Traveling Cheap: Last Minute Deals for Weekend Getaways
By Michele Blandino
As we head into the summer vacation season, skyrocketing gasoline prices may force many families to take a second look at their travel plans. Extensive road trips may be replaced with destinations closer to home, or travel plans may be scrapped altogether.
For those reluctant to forego the summer vacation ritual, there are alternatives to spending your vacation dollars at the gas pump. Most major airlines have deeply discounted fares – and in some cases, complete vacation packages – available to travelers every week. However, to take advantage of most of these deals, you need to be able keep an open mind, have a sense of adventure and a flexible attitude about your vacation destination.
The fares and packages offered by the airlines are attractively priced to help fill seats during off-peak travel times. In most cases, departures need to be scheduled for late Friday evening or Saturday morning with the return trip completed by the following Tuesday or Wednesday. For example, to take advantage of the deals offered by US Airways, you need to depart on Saturday and return the following Sunday, Monday or Tuesday. And because the available destinations will vary from week to week, you will need to keep an open mind about the location of your vacation.
But, if you are able to plan on the fly and don’t have your heart set on a particular destination, then you can potentially save hundreds of dollars on a terrific vacation.
Some Examples
Here’s a sampling of some of the packages currently available.
The Northwest Airlines CyberSaver packages available in early June include roundtrip airfare from New York City to Miami Beach Florida and three nights in your choice of hotels (there are at least a dozen to choose from) for as little as $372 per person. For something a little more tropical, you can fly round trip from Boston to Bermuda for $229 under USAirways’ e-Savers program.
Sun and sand not your thing? Look into Delta Airlines’ fares to Minneapolis and explore some of the lakes in the region. You can book your round-trip airfare and hotel for as little as $257 per person.
How it Works
Most airlines post their fare deals on their website at least once a week. For example, Delta Airlines posts its deals each Wednesday morning, while America West posts its deals on Wednesday and Saturday. You should get to know the schedule of each airline and then check the sites as close to the posting time as possible, since there are usually a limited number of seats available.
It’s also important to understand that booking vacations in this manner is not for the indecisive. Because there are a limited number of seats, you need to be able to act quickly when you spot a deal you are interested in as chances are, the same deal won’t be available should you choose to return later to book it.
Another important consideration is your choice of airline. While it’s not uncommon for people to have an allegiance to a particular airline, whether it’s for frequent flyer miles or simply because of a preference for the services and amenities offered by that airline, in order to reap the biggest benefits from these types of fares, you will need to put that allegiance aside.
For More Information:
Most airlines have links to their current promotions on their websites. Here are a few to get you started:
