Fast 5 Travel Tips: Must pack items

Whether it's a weekend in the city or a week overseas, these are the 5 things I won't leave home without.

1. Documentation. This includes identification, itinerary and confirmation numbers for all my bookings. (Hotel, rental car, tours, etc)

2. First Aid Kit. Could be as simple as a few Band-aids, Tylenol and Benadryl or could be a full-on travel kit, depending on the destination and potential hazards.

3. A hat. Sun or snow, bad hair days or airport delays, can all be addressed  by a cute hat.

4. Ear phones. Watch movies on the airline television, or tune out a chatty seat mate without looking rude. Then listen to your favourite playlist on the beach or when you hit the workout room.

5. Credit cards (2)  Use one to secure your hotel, car rental etc. And have the other one stashed separately incase of theft or emergency situations.  Even if you have "lots of limit" on you booking card, you could run into trouble, like I did in Florida. The hotel (big brand name chain) put a hold on a fixed amount (as normal) when I checked in but a clerk stole the number and went wild charging items around town. By the time the credit card company caught on (I had set a travel notice as Florida, and all the charges were in Florida so it didn't red flag) the card was maxed. It took weeks to sort out and rendered my card completely useless that whole trip. Major headache.

Christmas in Cuba (Dec 20-27)

There are very few Christmas bargains that line up with the school break, but I found one for your consideration.

I've used a search criteria of 2 adults and 2 kids. It's 4.5 star, and all inclusive. Flights are direct, and convenient from Winnipeg. December 20th to 27th, 2015.

I haven't been to Cuba, or this resort, but it certainly does read and review well. (If you're considering it, do your research or ask your own travel agent for more info)

$4300 for a family of 4, all inclusive, over Christmas is an excellent deal. I expect this will be snapped up and full in no time.

If you don't have your own travel agent, feel free to call mine.

Sheri Kines (204) 596-8483
skines@selloffvacations.com

Fast 5 Travel Tips: Trips with Teens

Travel with your teen? Yes! Definitely!

Think about it... you might not get another chance for a family trip for a decade or more. And the next time you travel together, YOU might be the tag along Grandma who gets to watch his/her kids while the other adults get to to off exploring.

Yikes. A sobering thought, isn't it?

That's why I travel with my kids/teens every chance I get.

5 tips from my personal journal:

1. Share in the trip planning. They'll be more invested and more likely to participate.

2. Let them pack for themselves and carry their own bags too. Teaches planning and self-reliance. Life skills!

3. They needs to bring their own spending money. Ensure they use it for their own souvenirs, snacks, admission fees etc. Another teachable moment.

4. Plan ahead for communication back home. Know what their cell phone plan covers and does not. Not getting a travel plan for cell service could spell financial disaster. Know that they WILL communicate with their friends either openly or secretly. A not-so secret phone bill a month later could really sour the memory of the great time you had.

5. Adjust for their sleeping schedule and privacy. Most hotels can offer a cot so your teen has their own bed. And why not let them sleep in a bit, while you enjoy a morning walk or a little shopping? Start your sightseeing after 11am so that everyone is more agreeable and rested.

Do you have more to add to the list? Love to hear from you!

Air Miles Flight Discounts up to 25%

Considering this is also low season, this means affordable flights are now Air Miles bargains!

Hope you've been stockpiling your Air Miles.

Book early for best selection.

$3244 for a family trip to Hawaii

There are a few pretty sweet deals to Hawaii on right now.

First off there's a basic 15% off flights anytime this winter (blackout dates apply) with either Westjet or Air Canada. That takes your airfare down to about $500 per person, if you pick the right dates.

Secondly, Westjet is offering packages on sale right now which includes week in a beachside condo.  For 2 adults, the cost is $2030, air, tax and accommodations from Winnipeg. OR, with 2 minor children I see it priced at $3244 for the same date package. That's a mere $811 per person, for a week in a condo in Maui. SWEEEEEEET deal!

Lastly, with this package deal in mind, I looked up what you could get for $1220 per person, which I would still consider a very good price for a package to Maui. Look what I found! The Waldorf Astoria in the highly coveted Wailea area for under $5K. This would be AMAZING!!! You'd be in the playground of the rich and famous, on a modest budget.  

