotels can run as low as $45 and outer resorts in very tropical locations are only $125.

For more sites will lots of financial information like flights and hotel rates, check out the following.

http://www.godominicanrepublic.com/

http://dominicanrepublic.com/index.php

http://gocaribbean.about.com/od/hotelsandresor2/tp/DRallinclusives.htm

http://www.wheretostay.com/caribbean/dominican_republic/lodging-c55-Dominican_Republic.html

Warning on start-up airline "Jet America"

Usually it is good news when competition increases in the marketplace. The airline industry is one marketplace where that doesn't seem to apply however. Increased competition has meant bankruptcy for some airlines, necessity to merge for others and lay-offs and downsizing for almost all the rest. As airlines struggle to make profits, they have resorted to a strategy of abandoning certain areas or regions - usually the small market regions. This allows them to concentrate their equipment and remaining staff in the higher revenue markets. This was one of the pitfalls to deregulation of the airline business in the 80's - the abandoning of certain markets - because before deregulation, the airlines were being propped up by subsidies to serve smaller markets.

So sure enough, some small regional airports (Spokane for instance) or small large market airports (Cleveland) saw service slashed in many cases. The newest start up airlines (like Spirit or Virgin) tended to either serve the larger markets (New York, L.A., S.F., Florida) and did not completely take up the slack left by the legacy carriers in the smaller market areas (Charlotte, Montgomery, etc), though Spirit did set up Detroit as a hub and offers great fares to and from there.

So it is hoped that into the void steps start up airlines with hopefully lower cost structures to serve the abandoned markets. And that is exactly what is happening with Jet America. A start-up airline (July 2009) that serves airports like Charlotte, Toledo OH, Lansing MI and South Bend IN, which will offer $9 fares to the first 9 people who purchase tickets. (The average ticket otherwise is around $200).

Europe Alert! Low Fares Abound

I love being right. (Conversely, I HATE being wrong, who doesn't) But, I was right on last winter when I wrote my newsletter for 2009 titled 2009 Travel Outlook. In it, I predicted that even though airlines were promoting great discount fares for 2009, it would be best to wait because these fares probably would not lure enough traffic to the airlines so that they would/could RAISE fares for the summer and end the discounts.

Well guess what? Not only have I been blogging about more low fares and more sales since January, it appears the mother of all sales has hit home just as the travel vacation season starts. I still think airfares will be even lower after Labor Day (it's a seasonal thing) but now is the time to book for this summer.

The N. Y. Times In Transit blog notes that FareCompare just reported that sales are bounding to lots of domestic, international and especially European locations. Such as these round trip fares from New York: Paris for $349 (all taxes incl!) Zurich $237non stop, London $529 and Rome $296.00

From Chicago, go to Cancun for $253, Paris for $634 and Frankfurt for $506. And from LA: Paris $825 , Bangkok $703, Frankfurt $521 and London $817. More lower international fares are available also, such as LA - Manila $699, Puerta Vallarta $325, Rio $480, Sydney Aust $591 and Tokyo $598.  

Even if fares dropped some more, how can you beat these prices? It isn't worth the risk of them selling out just to save another $40 so I suggest if you are going overseas, now is the time to buy. As the blog notes, these fares are 50% off what they were just (days) ago. With gas prices surging once again, fares may rise soon (or fuel surcharges raised) and it makes no sense to wait any longer to book these flights.

Beware RyanAir: Europe's Most Hated Airline?

Ryan Air is an Irish discount airline that has generated tremendous amounts of news since its inception. There was a row last year about arbitrarily canceling tickets bought on Third Party sites. Recently, the flamboyant (and often considered annoying) CEO went public with a comment that RyanAir will charge an extra fee for anything they think they can charge for - and boy did they!

Now they are in the news again because less than 1/3rd of registered patrons to their website taking a survey voted 'overwhelmingly' to charge a 'fat tax' on overweight passengers. (Since when is 30% for and 70% against considered overwhelming?) I decided to see what complaints have been registered against RyanAir and while I realize ALL airlines generate hundreds if not thousands of complaints, the nature of RyanAirs complaints brings to mind bait and switch.

Now to be sure, they are far cheaper than the European legacy carriers. People reported a 30 euro cost versus a legacy airlines charge of 300 euros is just one example. But here's the rub, they charge for just about anything common to mankind. Pay with a debit card? 20 Euros. More than one bag? Extra charge. Excess WEIGHT on baggage? up to 280 euros. Want to check in manually? 20 euros. Take a purse onboard? That's considered a bag too: extra charge. Priority borading? Extra charge. One reviewer noted they paid for a beverage with a 20 euro note and NEVER got 10 of their change back 'because the staff "didn't have (and couldn't find) a tenner". So they KEPT the money! A reviewer summed it up this way: "So our 'cheap flight' that cost a reasonable amount to book ended up costing probably more than other airlines who don't fleece you at every turn." You can see this website here and read about many more complaints too.

In addition, complaints have been heard because of the incessant in flight advertising. An article from About.com noted this: "Flying Ryanair can be like watching a home-shopping channel late at night. You’ll be offered all sorts of things at "great prices", including lottery tickets and calendars featuring scantily dressed flight attendants. Depending on your mood and outlook on life this can be amusing or annoying." Even landing in the city you bought a ticket to is dicey - to go to Hanburg, you actually fly into Lubeck! All legal the article noted. Problem is, if you were connecting in Hamburg, landing miles away is not likely to allow you to make your connection.

The article also noted that the CEO has been compared to Simon Cowell - the man you love to hate. No wonder he was able to say what he said about charging for anything and everything - he's outspoken and his airline is somewhat outrageous. In the end, buyer beware seems to truly apply to RyanAir!

