We Don’t Do Labor on Labor Day 9.4.10

That’s right! Labor Day and its weekend is all about kicking back and relaxing. The most work we do is BBQing steaks and then eating them! Some of us are lucky enough to get out of town this time of year, since a three-day weekend is a great excuse to pack a bag and either enjoy what’s left of the sun somewhere or get in some sightseeing and shopping before having to suffer through work and school until Thanksgiving. While Labor Day is upon us, you are either on one of these well-deserved trips or you aren’t, so let’s talk about the upcoming vacation season instead, so you have something to look forward to, besides getting up at the crack of dawn to stuff a bird and make a hundred side dishes and then try not to be cranky when the TV is too loud and you have to entertain a house full of friends and relatives.


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To commemorate the marriage of Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese we all come together in celebration for two weeks of every year and eat, drink and be merry! It’s Oktoberfest time! Yeah, I know, I talked about Oktoberfest last time, but there’s still time to get your airline tickets to great cities like Berlin, Munich, Amsterdam and Barcelona to join in the festivities. Of course there are many more cities across the world that celebrate this 16 day festival, so pick your favorite and you’re sure to get a great deal on your airfare. You better get on it, though, especially if you aren’t set on going to Munich or Berlin, where flights are bound to fill up fast. 

• Click HERE for some sample rates for flights from major U.S. cities to Munich, starting at just under $400 round trip.  

Even if you just sleep for less-expensive, you’re saving money over your last vacation, but with the Internet, it’s SOOO easy to find deals. You don’t have to call all over the place and talk to a million different people and you can shop at 2am in your pajamas if you want. Love it! You know where else you can stay up until 2am and not be considered a weirdo? Las Vegas! With school back in session, the tourism in Las Vegas drops dramatically, especially with the crummy economy still affecting things like peoples’ wallets. This works in your favor, if you can go, because the hotels there have hundreds (and in some cases thousands) of rooms they need to fill every night. Prices drop drastically and hotels offer more incentives than ever to entice you to stay at one place or another. This is your chance to stay at a higher-end hotel for the same price as some of the other mid-priced options. Exciting!

• Wynn Las Vegas and Encore want to extend a deal to you to stay in one of their Resort Rooms for two or more nights at just $159/night. They will give you 2 free buffet tickets for your midweek stay between now and January 20, 2011. You just need to book by the end of September. With 21 restaurants, 2 spas, pools, nightly shows, an 18-hole golf course and nightclubs and lounges, you may never feel the need to even leave the hotel to see anything else in Vegas.

In just three short weeks I’ll be off on my very first cruise. I’ve never wanted to go on a cruise, because I like to be able to spend as much time as possible anywhere I go. Lucky us, we were given a “free” cruise (as in we only had to pay taxes and fees, which were as much as the cruise would have been, but half the total price of what everyone else has to pay for the cruise AND taxes and fees), so off we go on one. Considering I could have chosen an itinerary to many different places, we had also planned another trip to Florida this year to be able to finally experience the Harry Potter themed area of Universal Orlando, so we figured we’d combine these trips into one. It was easy to find an interesting cruise that sailed out of anywhere in Florida and we chose to visit Central America. With stops in Honduras, Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Belize, there appears to be plenty of new things for us to see in a week. When else would we plan an entire vacation to go to any of these places? Probably never. So this is a great way to experience a little of each location and then get back on the boat and eat more buffet food and dance off some calories. If all goes well, we might even plan another cruise.

• I have had my eye on the beauty of Panama and all it has to offer, including awesome cruises and rates. The prices are comparable to other cruises, except they tend to be twice as long, so it’s like getting a 2-week vacation for the price of only 7 days! Another benefit is that the ports are super convenient, leaving from easily accessible locations like Los Angeles, San Diego and Ft. Lauderdale. In other words, you won’t have to spend a million dollars just to fly there. The weather in and around Panama is always gorgeous, so you don’t have to worry about only getting to go in specific months. Cruises are available all year long. Handy! Check out some of the available Panama Canal cruises available right now. 

Look into alternative transportation to get you and your traveling companions out in the fresh air and off to where you want to go.  Just because you COULD take a taxi, doesn’t mean you should. Many cities, like Paris and Amsterdam, have bicycle rentals for a reasonable price…and much less than car hire or a taxi. Get some sun and exercise on your way to lunch or the museum. You can find prices online for anywhere you want to go. Here’s a sample link to London bike rentals.

