10 ways to travel for less

Expedia USA

Loyalty programs,
vacation home rentals and price shopping among ways to save!

By LYNN SELDON For the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Erik Torkells, former editor-in-chief at Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, offers these 10 tips to save money on travel:

1. Consider buying a package deal.
hotel), can be major bargains. Torkells says that, to fill rooms and seats, hotels and airlines will resort to rock-bottom prices. For obvious reasons, they don't like to publicize these rates, so they sell a certain number of rooms or seats to companies that bundle them in packages. He naturally recommends www.budgetravel.com. Find other good package deals at ajc.com/travel.

2. Rent a house or apartment, particularly for a family or group.
An easy one-stop Web site for home and apartment rentals is www.homeaway.com. If you're intrigued by house-swapping, here are three Web sites: www.homeexchange.com, www.homelink.org and www.intervac.com.

3. Negotiate!
Few price quotes are non-negotiable anymore. Ask if there are unadvertised specials or if the hotel can do better. Play up whatever you bring to the table — you're with a group, for example, or you visit often. Instead of a lower rate, you may end up with free parking or an upgrade. While www.priceline.com is now a full-fledged booking engine, it's most valuable for its bidding system. Another site, www.biddingfortravel.com, has examples of successful bids. Torkells says those looking for a cruise should check out www.cruisecompete.com.

4. Keep shopping, even after you've made a reservation.
Prices for car rentals and hotels fluctuate, so never give up sniffing out a better deal. When you locate one, snap it up and cancel the old reservation.

5. Make your weak dollar go farther.
Visit countries where the dollar still goes relatively far, such as Argentina and less-touristed parts of Mexico.

6. Whenever possible, book directly.
If you see a low rate elsewhere, ask the hotel to match it. Torkells has found that, wrong as it is, hotels are nicer to guests who seek them out than to those who come via a third-party booking engine.

7. Use the meta search engines (and other smart Web sites).
There's no one simple way to track the best fare or rate down. Torkells recommends starting with www.kayak.com and www.sidestep.com, which scour multiple Web sites for flights, hotels, cruises and car rentals. Orbitz, Travelocity and Expedia are good for getting a feel for what's out there, though Torkells notes they often don't search all airlines and they may tack on service fees.

8. Sign up for loyalty programs, especially those for hotels.
Hotels will often treat you better simply for being a member, even if you only stay one night. Also, members can choose to receive e-mail newsletters that will always have the best deals. Hotel loyalty programs can quickly lead to free nights.

9. Travel at the last minute, if possible, for the best deals.
Torkells says the best places to find last-minute deals are at the airlines' Web sites and at Expedia.

10. Don't get nickel-and-dimed at hotels.
Some add charges like checked bags, Internet service, phone calls, breakfast and fitness centers. Torkells likes mid-range hotel chains like Hampton Inn (www.hamptoninn.com) that don't charge for parking, Internet, breakfast, and other "extras" that more expensive chains often add to the bill.