What Are Hot Week Vacations? 

Hot weeks are designed to give folks who can take week-long vacations at a moments’ notice some of the best prices in the industry. The key to determining if hot week vacations are for you is flexibility. Read the rest of this entry

Comparing the Cost of Access to Discounted Travel

As illustrated in a previous post, you have options for accessing discounted travel venues, but each carries a cost for access, even the “free” hotel search engines. I mention hotels for two reasons: Read the rest of this entry

When Given an Option, Pick the Resort

Resorts, condo resorts, timeshare resorts, even pool home and log cabin vacation rentals are all terms used when referring to vacation resorts. They are highly sought after for comfort, roominess, and amenities not generally found in hotel chains around the world. Here’s why: Read the rest of this entry

One Way or the Other, You’re Paying for a Vacation Membership — Even if You Don’t Use One!

When selecting a travel program to use, be it an online booking engine or a vacation membership program, it helps to know where you’re spending your money to get the best value for your travel style.

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I call the hotel-focused online booking engines the Big 4. They are: Read the rest of this entry

Know Before You Go!

Years ago, whenever I visited foreign countries, I was very naive. I was armed with travelers checks and felt totally safe. I trusted the vendors to exchange my U.S. travelers checks for the correct change in their native currency. After all, they accepted U.S. dollars (USD), right? And they were in the business of knowing exchange rates, right?

Did I mention I was naive?

But wait, there’s more. Read the rest of this entry

Emergencies Happen; Long-Term Stay Required

On March 12, 2000 — just after Spring break in our neck of the woods — my daughter’s and my lives changed forever. I got “the call” and rushed down to Galveston, Texas.

She was in a coma from a traumatic brain injury. Clinically, she had already died. Twice. In fact, she was the first survivor of the type and intensity of Read the rest of this entry

Finding Travel Funds in Your Own Pocket

These days a lot of folks are trimming the fat to help make ends meet. But by digging a little deeper, you might just find a travel budget!

Here’s what I did:
Read the rest of this entry

Best Seats On The Plane Are In Coach!

The “Secret Seats” are the best seats on the plane, even better than first class in some cases, and they aren’t the seats at the emergency exit, or aisle seats, or even the bulkhead. But they are available to anyone flying coach on a domestic flight. Some of the secret seats are identified below:

• On a Boeing 747, the secret seats are 67K and 68K.
• On an American Airlines 767, the secret seats are 17H and 17J.
• On an American Airlines 757, ask for seats 10F or 10A.
• On JetBlue, ask for their Even More Legroom® seats (from $10 extra charge per flight leg)

In each case these seats are two across instead of three, giving you better leg room and aisle accessibility.

The next time you book your flight, simply ask your airline if they have any “secret seats” (coach 2 across instead of 3 across seats) available. Then let us know if you’ve found any additional “secret seats” to the ones listed above!