Wouldn’t it be nice to get cash back on food, too? You’d think someone would have thought of that already…oh wait, they have! It’s true. Sign up for iDine and you can get 20% cash back at purchases at selected restaurants, clubs and bars in the U.S. and Canada. All you do is sign up, register up to 3 credit cards and anytime you use them at those locations, you get an email several days later with your rebate amount and it is automatically credited to your card. That’s pretty easy, right? You don’t even need to do anything after you sign up for it to work! I love it.

With fall coming so quickly, it's inevitable that you will need some boots to keep your feet warm and dry. They can be hard to pack, especially when you are trying to pack light and wearing them on the plane is a pain, both while you're sitting in you seat and going through security. Get some stylish and comfortable packable boots. They roll right up to fit in your carry-on and also keep their shape! If you’re lucky, you can find some great ones that will go with both dressy and casual outfits. I have some lovely Hushpuppies in the Amarone style that I LOVE. They are WAY comfortable, so I can wear them all day long and never have a problem. Every time I wear them, I get compliments. Functional styles are available for both men and women. Some of the best resources for these kinds of footwear are Travelsmith, Columbia, ExOfficio and Magellans.

Let’s talk about that dreaded 3-1-1 bag you get to carry now. It’s all segregated from the rest of your toiletries, because bar soap is so much BETTER than shower gel, I guess, that it gets to ride, undisturbed, in your suitcase while the other gets scrutinized for its contents and size. Well, here’s something surely to help you fit a little more (or a little less) space in that fancy see-thru bag: Shaving oil. Unless you regularly wax your legs or face or whatever else, you take shaving cream/gel or buy it when you get wherever you’re going. Now, you can buy shaving oil for around the same price. You’re probably going to buy something from Amazon anyway, so toss a bottle of this in your basket next time you make a purchase. It’s about the size of a bottle of eye drops and 3 drops is the same as using a whole handful of foam. One little container is good for 100 shaves! That’s especially great if your traveling companion(s) has a need to shave, too. It’s made with all-natural ingredients, so it’s good for you and the environment, and there’s less packaging to throw away or recycle, too!

Guess what’s coming up quickly? Halloween! Even if you won’t be on vacation over Halloween, you can still enjoy holiday festivities many places. I, myself, will be shaking my costumed booty, trick or treating and riding Space Mountain at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando in early October. That’s right! Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party kicks off at the end of this month and goes through the beginning of November on select nights. You dress up and buy a special ticket that gets you access to exclusive Halloween activities like the following: Meet and greet with Disney villains, Halloween parade kicked off with the Headless Horseman and then followed up by ghouls from the graveyard and other Disney movies, Disney Villain musical number, trick or treating, awesome Halloween decorations, special fireworks spectacular and more.

Aside from the many theme parks and individual companies in America that have Halloween-specific events (Halloween Horror Nights – Universal Studios Parks, Howl-O-Scream – Busch Gardens, Spooktacular – Sea World) here are some other great ideas for vacationing:

• Chessington World of Adventures in Chessington, England (just 12 miles outside of London) – From Oct 22-31 you can experience Halloween Hocus Pocus which includes the zoo and the aquarium/theme park. It’s like Sea World, but with lions and tigers and bears!  For a family of 4, you can purchase a 2 night 4-star hotel package with 2 days of admission. Stay at the Heathrow Park Inn with packages that start at a low, low price of approximately $330. 

• Alton Towers Scarefest in Staffordshire, England – From Oct 16-31 you can enjoy late-night thrill rides, including the “ultimate thrill-ride” TH13TEEN. The package includes 1 night at the 3-star Travelodge and entry to Alton Towers for a family of 4 from around $270. You can add a 2^nd night and day if you’d like.

• Europa Park in Southwest Germany – From Oct 1-Nov 7 you can be terrorized in one of the world’s best theme parks and Terenzi Horror Nights. Much like the Halloween Horror Nights at Universal, it contains themed fright zones. You can stay 2 nights for the price of 1 at Europa Park Camp Resort.

It’s Time for Oktoberfest! 9.1.10

Yes, September brings other things besides Oktoberfest, but it tends to be heavily on people’s minds. I mean, people love beer and parties, so to put them both together is always a treat. In Oregon, we have several large Oktoberfestivities, but there are SO many options across the nation that I think we tend to forget. September is also the official start of “fall travel deals” where prices drop dramatically now that the kids are back in school and the weather is turning a bit to the cool side. The best way to take advantage of this time is to go on vacation! I know, it isn’t always possible for all of us, but if you can, you should. Having suffered through a summer of work, work, work and maybe a quick weekend to the coast, we are all looking out our windows and longing to get outside before the leaves all fall off the trees and we’re in full-blown mitten-wearing season.

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I’m all jazzed up for my upcoming trip in a little over four weeks. I’m packed and have my activities and food planned already. Maybe I'm way overprepared, but I think that might be better than the opposite. it is this over preparedness that allows me to find the best discounts available on my airfare. If you continue to monitor the airfare rates, it's easy to see when the prices drop to a reasonable price. See some of the best deals going now below:

• Cinco de Flyo...I totally didn't make that up. This is the name of the new Frontier Airlines promotion for flights to Mexico between now and November 17th. Find some great prices to locations all over Mexico if you book by September 3rd.
• CheapTickets is offering rate sales of round trip flights under $200 for the next 30 days. Flights available for select cities in the U.S.
• Win free travel for a year from Southwest Airlines and Cinemark by visiting www.southwest.com/takeoff and registering before September 15th.

There are many ways to sleep cheaply, without staying in your rental car, a hostel or a under a tree in a park. It's possible to get adequate to luxurious accommodations by searching online, getting travel e-mail, or my new favorite: Mystery hotels. Many places offer low rates on really nice brand-name hotels. You choose your price range, star rating and location area and book a hotel based on those qualities. The website will only book you in lodgings that have received a majority of positive reviews. Once you make your reservation, you will receive the name and address of your hotel. These hotels can only afford to offer their leftover rooms at these low rates through these programs, because then they won't be obligated to offer these rates to everyone. You get a rockin' deal and they fill their available rooms. Everybody wins!

• Save up to 50% off hotels on Expedia's Unpublished Rate Hotels, by booking "mystery hotels" based on the posted rates. Find out your hotel name after you make your reservations

Just because you decide to go on a cruise, it doesn't mean that you have to go somewhere boring or typical of a cruiser, like Hawaii, Mexico or the Bahamas. Nope, there are SO many places to travel, even by boat, that you could go on a different cruise every year and never do them all. You can take an ocean cruise or a river cruise and there are more itineraries than you can count. Below is one of my favorite ones of the week:

• Sail Europe for as low as $449 per person. That's right! It's just as inexpensive to travel in Europe as it is to travel in America. If you fly in the Fall and Winter seasons, then airfare will be comparable, too!
• This cruise may not go anywhere that exotic, but the ship is a unique one to travel on. Get 44% off an 11-night cruise off an 11-night cruise on the Queen Mary 2. Cruise from New York to the Caribbean and enjoy all your meals, world-class entertainment, $100 onboard credit and other amenities, like the chance to be pampered in the famous Canyon Ranch Spa. Book by September 6th to get the low price of $959 per person for select dates.

That's a good question. A better one is "We're here already?" because that means you are having so much fun, you lost track of time. That's always a wonderful feeling. Want to find some excellent activities to do while you're on vacation and not visiting theme parks? Of course you do, because just wandering aimlessly around a city isn't always the best way to experience it. Here are some resources, besides Google, that will give you a multitude of suggestions:

• Lonely Planet - I always buy a Lonely Planet guide and check their website when I'm going somewhere I've never been before. Not only do they explain the language, laws, money and more, but they also give you event and activity ideas, with pricing.
• Ooh.com - This is like the travel Craigslist for the world. Find activities, tours and classes to do across the globe
• Frommers - I love Frommers. Their guidebooks and their site are full of so much information from travel experts.

Packing is an art. It takes many trial runs of packing and unpacking to perfect it, I think. Maybe I also gained valuable packing experience from my years of working retail and spending every day making gift baskets and gift boxes for customers and shipping those items around the world. I feel prepared to pack just about anything. This past week, I had a friend visit from the Bay Area for a few days and she did some considerable shopping, as she always does (Oregon has no tax!). And, as she always asks, I packed her back home. Four days of clothes, souvenirs (which included a ceramic plate) and an extra laptop that she needed to take back home. Not only did I pack it all up in 20 minutes, but there was still room for her to have bought more stuff! If she HAD bought more stuff, we could have employed the SpaceBags that she brought with her. (See next section for a full description on the awesomeness of these.) Here are some tips on how I got everything in there.

• Shoes go on the bottom and are full of odds and ends (any makeup, belts, toiletries, small breakables). Try to face them opposite directions, so they fit into each other, like they have them in shoeboxes at the store.
• Tightly roll all the clothes that need to be packed, then start with the heaviest/largest items to fill in this bottom layer. Jeans, heavy pants, long sleeve shirts, etc., go in first. If you see space in between pieces, which is pretty much going to be the case, fill in with smaller items that will tuck in there. You want the layers to be tight.
• After the first layer has no more room, put in anything that needs padding, like that plate I packed. I had some bubble wrap, but clothes work just as well, to protect it. Now, use smaller clothing items to fill in around those breakable items, so they aren’t smashed up against the side and have the possibility of breaking.
• Add another layer of clothes, or just fold a pair of pants or a jacket over everything and cinch in with the “suitcase seatbelts”. If you have a toiletry bag or anything else that needs to be packed, you should find you have extra room to throw it in there now.

There are so many “gadgets” that make travel easier that I can’t even list them all, but I try to give you a good sampling every week. I’ve bought a lot of things that I thought would be useful and just didn’t really fill a void for me. My top two products are always the same. I’m like a broken record and you’d think I get some sort of compensation for telling everyone and their mother, but I don’t. I just think they’re awesome: 1) Amazon Kindle (or really an e-Reader. I’m just biased toward the Kindle, because that’s the one I have and Amazon makes finding and buying books so effortless), 2) iGo – I mean, who WANTS to take 52 different power cords when you can just take this one and your laptop charger? Take an extra outfit with matching shoes instead! Aside from my love of those two things, here are a couple others:

• SpaceBag – So, you’re not always going to have enough room for everything you brought with you AND the stuff you bought on your two-week vacation. Face it, some of us don’t even have room to bring back everything from a three-day trip. Well, toss a couple of these in your carry-on’s front pocket and it’s like doubling your space in your bag…though it won’t be any lighter, just because things are smaller, so make sure you can still lift it. I tend to pack up for my return by smooshing as many clothes in these as possible and layering one on the bottom, souvenirs and clothes on top and then the second SpaceBag on top for protection. If you have anything really fragile that you’re bringing home, put that in a smaller carry-on or your purse, so you don’t accidentally crush it. Once, I did check my bag with 2 SpaceBags full of clothes and a bunch of bottles of rum packed in with other clothes keeping the bottles separated and everything was intact on arrival, so it depends on your packing ability and fragility of the item(s) you’re squooshing in between layers.

• Baggallini Jewelry Square - Make the most of your travel wardrobe by packing some jewelry pieces to mix it up. This jewelry square keeps everything separate.

• HOT DEAL! Oktoberfest is right around the corner! Get your hotel and tickets to one of the most popular venues for it in Vail, Colorado. From $199/night receive breakfast, discounted parking, complimentary beer steins, 6 coupons and more at the lovely Sonnenalp Resort. This great deal is valid for the weekends of September 10 and 17 and rooms are selling fast!
• I know a lot of people who have visited Lake Geneva (in Wisconsin) and say it's beautiful. Maybe you have family there that you would like to visit and want to stay in your own place. Book by Sept 7th to stay between Sept 6th and Nov 24th for 2 or more nights at the Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Lake Geneva Resort and your rates are only $69/night. Close to Lake Geneva, Lake Como, Big Foot State Beach and Amusement Park and great shopping and dining.
• Do you plan to visit Disneyland this month? With Alaska, you can save up to 40% if you stay 2 nights or more at a Disney resort or get 2 days/nights free! That can add up to a $950 savings. Must travel by Sept 30th. You will also receive an extra 1,500 frequent flyer miles per person for booking through Alaska Airlines Vacations.

Great Deals For All Budgets 8.28.10

Do you love flying as much as I do? I know there are plenty of people out there that hate waiting at the airport and just want to get to their destination as quickly as possible. I, on the other hand, view the trip to and wait at the airport as part of the journey. I like wheeling my carry-on through the overpriced gift shops, watching other travelers come and the excitement of walking down the tunnel to get onto the plane. If you don't view any of these things as obstacles, it makes your trip start that much more fun.

• Alaska/Horizon has pulled together some low, low deals for travel in the U.S. and Canada between September 8th and December 15th. Sample rates include Seattle to San Jose for $79 each way and Atlanta to Vancouver for $169 each way. Rates are available for travel on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays and you must purchase by August 31st.
• What's better than going on a trip? How about a FREE trip? American Airlines wants you to win one from them that includes flying to New York, your accommodations, seeing John Legend and The Roots in concert and a ton of frequent flyer miles. Register before September 30th for a chance at this once-in-a-lifetime prize.

It's not hard to find great discounts on hotels right about now. There are sales for as early as Labor Day weekend and all the way through Christmas. If you want to go somewhere touristy, then it might be a bit more difficult to find prices within your budget, especially if you want to stay in more luxurious accommodations. Here are a few options for you.

