Bargains at home and abroad Posted on September 2nd
Here are travel bargains around the globe, by land, sea and air. Deals sell out quickly and are not guaranteed to be available. Restrictions such as day of travel, blackout dates, and advance-purchase requirements may apply.
Denali National Park Resorts in Alaska is offering a Holiday Special package for stays through Sept. 17. The deal includes a second night free, a two-for-one Denali Natural History tour, and a $100 Visa gift card. Pricing varies by property. For example, two nights at Denali Bluffs Hotel, a 112-room property close to the park’s entrance, is $358; slightly higher-priced packages are available at McKinley Village Lodge, McKinley Chalet Resort and Grande Denali Lodge. The five-hour natural history bus tour, guided by a naturalist, is $90 for two as part of the package. Info: 1-866-761-6631, www.denaliparkresorts.com.
PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., has an Unlimited Fun Fore All package for stays through Sept. 30. The deal costs $221 per night, including taxes, for a family of four sharing a room, and includes unlimited golf for adults on the Haig, Squire and Estate golf courses; free golf for children younger than 12 golfing with an adult after 2 p.m.; one golf clinic per stay; unlimited range balls; two Cubs Club half-day morning sessions per day; and breakfast for two adults each day. Priced separately, room is $159, golf $135 a round, breakfast $30 per adult, the Cubs Club $30 per child, range balls $8, and the golf clinic $50 per person. Info: 1-800-633-9150, www.pgaresort.com.
Take a Mediterranean cruise this fall, starting at $499 per person double (plus $91 taxes and fuel surcharge). Costa Cruises is offering the sale, a savings of 76 percent, on the Nov. 9 and 16 departures of the Costa Serena round trip from Venice. The seven-night cruise visits ports in Italy, Greece, Turkey and Croatia. Details: 1-877-882-6782, www.costacruise.com.
Celebrity is offering discounts of up to $200 per stateroom on its southern Caribbean cruises departing San Juan, Puerto Rico, December through April. A savings of $100 applies to a seven-night itinerary aboard the Celebrity Summit; $200 savings applies to 10- and 11-night cruises on the Celebrity Galaxy. Prices vary by itinerary. For example, an 11-night cruise departing March 2, with stops in Aruba, Curacao, Grenada, Barbados, St. Lucia, Dominica, St. Kitts and Tortola, starts at $939 double after discount, including taxes and fuel surcharge. Book by next Sunday. Info: 1-800-647-2251, www.celebritycruises.com.
Book a 2009 cruise with Avalon Waterways by Aug. 31 and receive a discount of $250 per stateroom. Or book a cruise package with air and receive a $600-per-cabin discount. Prices vary by itinerary. The cruise-only price for a 12-night European Splendor cruise from Amsterdam to Vienna departing May 30, for example, starts at $3,649 per person double (before discount) plus $168 port charges. Info: 1-877-797-8791, www.avalonwaterways.com.
AirTran is holding a systemwide sale. Fares range from $59 to $169 each way (plus taxes) from Baltimore-Washington International airport. Book by Tuesday and travel through Nov. 18. Ten-day advance purchase required. Lowest fares for Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday travel. Buy at www.airtran.com, or pay $15 more by calling 1-800-247-8726.
Air Jamaica is offering sale fares from Baltimore-Washington International airport to destinations throughout the Caribbean. Round-trip fare to Barbados, for example, is $526, including taxes (fare is typically $649). Buy by Wednesday at www.airjamaica.com. Travel Sept. 2 through Dec. 10 (blackouts Nov. 22-24 for departures and Nov. 29-Dec. 1 for return flights). Seven-day advance purchase is required.
Book an Exotic Ecuador trip with Friendly Planet by Sept. 5 and save $800 per couple. Price for six-night trip departing March 30 or April 27 starts at $1,209 per person double, plus $126 taxes, after discount. Other dates are also available for travel September to April, with post-discount prices ranging from $1,259 to $1,459, plus taxes. Price includes round-trip flights from Miami, ground transportation and transfers, accommodations, 18 meals, and guided tours with entrance fees. The trip starts in Quito and includes excursions to Otavalo, the Amazon and Cotopaxi National Park. Details: 1-800-555-5765, www.friendlyplanet.com.
Save $500 per person on a Tuscany, Italy, package with Untours. Price for the two-week package in a two-bedroom farmhouse near Montalcino that sleeps up to three starts at $2,410 per person, including taxes and fuel surcharge, for the Oct. 22 departure. (Other dates and accommodations are available at slightly higher prices.) Package includes round-trip airfare from Washington Dulles, 14-day car rental, and a local support representative. Untours is also offering discounts of $400 per person on trips to Holland and France. Details: 1-888-868-6871,
www.untours.com/lastminute.asp.
Sandals Resorts has a Fly Free Promotion, with air credits of $350 to $550 per person for travelers who book a minimum three-night stay at one of the all-inclusive Caribbean properties. Also, stay for at least six nights and receive a room discount of up to 35 percent and one free night, or book a top-category suite for at least seven nights and get two free nights and a discount of up to 30 percent. Air credit amount varies by island: $350 for Jamaica and the Bahamas, $450 for St. Lucia, and $550 for Antigua. Prices vary by resort. For example, a six-night vacation at the Sandals Grande Ocho Rios in Jamaica starts at $1,575 per couple after $350 air rebate, free night, and 35 percent discount. Book by Sept. 2 and travel by Dec. 20, 2009 (some holiday blackout dates apply). Info: 1-800-726-3257, www.sandals.com.
Offshore Sailing School has discounts on its Learn to Sail course at Chelsea Piers in New York City or Liberty Landing Marina in Jersey City, N.J. Singles save $300; tuition is now $695 for the three-day course. Or bring a friend, and each person pays $595, a savings of $400. Each day of instruction includes a 90-minute classroom discussion and demonstration, followed by six hours of on-water learning. Sign up by Aug. 30, and complete the course by Oct. 31. Info: 1-800-221-4326, www.offshoresailing.com.
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