The only thing to keep in mind would be that in a condo, you would prepare your own meals and could realistically do so for a family at a cost of $500CDN total for a week. Whereas, staying at a hotel/resort and buying meals would be far more expensive. 

Prices are in Canadian funds and can be found at Westjet Vacations or through your favourite travel agent. Prices subject to change. 

15% off Florida w/Westjet

Very short window to book.

Westjet unveiled a new Disney Frozen theme plane today. So there's the connection. May as well save a few dollars.

Maui $483.

I'm just going to tell you that this is the kind of thing that causes the bags under my eyes.

It's 3AM as I write this, and for the past 5 consecutive days, I've worked open to close at the restaurant. I'm tired. And yet, I pick up the scent of a travel deal, and I turn into a tireless bloodhood. I won't stop until I find the big deal.

I won't give you the play-by-play on how I found this, except to say that I shouldn't check my e-mail when I'm in bed. You see, Westjet sent an email with an offer of 20% of econo flights, or 25% off plus.

Ho hum. I didn't think too much of it. I looked around at a couple destinations, and it seemed the prices were inflated so as to accommodate the discount. But, since I was awake, I poked around a little further.

Seems Delta has a nice sale on to Hawaii. (From Winnipeg.) $566 return and taxes in, that's a excellent price any time of the year. (I searched and dates are available through February, but not at Christmas break of course.)

So that's when my 'bloodhound sense' kicks into a higher gear. Hey, I wonder if Westjet has matched those prices yet.... 

I looked, and yes they have. Nice. Westjet has $566 too. Now I wonder if that discount code works on top of this price match deal....

This is the point I get out of bed and head to an actual keyboard. (tap, tap, tap on the keyboard) Yes, indeed, the promo code works! And voila $483, round trip, taxes included to Maui.  $600 to Aruba is pretty sweet too.  Now accommodations are extra in both these situations, but that's not hard to solve.

Victory! I found the prize. $483 to Hawaii is a GREAT DEAL!  Now I can go to sleep.

But first, take my promo code. I won't use it. (Just incase Westjet didn't send you a code this time.)

Promo Code: REW07   Coupon Code: F8Y7IGP  (Yes, you need both) 

They key to getting the best price is do a couple flight searches and find your best price combination, THEN go back and do the search WITH the codes.  If you use the codes right off the top, it will NOT show you the various dates and potential savings of date selection.

Goodnight!  :)

Fast 5 Travel Tips: 5 Canadian Travel Lies

1. About Canadian Prairie Winters - "It's not that bad, it's a dry cold" we say. And yet we actually just slide around on our icy roads all winter, going from Tim Hortons to Tim Hortons, sipping hot chocolate to keep the blood from freezing in our veins.

2. Your money is worth more here! - But just wait until we add 15% tax to everything!

3. You only need a few days to see Canada - Are you kidding? Our landmass is vast and our transportation expensive. Don't think you can see Quebec and Alberta in the same week.

4. We're not all lumberjacks and hockey players.  But we DO all dress like lumberjacks and hockey players every winter! From coast to coast you'll see flannel plaid shirts and hockey jerseys on young and old. It's like our unofficial patriotic uniform.

5. Salmon jerky and ice wine are Canadian delicacies. Trust me, you should pass on the Salmon Jerky. It's not even good after a whole bottle of ice wine.  I don't even think it would be good with maple syrup on it. And don't even get me started on screech and prairie oysters (Buffalo/Bison  testicles)! Our regional food is.... funny, in a "I can't believe you actually ate that" kind of way.

But don't trust just my opinion. You should come up and see it for yourself. You might like it, eh?!!

7 Days of Sunshine $534

This deal is pretty typical. Vegas offers some great prices in the "shoulder season" every year. This bargain is November 24th to December 1st.

It's nice to know that the prices are pretty similar to last year, if you buy a package and pay in Canadian funds when you book. However, you will feel the pain of the weak Canadian dollar when it comes to eating, shopping and gambling south of the border.

But, if you'd like to postpone winter a little longer, you can enjoy the Vegas sun at a bargain price.

When you are choosing a hotel, make sure to do your research and know which hotels have year round pools. Though I like the Tropicana Hotel, and love their pool, I know it's closing November 16th for winter. So based on that, I'd pick a different hotel. HOWEVER, if you are using Vegas as a home base and are just looking for budget friendly accommodations so you can day trip and explore The Grand Canyon or California, then you might want to choose The Tropicana.

At the budget price, with an excellent pool and location on The Strip, Monte Carlo is a good choice. If you want to vacation more stylishly, the Cosmopolitan Hotel has a great vibe, is next door to the mall and has a rooftop (3rd floor) pool. It's priced about $780 pp with this package as shown.

Screenshots are from Selloffvacations.com on October 12. Prices subject to change.

Packages, as shown INCLUDE all taxes, hotel and have direct Westjet flights from Winnipeg. Direct flights, for me, make this a better bargain. Yes, you can find deals about 10% less money, but the extra flight and connection do not make a $60 savings worth it for me.

So if you want sun and fun, this is a nice deal.

Searching for the stars in Hollywood

I felt that the trip to Los Angeles was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime event, so I vowed to make the most of it. Even if that meant being a typical tourist. So, I bought a Marilyn Monroe t-shirt from Macy's and signed up for a double decker bus tour of Hollywood.  (www.starlinetours.com)

I was ready for a cheesy, narrated tour. I wanted to see and do all that Hollywood had to offer! I wanted movie stars and wax museums and pictures and Rodeo Drive. And that's exactly what I got.

I was doing this bus trip solo, and never worried about safety or feeling out of place. Starline was very comfortable and professionally run.

Starline Tours offers a number of routes and passes and prices. I opted for the flexible, 24 hour "hop on, hop off" pass. It was $44. You just paid on-board and the driver was able to accept cash, debit, or credit cards. For my $44 I was given a pair of earbuds, a map, and a seat upstairs in the sun.

What interested me most was the TCL Chinese Theatre and Hollywood Walk of Fame. The TCL Chinese Theatre has also formerly had the names "Grauman's Chinese Theatre" and "Mann's Chinese Theatre."

The TCL was the Starline Tours "head office" and main pick up/drop off location. This was the only place I chose to hop off the bus and spend some time. As lovely as it was to drive down Rodeo Drive and Beverly Hills, I knew it was beyond my budget and I chose to keep my wallet in my pocket.

It cost nothing to walk the Hollywood Walk of Fame. I took several photos. The crowd was light that day and I had no trouble at all with street performers, or pushy sales vendors. There is also a 3 level shopping mall right next door. It's got plenty of eateries and popular shops, PLUS a view of the HOLLYWOOD sign in the distance.

I paused briefly at the stars which resonated with me. The beauty of the the walk was that there are actors, actresses, musicians, directors and such from all eras. I'm sure whether you are 20 or 75 you would recognize names and pause to smile.

Walking tour, Los Angeles

You simply see things differently when you're out walking and exploring on your own.  There is no taxi, bus tour or Frommer's Guide that can show you the city the way that an open mind and a pair of sneakers can.

I recently embarked on a street tour of Downtown Los Angeles. Some things were pretty, somethings were not. But everything contributed to the character of the area and gave me a really interesting perspective as a Canadian traveller.

I'm going to let the photos speak for themselves. The architecture, both of past and present, was incredible. And to see so many buildings being restored was encouraging. The preservation of history is important and for me, was heart-warming.

In total, according to my fitness tracker, I covered nearly 14kms on foot in 2 days. Though I also did accidentally (and later on purpose... to see the Ghostbuster's firehall) wander into the ghetto I did not stop to take photos. There is overt poverty, homelessness and even tent-villages in plain view, but I feel there is no purpose in objectifying the street people who struggle. It would only serve to disrespect human life to portray them here in a tourist blog.  So I won't.

Los Angeles, and Downtown LA specifically, is not all Hollywood glamour and riches, but you can certainly say that about any city.

Photos taken on an iphone, October 2015.

Back lane movie filming

Court House

Firehall from the 80s movie Ghostbusters

Opulent street entrance leading from the sidewalk

Through the window of a downtown office building. Marble everywhere!