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Smart Senior Travel Newsletter - August 16, 2008

August 16, 2008

Summer is winding down and time is running out to book that last summer getaway before Labor Day.  Many of you are already looking ahead to the fall and winter months for your next trip.  Regardless of where or when, your next vacation takes you, everyone wants to find a great travel bargain and there are many ways to seek out that fantastic deal! 

Sites such as Expedia, Travelocity and Hotels.com offer good values and are well known and easy to navigate.  Other sites such as Priceline.com work similar to Expedia and Travelocity except they also give you an option to “Name Your Price” by bidding on desired hotel, air and car reservations.  If you can be flexible on the time of day you travel, or are comfortable booking lodging by specifing how many “stars” the hotel must have, you’ll be rewarded with D.E.E.P. discounts on your reservation.  If you have a preferred airline or hotel chain, another great tip is to subscribe to their ”last minute travel” newsletters.  One of our favorite newsletters, (other that ours of course!), is Travelzoo.  Every week they research over 900 travel companies and handpick the Top 20 based on value and availability .  It is a F.R.E.E. service available only by subscription.  Weekly deals will be delivered via email right to your inbox. Click the Travelzoo link to submit your email address and begin receiving your weekly Top 20. 

We’ve been busy publishing some super articles these past few weeks at Smart Senior Travel.  We’ve started our series on Fall Travel Guides with

Experiencing New England Fall Foliage.  We searched high and low for the best travel backpack and found a truly unique, multi-purpose pack.  Get the complete scoop by clicking on the The Best Rated Travel Backpack: Roam Safely!.  Finally, for those of you that LOVE Cruises, you will learn about The Hidden Jewel of Cruise Bargains   Repositioning Cruises.  Learn everything you need to know with our article, What is a Repositioning Cruise? It Means Fantastic Deal!  To give you an idea of the incredible savings:
 
Royal Caribbean has a 12 day Transatlantic Cruise with prices starting at $759! 

Here are more Cruise Bargains: 
But Hurry! 

These links expire August 18th!

7-NT NCL Bermuda Cruise from $579
7-NT Carnival Eastern Caribbean Cruise from $549
8-NT Celebrity Alaska Cruise from $749 
7-NT Holland America Mexican Riviera Cruise from $572
4-NT NCL Bahamas Cruise from $179 
7-NT NCL Alaska Cruise from $579
4-NT Carnival Western Caribbean Cruise from $229
7-NT Princess Pacific Coastal Cruise from $469

Happy Travels!

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Written by Senior Traveler · Filed Under Newsletter 

Smart Senior Travel Newsletter - July 20, 2008

July 20, 2008

In writing this edition of the SST Newsletter, I realize how quickly the summer is going by.  As I look at the calendar, I can’t believe that we are entering the 3rd week of July already!   We are researching some great fall and winter destinations. Those articles will begin appearing this coming week and continue throughout the summer.  In the meantime, there are STILL some great travel deals to be had!   Many hotels and resorts are yearning for your travel dollar.  Take a look below and you’ll see what I mean:

One of the BEST deals out there is from Sandals resorts.  They are offering each guest an airfare credit of up to $550.00.  Essentially, you can stay at any one of their 12 resorts in the Caribbean, and not incur any costs to fly there.  Given the cost of flights and all of the fuel and luggage surcharges, this is an incredible value!  Best of all, you have until December 2009 to complete the trip.  I am taking advantage of this incredible offer myself by booking my Spring 2009 holiday NOW!  Check out out the article from July 17th. Click HERE for all of the details.  You absolutely won’t want to miss out on this.

You know, having a budget doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice quality… and in this case luxury.  We have over 20 4-Star hotels all available for under $150!  Just book by August 11th for travel from now through 8/11/08.

Boston:
Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston from $144
The Westin Waltham - Boston from $138
Boston Omni Parker House from $142
Hotel Marlowe - A Kimpton Hotel from $143

Cancun, Mexico
Hilton Cancun Golf & Spa Resort from $149
Gran Melia Cancun from $147
Hyatt Cancun Caribe Resort from $137

Daytona Beach, FL
The Shores Resort & Spa from $143.65

Lake Tahoe, CA
The Shores Resort & Spa from $143.65
Harrah’s Lake Tahoe Resort & Casino from $119

Las Vegas, NV
South Point from $46
Green Valley Ranch Resort & Spa from $95
New York New York Hotel & Casino from $90
Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino from $99
MGM Grand Hotel & Casino from $90
Luxor Hotel & Casino from $80

New Orleans, LA
Royal Sonesta Hotel from $98
Le Pavillon Hotel from $129
Sofitel Phildelphia from $150

Gran Melia Puerto Rico from $146

Hotel Solamar- San Diego - A Kimpton Hotel from $149

The Westin Prince Toronto from $149
Toronto Marriott Downtown Eaton Centre from $149

Since our last newsletter, we’ve higlighted 2 very popular vacation destinations - Orlando, FL and New York City.  If you missed the articles when we posted them, catch them here:

3 Unique Orlando-Area Destinations
10 Things to do and See in New York City 

Stay up to date on ALL of our articles by subscribing to our News Feed.

