KnowYourTrip.com

Tripper Travel Bargain Hunt Notification

Hey Trippers,

For those of you who are constantly looking for bargain travel, there’s a new search engine from a company out of Copenhagen Denmark by the name of Momondo.  They are a worldwide travel search engine that searches other aggregate websites and airline and hotel’s own websites for their latest bargains.  From their website:

We search across multiple websites at google style top-speed to within seconds give you an overview of the cheapest flights we can find.

and regarding booking hotels:

Our hotel search function is based on the same principle as the flight search engine. It searches more than 100.000 unique hotels worldwide across all categories from cheap hostels to the most expensive luxury hotels.

I liked what I saw there.  They don’t sell tickets or rooms and make their money through commissions on sponsor links and ads.  Not only do they find the fares but the specific flights on offer as well.  They also present a graph with the flight price trends.

So, visit them often to see what’s new.  It helps if you have a destination and a specific time you are looking for.

Happy Tripping,

Carter

Hey Trippers,

One travel tip I’ve learned over the years I can pass on is flexibility.  Especially, when it comes to accommodation.   I have never understood how anyone can book two weeks of accommodation in advance.  I can understand it if you go for a weekend – or maybe a week away – in a popular destination’s peak season.  (But I wouldn’t recommend that you go during that time anyway.)

Open to Whimsy from Your “Hub”

When I run through many of my travel memories that have stuck with me and felt like a real sense of adventure, they happened when I practiced flexibility.   All too often I find that I enjoy a place too much that I want to spend more time there – or rarely, less.  If I have a week of reservations ahead of me that can’t be broken, I can’t enjoy that place longer.  I tend to book accommodation in a destination and look at it as being a hub.  I use the “hub” as a base and go in each direction exploring, then move on to the next “hub”.

Visit a Tourist Office and Use the Web!

I know, you think you don’t want to waste time going from hotel to hotel after you arrive at your destination.  Most destinations have tourist offices that are more than happy to assist you.  On this trip, we made sure we booked accommodation with Internet, either in room or lobby.  We used www.booking.com,  www.lastminute.com, and our “reward points” websites.  There was plenty of availability.  This trip showed me the value of having an iPhone or an Internet connecting PDA.  You can literally book while you travel.  This freedom allows you to stop, explore, linger, and stay – or – move on if a destination doesn’t meet your expectations.

Two Must Nights to Pre-Book Accommodation

The one area I don’t allow any flexibility in my accommodation booking is the day I land and the night before I take off.   I book the first night or two and the last night – well before I leave.  The reserved accommodation will be near my first day destination and near the airport of my departure on the night before.  I make sure I’m booked the first night because I won’t be in any condition to book or search for a hotel when I land (given the time change and the length of air travel).

A Dangerous Landing

On this trip, I landed at Heathrow airport, rented a car, and drove two hours to my hotel that was pre-booked in Birmingham, Midlands.  I was traveling with someone who, thankfully, did the driving.  If I were alone there would have been serious problems.  I could not keep my eyes open.  I was exhausted from the long flights, not enough sleep, and the pre-departure preparations.  If I were alone, I would have stopped to nap in the car after leaving the airport.  It was that bad.  So, plan well.  Evaluate how you really are when you land on the first day of your trip.  Packing and negotiating airports and public transport is exhausting.

Ensure a Delightful Finish

The final night of my trip is booked because I do not take any chances with my getting to the airport on time.  I would not recommend being any further than one hour or less drive from the airport you’re departing from, especially, if you have a departure before noon.  What could happen?  Lots . . . . You could be ill after an exhaustive trip or exposure to a virus or bacteria.  You could be involved in or delayed by a car / public transport accident or delay.  You could have left a belonging / electronic / camera lens, passport along your trip and need to go back for it making you late for your flight.  At least if you have a room reserved, you could stop to rest and regroup for your departure flight.

Still Able to Maintain Budget

Booking a room at a hotel near the airport doesn’t have to be expensive.  Most accommodation caters to business travelers.  You will easily find a better rate on weekends.  There are less expensive hotels located a bit further from the hotel that often offer a free shuttle as an incentive for you to stay there.  (Book that shuttle in advance, if possible)  Rates on weekdays will be higher but usually a busy international airport will have a wide variety of nightly rates and amenities.

On this trip, I booked my final night at the Sheraton Frankfurt Hotel & Towers.  It is literally attached to the airport.  What a pleasure it was and a great way to finish my trip by waking, having a good breakfast, and walking over a skybridge into the airport terminal.  I booked a room using a Starwood Preferred Guest “Cash and Points” scheme.  I used 4000 Starpoints and paid US$60.00(€42.00) for the convenience.

Upgrade!!!

When, I arrived, I checked into the spacious room with modern amenities – and found it was dirty from the previous night!  I called down to the front desk.  They apologized and assigned me another room with a room upgrade.  I was now on the Executive Floor!  This gave me access to the Executive Lounge.  The lounge was spacious, included (at no extra charge) all the chef-prepared food, snacks, beverages (soft drinks, wine, beer, liquor), and a breakfast buffet in the morning.  What a way to finish a trip!

Happy Tripping,

Carter

Hey Trippers,

(Disclaimer:  I am in no way endorsing any product below.  I am only using the products below as examples.)