Travel Tip: New Travel Rules Means New Documents

On June 1, 2009 new regulations regarding travel documents will become law. In a nutshell, travel ANYWHERE outside the U.S. will require a passport and no longer will a driver's license suffice to go into or get out of Canada. Most people are already aware of this. But did you know you may be able to get by without getting a passport?

According to an article in Newsday, there are more ways to travel out of the U.S. without a passport than I was aware of. For instance, there is a Passport light, called a passport card. Costing less than half what a passport costs, this card can be used to gain entrance into Bermuda, the Caribbean, Mexico and Canada and lasts just as long as a passport - 10 years. The drawback is it is only for land or sea entry - not flying. (How do you 'drive' to St Thomas?)

Certain border states (like New York) can issue an 'enhanced' drivers license also. Which allows for driving entry into Canada and Mexico but of course not air travel. Also not valid in all Caribbean nations so you would need to check specific countries for applicability.

There is also something called a Nexus card for pre-screened customers. Drawbacks include extensive paperwork, interviews and fingerprinting and is valid for only 5 years. One advantage is that there are now some entry lanes into Canada that are 'Nexus' priority lanes. However, every person in the car needs to have a Nexus card, not just the driver.

You can read the details plus gain more information by reading the Newsday article and its subsequent links. Being informed is half the battle. The other half is being prepared.

Do You Check Megan's List When Booking Hotels?

After seeing this news video from San Francisco, you may just start!

Seems that some hotels and motels in California (and maybe other states?) house released sex offenders by contract with California. Only they certainly don't tell you. If I was staying at a hotel where my kids might likely be walking around or visiting the pool, I would certainly be interested in knowing there was a registered sex offender in room 107. In the case of the hotel in this news clip, there were 8 offenders living there!

As a traveling business person, I may not care. But if I was visiting with my family, it would make ALL the difference as to whether I stayed there or not. One thing that might be a warning flag for you is if the motel is one of the cheaper ones around, or allows for long term guests. (Our hotel will not allow anyone to stay past 30 days) Because the stipend from the state is so small, these released offenders living off general assistance will ALWAYS gravitate toward the cheap hotels.

As one who has commented often about the pitfalls of staying where you find ridiculously low rates, this is just one more reason to be aware of what you might be getting into. The hotel in this news clip has rooms listed on the web for as low as $39 per night - pretty cheap for such an expensive area as San Francisco.

The Ultimate Honeymoon on Any Budget

It was more than 9 months in the making, but our new Honeymoon/Travel book is now available! Spanning over 160 pages, it is filled with hundreds of links to valuable resources concerning the Art of the Honeymoon plus destination ideas for ANY budget. Whether it be $1,000.00 or $50,000.00, we included something for everyone. For instance, for those who wish to avoid the hustle and bustle of Waikiki, did you know you can rent a "yurt" on Maui for only $35 per day? For those "in-the-money", you can rent a yacht for $32,000.00 per week.

We also are including several give-aways for free, which brings our already low price down even more. For instance, I am giving away my Hotel Reviews e-book or MP3 (currently selling for $12.95), a Newlyweds Guidebook, 101 Romantic Ideas e-book by acclaimed author Michael Webb, a "lovers" packing check list and a free honeymoon consultation with me (normally $24.95) for those planning to come to San Francisco.

Highlights of the e-book are the 4 spreadsheets co-author Tim Spooner prepared so you can budget your honeymoon, honeymoon pre-planning exercises, honeymoon timeline and checklist, travel tips and travel ideas for the most sought after honeymoon locales in the world. To name a few: Hawaii, the Caribbean, Canadian Rockies, New York, Africa, Japan, San Francisco, Tahiti, Yosemite, the Bahamas, Jamaica and plenty of suggestions for a European honeymoon of a lifetime. From ideas on how to get married on a glacier in Alaska, to river cruises in Europe, we covered it all.

You can read the first chapter with no obligation - not even your name or email. Just go to http://www.honeymoonsforyourbudget.com/ and click on "View the Chapter". We think even if you are married and need a suggestion for a 2nd (or 3rd) honeymoon, you will be pleasantly surprised at the depth of our research and the ideas we offer. And remember, it makes a great wedding gift as well, since it is something they will re-use over the years and the ability to learn how to book flights and hotels cheaply will be a lesson they can use for a lifetime. It may be the best honeymoon gift they receive!

Overseas Travel Cell and iPhone Alert

Since we will soon be in the 'overseas' vacation time frame (summer), it is our civic duty to remind you how to prevent running up tremendous cell and iPhone bills. I was actually reminded of this from reading another well known travel blog WeJustGotBack. Their posting of several articles about iPhone usage in Europe and fairly cheap alternatives is well worth my re-posting them, even though I posted a warning about this myself last year.

What is so important is that in our rush to visit Europe (or Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, Mexico) for the first time is we pack everything and forget the obvious, like usage of a cell phone internationally. One person apparently rang up a bill of $1229.91 because he didn't turn off the international data roaming. You can read about that here.

The other article suggests ATT has a special plan for only $24.99 a month that you can use with your iPhone when traveling internationally. Be sure to check out the ATT tip sheet found here too. There are other alternatives as well, as I mentioned last year, such as renting a cell phone in Europe or getting a special simm card. A reader of my blog added this comment to my post. "Be very careful when you rent a cell phone in Europe especially if you are going to multiple countries you can really get hit by international phone charges which are huge. First figure out where you will be calling, will you be calling home or will you be calling ahead to your next hotel. Then I personally have bought an unlocked phone for use when I am Europe and will buy a prepaid simm card when I go to different countries.
//AmateurTraveler.com"

No one wants to budget a trip overseas and the return to a cell phone bill that equals half the trip budget so plan ahead when traveling overseas and you won't be unpleasantly surprised after you return.