• Hotwire is offering 4-star hotels at 2-star pricing for a limited time. Locations offered across America.
• Stay in brand-new hotels. Hotels that have been newly built or totally remodeled often have an introductory period right when they open that offers rock-bottom rates. HotelChatter is a website that not only shows reviews of hotels, but they also list the opening dates of new hotels and update them if they change. The list shows hotels worldwide, so you can search before you book your room.

There are so many cruises to choose from with all the different itineraries and ships. They offer a large selection in price ranges from budget all the way to ultra-plush. Even though you may wish to take a luxury cruise, your wallet may not agree. Sign up for e-mail deals and then you, too, can get the low-down on all the great sales without having to search for them or learn about them from someone else. Here are some wonderful sites that send regular newsletters that I find particularly useful.

• BookIt -- BookIt will send you a weekly e-mail with their best deals, but you can also search and find amazing deals on your own through their site.
• VacationsToGo -- Their weekly newsletter is pretty bare-bones with no images, but it's packed with information.
• LastMinuteCruises -- Just like the name implies, if you can book a cruise on 3 week's notice, then you can get amazing deals on cabins that are still available on a variety of ships and itinerary.
• From $399 pp, go on a 7-night cruise on Norwegian Cruise Lines to Bahamas or Florida.
• From $379 pp, go on a 7-night Caribbean cruise on Carnival Cruise Lines.

I know that not everyone has the same taste in food and sometimes when you are on vacation, you just want something familiar. This is usually pretty easy to find if you have a hankering for a hamburger or pizza, but it's a lot harder when you have special food needs or allergies. I have several friends who are vegetarians and I have enough trouble thinking up food options for parties or dinner, sometimes. I always think, what do you do if you're in a foreign country and you don't know how to communicate your food needs. Here are a couple options, even if you're not vegetarian.

• For those of you who are vegetarians/vegans or travel with someone who is, here's a great resource: HappyCow.net lists vegetarian/vegan restaurants the world over and also has listings for health food stores, markets, vegetarian-friendly lodgings and even a list of airlines that serve approved meals. For those with iPhones or iPod Touch, download their useful app called VegOut for only $2.99.
• It's hard enough to communicate your meal preferences in English sometimes, but what about when you're in a foreign country? Now you can! With your iPhone or iPod, download the Veggie Passport app to be able to communicate to foreign waiters, hosts or travel companions in 33 languages. With the app, you choose one of many phrases, such as "I am a vegetarian," and it translates into the chosen language to show the person you need to convey your message to. The app got rave reviews and is downloaded for 99 cents. They also offer a similar application for those with food allergies called Allergy Passport. You can download it for $1.99, because nothing ruins a vacation like a trip to the emergency room.

When you find great travel basics, it's easy to stick with them, especially if those basics are also bestsellers for a company. You know they aren't likely to discontinue those items anytime in the near future, so you can always replenish your travel wardrobe if you need to. ExOfficio is one of my favorite travel clothing sites. though they have retail locations across America, the biggest selection of their clothing can be found at ExOfficio.com. Here are 2 of my favorite lines of theirs:

• Dryflylite shirts: These come in a variety of colors and styles in both men's and women's lines. They often have sales on discontinued colors, too. This is one of their best selling shirts because they are rugged, stylish and keep you cool and dry. Long sleeve, short sleeve, sleeveless, they have a dryflylite shirt to suit everyone.

• All their undergarments. Yeah, I love them all. They are odor-resistant, super comfortable and keep you dry and non-chafed. TravelSmith has all ExOfficio under things 25% off until September 22nd.

I love a deal, as I'm sure most of you do, too, otherwise you wouldn't be reading my blog. There are quite a few that I've come across this week that I would seriously consider myself if I didn't already have a vacation planned at the moment.

• If I could have a second home, it would be in England. The country is beautiful, I can speak the language and it just feels like I belong there when I'm walking the streets. This would be a wonderful addition to a London vacation or even a weekend getaway for UK residents: Relax in the serenity of the English countryside with great deals from Barcelo Properties, like this one from the Barcelo Basingstoke Country Hotel in Southern England. Enjoy the comforts of your room, spend the day exploring or visit the spa. With its close proximity to tourist attractions like Windsor Castle, Legoland and Thorpe Amusement Park, there's always something to do. Prices from £42.00 per person and includes breakfast AND dinner.
• Save 30% off a fabulous tour of India. Voyage Prive brings you a 10-day trip, including food, tour guide, accommodations, flights within India, entrance fees and much more for $2509. Travel the country and see more than you can imagine for way less than you could do it if booked separately. Book by September 2 for select dates through the end of the year.