This is the second part of a multipart series breaking down the savings and lessons learned on the trip.

I wanted to talk about the air travel for my European trip.  Normally when I use air miles I book it well in advance.  In this instance, the flight I booked with award travel was with United Airlines.  As I mention in the Know Your Budget section on the Know Your Trip website, you should choose an airline and try to stick with it.  You should select an airline that not only services routes you take commonly but also has a broad international presence.   I chose United Airlines because they service my domestic needs and, generally, my international needs, thanks to the Star Alliance association they have with other international carriers.  I want to be clear I’m not endorsing United Airlines over another airline.  United Airlines happens to fit my needs at this time.

My upcoming December trip to Argentina was booked this past January – a full 11 months in advance.  It’s part of the importance of planning.  Still, I was unable to obtain business class seats!  I check back periodically to see if the airline has released more award seats for that destination.   Very often they trickle out.

My trip to Europe, that I originally booked last November (08), was to be to London/Rome and back home.  Because I decided to buy a car in Germany (more on that later), very last minute, I had to change my flights and therefore take what was available.  I was able to obtain United Airlines flights to London (First Class) but had to fly with Lufthansa Business Class (Star Alliance) the rest of the way.  I was using miles to fly First Class but had to downgrade to Business on Lufthansa because First Class was no longer available on every leg of my re-scheduled flights.  BTW, there is a big difference between First Class and Business Class!

To obtain enough miles to do these flights, I did the following:

Mileage Award Program - I joined a few mileage programs with airlines I fly.  In this example I’m using United Mileage Plus (Not an endorsement).

Mileage Award Credit Card – I Charge everything I can on my United Mileage Plus VISA Card (Not an endorsement).  If you can manage credit, you should obtain an airline credit card that corresponds to the airline you’ve chosen.  They award one mile for every dollar you spend.  I pay my bill in its entirety every month.  DO NOT charge anything you can’t afford to pay off on the next statement!  If you don’t do this, it doesn’t make financial sense because the interest charges are obscenely ridiculously high.  Most Mileage Credit Cards offer a bonus lump of miles for signing up – up to 30,000 miles (upon first purchase).  Some offer free companion airfares (of inflated price flights and/or black out dates) and it’s not a good deal.  Every card has a yearly fee.  If you fly enough with an airline, your status may wave the yearly fee.  Make sure you find out what it is before signing up AND get it in writing.  I have requested and received my yearly fee waived because I have high usage.  I also have had a Mileage Award Business Card and a Mileage Award Personal Credit Card.  Both cards award-signing-bonus went to my United Airlines Mileage account.  You can “work” this but you have to be sharp and aware of your spending amounts.

Mileage Award Dining Program – Dine at restaurants that are a part of the Mileage Plus Dining Program (Not an endorsement) whenever I can.  They award 10 miles per dollar you spend.  Occasionally, they have bonus programs like dining at a variety of restaurants within a period of time for extra miles.

Mileage Bonus for Car Rental – When renting a car, I use a rental company that awards bonus miles to Mileage Plus Program, if it makes sense financially.  I rarely pay a higher rate for extra miles unless it’s just a few dollars.  Now, some Rental Car companies charge higher rates for the points or have stopped the associations with mileage programs completely.

Join ALL Airfare Search Engines for notification – I plan my domestic travel in advance.  I monitor the fares with United Airlines AND all the other airlines that fly the same routes because United usually matches other airlines low fares.  I pay for these flights because I’m awarded “miles” for each mile flown AND I charge the flight on my United Airlines Credit Card to get the “miles” for each dollar spent.  I’m doubling up.  Make sure you are enrolled in all the airfare search engines for the latest notifications.  There a several dozen now.  Here’s a start.

Fly PAID FLIGHTS Off-Peak and Off-Season – Do your best to fly where you’re going “off season” or “off peak”.  You’ll get a lower airfare, flights times you want, and the seat selection you want.

Shop retailers that offer Mileage Points - I belong to the Mileage Plus Mall.  If you’re going to send flowers anyway, why not send it through the on-line mall.  The stores in the on-line mall offer more “miles” per dollar you spend.  Example (not an endorsement) – Safeway Grocery Store Chain awards United Air Miles for using the Safeway Club Card when making purchases.  You can acquire 125 miles for every $250.00 you spend.  Pay with your Mileage VISA card and “double dip”!

My European airfare would have been $3500.00 in Business Class and over $15,000.00 in First class.  All I paid for my award ticket was $125.00 in taxes and airport departure fees.  Since I used miles, it was 120,000 for first or 80,000 for business.  As you know mine was split.  Ask me what I paid in miles in an e-mail and I’ll explain the complexity.   It has to do with, yet another subject, airline “status”.

Yes, it takes diligence and some focus, but it is worth it.  Make your search a priority by having an e-mail notification sent to you with the latest fare reductions.  You have to act quickly because they get snapped up.

Go to the Know Your Trip Website and download “Know Your Budget” PDF because it has a list of most of the Airfare Search Engines (new ones are added on the web regularly) as well as a wealth of other information to help your plan your dream trip on a budget.  Look for Part 3; Hotel Strategy.  A discussion of purchasing a new car in Europe to save money on your trip is coming . . . .

Happy Tripping,

Carter