Sweepstakes!

What better way to take a vacation than for FREE?

Or, close to it, anyway.

Sweepstakes are a great way to get the opportunity to travel. Many people may think their chances of winning are low (and they are), but there are so many travel sweeps available and your odds improve for each that you enter.

Each day, take a half hour out to enter sweepstakes. You'd be surprised how much you can win just by setting aside some time each day to enter. (Remember: always make a new e-mail account for these. Don't use your personal e-mail or it may be overwhelmed by spam.)

You can find MUCH more information on sweepstakes, odds, prizes etc. at:

http://www.online-sweepstakes.com/
http://www.sweepstakestoday.com/

These websites provide lists of all available sweepstakes and allow you to make a "Lucky list", a convenient list of the sweeps you're interested in so you can enter them daily. The forums are also very helpful and should answer your questions.

Keep in mind that when you win a vacation, it's not totally free in that come tax time, you will have to report it. However, many travel packages include spending money ($500-$2,000 usually), and this money can help offset taxes.

If the trip doesn't include spending money, then make sure you can afford around 25% tax costs on the trip.

But, by entering a few sweeps daily, your odds are better than you think! Hopefully I'll have some winning news to post about soon.

On a personal note, I am going to Ireland for the 2nd time next month. I will be sure to post lots of photos.

travel on!
~Melissa

Name Your Own Price: explanation

I've helped family and friends book the cheapest flights possible in the past, and I've found they have a lot of questions about the "name your own price" option on Priceline.

Is it too good to be true?

Well, for the most part, no.

This is an option exclusive to Priceline.com (which is why it's one of my favorite sites), that allows you to enter your own price for hotels and flights. The price you enter will be accepted or denied and there is no penalty for trying.

The "catch" with this is that you cannot choose your own hotel or airline; and for flights, you have no control of the flight times and layovers. And yes, it usually ends up being a less than convenient time if your price is accepted.

BUT! Just as they advertise, I've been able to get 40% off flights and hotels this way. Meaning the listed price, had I booked it normally, was around 60% higher. The best deal I've ever gotten is a round trip flight from Buffalo, NY to Los Angeles, CA for $189.00 including taxes!

So take advantage of this option, especially if you are flexible on flight times and the like. I remember my under $200 flight across country being one of the most enjoyable! :)

Happy travels!

~Melissa

$$$ Saving tips

Busy weekend for me!

Hope you all enjoyed yours.

First I want to mention something I heard about this weekend.

Priceline, Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity (All owned by the same parent company) are being sued for frauding customers out of "tax" money. Meaning they charged taxes on rooms over the actual rate, and pocketed the difference.

They are now being ordered to pay back all of those funds (further compensation is likely part of the settlement as well, but I am not sure.)

You are eligible if you booked a hotel room from one of those sites between 2001 and June 2008. Here's the link for more info:
http://www.hbsslaw.com/expedia

As a young traveler who has booked many vacations through these sites, I definitely feel we are all deserving of the credit.


What I wanted to get to in this post was tips for saving money throughout the year and how easy it can be.

First of all, I recommend you use the Swagbucks search engine. Swagbucks rewards you just for doing normal searches (as you would on Google or Yahoo). With this, you can get prizes such as paypal deposits, giftcards, etc. You can even get airline points, although they require a lot of swagbucks.

Even still, I estimate I can make between $15-25 a month using the SB search engine. This is between $180-$300 a year-- the cost of a domestic plane ticket!

Here's the link: (You'll help me earn too, so thanks in advance!)
http://swagbucks.com/refer/sixtoerings

I also want to recommend another very helpful blog, moneysavingmethods.com. You'll find that by investing a couple free hours a week, you can really supplement your income; and to me, this is great money to spend on travel and a great use of your free time.
I just want to post a couple examples of how saving can add up:

$50 a month x 6 months = $300 (This is the maximum amount you want to pay for ANY domestic travel airline ticket.)

$50 a month x 12 months = $600 (Airline ticket plus spending money to the city of your choice!)

$100 a month x 6 months = $600

$100 a month x 12 months = $1200 (Now you have enough for an international plane ticket AND spending money, if you budget correctly.)

Easy, right?!

And, if you have good credit, and are able to pay off the full balance of your card most of the time, open a travelers rewards credit card. I'd especially recommend the ones through Priceline or JetBlue. Close your other cards so all of your spending goes on just this card. The miles will add up fast.

Very very exciting deal!!!

There may not be many of us who have the time to take advantage of this deal, but it's TOO good to not mention!!!

Jet Blue is having an unlimited flight sale! For $599 you can fly as much as you'd like for one month, September 8-October 8.

You just have to book each flight 3 days in advance. You can go anywhere Jet Blue flies.

The international options include Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Aruba.

Apparently you don't have to pay any taxes for US flights, but you will have to pay some extra $$ for taxes on international flights.

Still, amazing deal! As long as you take advantage of it and fly 3 or 4 times... otherwise, you're probably better off finding a cheap deal on an individual flight. Few people travel between Labor Day and Thanksgiving, so you can find cheap rates during this time.

check out www.jetblue.com to book your unlimited month of flights!

All about hostels!

If the only thing you know about hostels is from the 2006 horror film "Hostel" - you are not alone!

This was all I knew, too, about these fantastic lodging options until a few years ago. Now, they are my favorite way to stay.

Why?
1. The price.
They are almost always significantly cheaper than a hotel.
This is especially true in compact, crowded cities such as New York and Paris.
Last winter a friend and I decided last-minute to go to NYC for new years eve. We were able to book a hostel in midtown Manhattan for around $50 each for 1 night. (Most hotels in the city will run AT LEAST $200-300 on new years eve and other holidays).

2. The experience.
In my opinion, there is no lodging option that is as is culturally interesting as staying in a hostel. Often full of travelers from all over the world, it's a very easy way to meet new people. You are all there for the same reason, and have a lot in common, despite your ethnic differences. I've met some fascinating and fun people this way.


If you've never stayed in a hostel before, you probably have some questions.

Most hostels offer several different room options: private dorm, 4 person dorm, 8 person dorm, and 16 person dorm, etc. The more people in the room, the cheaper the rate. It can also be convenient if you're traveling with a few others; you can all share a 4 person dorm, for example.

There are always lockers-- either in the rooms or in the lobby area. Most have free WiFi and computers for travelers' use. They sometimes have bars, laundry rooms, breakfast in the AM, game rooms, etc.

My experience is that they also provide a lot of services and information about the city/area you're staying in, more so than a more expensive hotel.

So, even if you're squeamish about sharing a room, enjoy the experience in a private (2 bed) room.

My favorites:

Meetingpoint Hostel, Amsterdam, Netherlands
De Beau Hostel, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
Candy Hotel & Hostel, NYC, USA

I always book on either hostelworld.com or hostels.com. The ratings on these sites are usually accurate and very useful. In the past, I've found it's better to book the higher rated options; they are usually in a more central area and will save you $ on transportation costs.

Get to it!
~Melissa

10% discount on Mexico Vacation Packages

I don't have a lot of information about this offer, but thought I'd share what I know. It's through Alaska Airlines at www.alaskaair.com.

10% discount On Mexico Vacation Packages.

Purchase your package by August 31, 2009, and complete travel by December 19, 2009, to take advantage of this great offer.

Use Alaska Airlines promotion code - ASGOTOSUN.

~Melissa

London in the fall on the cheap!

One of my favorite sites is Statravel.com. It is a student travel website, but you can also get the deals as long as you are under 26.

However, there are certain things to keep in mind about this site.

Most of the best deals are listed on-the-fly. For example, there is a flight deal to London listed right now, but you must book by August 28th and travel between September 3rd-October 21, 2009.

So, I would not recommend this site (in most cases) for booking travel months ahead. It's when you catch that bug, have some extra cash, and want to travel soon that you head here.

It's a common misconception that making travel arrangements months in advance will save you money. It's true sometimes, but you're better off saving and making plans more last-minute.

Anyway, more about the deal! Prices listed are approximate and include all taxes and fees.

Travel to London between September 3 and October 21st for...

Between $500-$600 from Chicago
B/t $550-$600 from Boston
B/t $450-550 from New York City
B/t $575-600 from Los Angeles

(Similar prices from Seattle, San Francisco, and Philly available)


If you are not near any of these cities, book a cheap connecting flight to one of them. It's a lot cheaper to book these flights separately and not as part of the international flight. Try naming your own price (usually you can get around 30% off the normal rate) at priceline.com. (I'll make a post all about this feature in the coming week).

I'd really recommend these rates because they're some $500-$1000 cheaper than summer rates. Visiting London in the fall is great as the weather is still decent and flights are cheap!

If you book via Statravel.com, please let them know I referred you by entering my name when you check out-- Melissa Muldoon.

More updates to come soon on London Hostel and Hotel options.

happy travels!

~Melissa