Until next week - Safe and Happy Travels!

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Smart Senior Travel Newsletter - July 7, 2008

July 7, 2008

For our U.S. and Canadian subscribers - Happy 4th and Happy Canada Day!

We hope that a great holiday weekend was had by all!  

In the news this week:
Reports are showing that middle class Americans are either curbing travel plans or are squeezing the most out of their travel dollar.  Wealthy Americans,  who are less likely to feel the impact of a slowing economy and rising energy and food prices are largely going ahead with their vacation plans even though consumer confidence is at a 16-year low.   Even with the solemn economic news, there are always great travel bargains out there to help us S-T-R-E-T-C-H our travel dollar.

Carnival Cruise Lines is offering some great incentives during their July sale.  For a limited time, they are offering $100 FREE ON BOARD CREDIT per stateroom when you book any of a variety of fall sailings.  There are also some GREAT rates on limited availability cruises.   For example - a 3 day cruise to the Bahamas on the Carnival Sensation has prices starting at $279!  3rd and 4th person fares for the same cabin start at only $99!  Unbelievable!

For a complete list of all the specials click here!

If you are looking for a Caribbean vacation, Beaches resorts is offering an incredible discount of up to 45% PLUS 1 to 2 days FREE depending on your travel dates. 

Hotels.com is offering $20-$100 rebates on ALL bookings!  A rebate form is provided.  Click here to get yours.

Our June review of the BEST travel shoes for Men and Women was a very popular article!  Many of you purchased Clark’s walking shoes.  Click on the link above for the article and leave us a comment to let us know how much you like them!  We review an new piece of travel gear this month.   Click here for our article on the Cabin Cuddler.  No more icky airplane blankets for me.

In case you need to catch up … here are some of the other articles posted since our last newsletter.

Travel With a Purpose: Volunteer Vacations
How to Find a Reputable Travel Agent
A Home Exchange Vacation - Is it Right for You?
Audiobooks Let Your Eyes Take a Vacation Too!
First Checked Bag Fee: The Airlines Will LOSE In The End

Stay up to date on all our articles by subscribing to our News Feed.

Until next week - Safe and Happy Travels!

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Smart Senior Travel Newsletter - June 12, 2008

June 12, 2008

Greetings to everyone from sunny (and very hot) Florida! 

It has been a busy week not only here at SST but within the travel industry as well.  Over the weekend American Airlines, led a charge to raise airfares on domestic travel.  United, Continental and Delta airlines quickly followed American’s lead.  It all fell apart however, when Contintental backed out at the last minute citing that they needed to maintain “a competitive edge”. Very shortly after that, the other airlines backed down from the rate hike altogether.  American has instead increased their fuel surcharge by $20 and starting next week, will begin charging $15 for passengers to check a single bag. Most other carriers already charge $25 for checking a second piece of luggage, and they impose fees for other services, ranging from changing tickets to bringing pets on board.  If you didn’t see it already, you’ll want to read our article, Attack of the Killer Fees! for more information.

Thankfully, there are some bright spots.  We’ve come up with some great travel destinations and deals for you.   Here they are:

Rail Europe is offering several money-saving promotions. 

  • A 25% Credit on the purchase of a qualifying rail product - must purchase by July 15th
  • 50% off of Lybis Rail fares which have 18 trains per day that take you from Paris to Brussels in 90 minutes
  • Free Shipping on all orders over $399

Hotels.com is offering a $50 gas card when 3 nights of travel are booked now through Labor Day.  Use code GAS50 when you book under “Your Reservation” and your gas card will be mailed to you after you take your trip.

Cruise Direct has 10 Great Cruise Deals - but hurry, these links expire June 15th

And finally, Magellan’s, a leading merchant of all types of travel gear, is having a 70% off Sale.

On that note, we reviewed the best men’s and women’s travel shoes this week in our article The Best Rated Travel Shoes to Take on Your Next Trip.

In case you were busy this week too, here are the rest of the articles that we’ve posted since our last newsletter:

U.S. National Parks - The #1 Most Budget-Friendly Vacation
Traveling with Grandchildren: 4 Great Vacation Ideas
5 Tips to Avoid Sea Sickness on a Cruise
Cruise Ship Activities for Seniors…More Than Just a Stroll Around the Deck!

Until next time -

Safe and happy travels!

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Written by Senior Traveler · Filed Under Newsletter 

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