I want to get away…for cheap

Atlantis Deal from expedia.com

Now that winter’s about half way over, I’m beginning to think about warm places I would love to go to get away from it all.  Classes have started, the homework is piling up, and the stress of interning three days a week (for free) plus finding some time to work for actual money is making my life crazy. Also graduation is less than 4 months away.  Meaning I’m less than 4 months from being a broke, most likely career-less, graduate.  Basically, I just wish I could get away.  Take a relaxing trip. Somewhere. Anywhere.

So, of course, instead of editing my resume, searching for jobs, or writing that paper, I’ll sit online and stare at expedia.com , checking the prices for different hotels in different locations.  Like always, I’m drawn to the same old places.  The Caribbean, Florida, etc.  Nothing too exciting.

I’m looking for some place on the beach, with multiple pools, decent rooms, and good food. And then I find it.  I click on “Vacation Packages” and this ad for Atlantis ( a HUGE resort in the Bahamas) appears.  ”4th night free?! $400 off airfare?!” I think to myself.  Immediately, my brain starts processing this information.  Well, I can’t go during school. I mean I have senioritis and all, but I don’t think anyone would come with me.  And I care enough about my grades to not skip class.  Spring break is already booked. That leaves after graduation.

Fortunately, the deal has “special reduced rates” through June 23rd. I begin looking at prices.  Since we’d fly out of Boston we would just have to use a coupon code “BAH300″ to receive $300 off.  Not too bad.  That deal is good for anywhere in the Bahamas, I believe, as long as you book through Expedia by March 3rd and Travel by June 23rd, 2010.  The total price came out around $850 per person for five nights and under $700 per person for 4 nights when you include the coupon staying in the Beach Tower.

Atlantis Summer 2006: Me and Greg

That’s pretty good, considering Atlantis is still by far my favorite hotel I’ve ever stayed at.  I love the pools, the lazy river, the beach, the restaurants, and just the whole resort in general.  It’s been 3.5 years since I’ve been there, and I’d love to go again.  Especially since they’ve expanded so much in the past couple of years.  And, they’ve done a great job with branding because now whenever I think of relaxing, beach vacation I think about Atlantis.

So I really want to take a trip after graduation.  Now I have the motivation to start saving money.  And I just have to decide between Atlantis, which is more expensive, and Las Vegas, which is much cheaper.  Also, I’ve been to Atlantis before, and I’ve never been to Vegas. Or, there’s always a cruise.  Decisions. Decisions.  Anyone have any opinions?

Dear Bad Economy, Thanks for the travel deals.

When the economy is bad, what’s the first to go?  I’m no economist, but I would think that people start cutting back on unnecessary luxuries like going out to eat and expensive vacations.  In the past year I’ve seen the economy’s impact on both the restaurant and travel  industries.  As a waitress, I’ve noticed a decrease in tips, and as a travel-lover who frequents trip-booking websites, I’ve noticed a huge increase in the number of deals posted.

In other words, even though the economy sucks, if you have the money to spend, now is the time to travel.  You don’t even need a lot of money. I promise.

The other night, one of my friend’s briefly mentioned how she wanted to go to Florida (Orlando to be specific), and I immediately asserted that I could easily find some really cheap trips.  Even though we weren’t serious about going on the vacation, as soon as I got home I went online and began searching.

My search quickly revealed even better deals than I imagined.  As always, I used expedia.com. I’m sure that hotels.com, Orbitz, and Travelocity have similar deals, but for no particular reason I’ve always stuck with Expedia.  I think I just have used their website so many times that I’m more comfortable with its format.

Anyways, I searched for 5 night hotel and flight packages from Boston to Orlando, and I found per person prices that are cheaper than the average roundtrip ticket. I used a week in mid August for my search, and then organized the packages by price.  Many of 3 and 3.5 star hotels, some of which include free transportation to the Disney parks and/or free breakfast, are less than $300 per person.

For example, the Radisson Resort Orlando-Celebration, which is a very nice hotel that I’ve stayed at before, is only $277 per person.   For a little extra, you can even stay inside Disney World, at the luxurious 4 star Walt Disney World Dolphin for only $393 per night.  I stayed there a few years ago, and it was definitely one of the nicer hotels that I stayed at in Orlando, and it’s nice to be within walking distance of MGM (or Hollywood Studios as it’s now called) and a short boat ride away from Epcot.

There were even a few decent hotels for under $250 per person for the hotel and flight, like the Best Western Lakeside or Comfort Inn Lake Buena Vista. How is that possible, when flights are usually at least $200? Thank you bad economy for all of the travel deals.

I’ve been to Orlando way too many times, so unfortuantely I won’t be able to use these amazing deals that I found.  Instead I’ll be going to Toronto next month.  Why? I’m not sure.  We’re only paying $160 each for the hotel though, so I’m not complaining. I don’t even know what there is to do in Toronto, but I’m sure my friend who suggested the trip has some things in mind.  In the end, I know it will be fun. I’ve never been there before, and I always enjoy seeing new places.  I need to stop automatically thinking of Florida when I think of the word vacation.