FareCast

I love playing the airfare game. Before I book a flight, I check out StudentUniverse, Kayak, Priceline, Expedia, and any other search site I stumble across to ensure that I am getting the best deal available. Now, my game has gotten even more fun.

A relatively new (free) service called Farecast helps travelers predict whether the price of airline tickets are going to drop, rise, or stay the same in the coming weeks and months.

While it is not good for booking last minute travel, it is very helpful for booking trips far in advance. For example, this summer I will be working in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and I know I need to book a flight out there on June 6. When I looked at flights in December, the price of a round trip ticket from Atlanta was $650. Farecast told me to wait to buy my fare, and sent me weekly emails with their predictions. Sure enough, the price dropped significantly and farecast urged me to buy my ticket when the price hit $320. Just by being patient and utilizing new technology I saved $300.

Farecast definitely helps travelers play the airfare guessing game and come out on top. They have a very high success rate and their site is very easy to navigate. The only down side: it does not have tracking information for smaller U.S. airports.

Machu Picchu: An Adventure Traveler's Paradise

There is nothing like hiking off the beaten path. Leaving a world of cars, computers, and cell phones behind, it is invigorating to travel to a land and place where technology and progress are irrelevant. Head into the Andes mountains high above the Urubamba River and experience one of the world's most sacred remains.

Machu Picchu is an old Incan ruin that cannot be accessed by car or plane. While a windy train ride will get travelers close to the ruins, only backpackers can reach the sacred land, and they must travel by foot. Time is running out however, and as "adventure" travel becomes more appealing, Machu Piccho will become overrun with tourists. For now, enjoy the daily visitor limit that the Peruvians have implemented to preserve their sacred history, and experience Machu Picchu for yourself.

A Cheapskate's Guide to Spring Break Financing

I am committing social suicide when I depart for my spring break destination on Saturday. I am not hopping in a car with 5 of my best friends heading to Destin or to South Florida to meet my boat for a Booze Cruise. Instead, I am heading on spring break... with my parents!

SO lame, right? I mean, who does that? Unfortunately for me, I have no money and my spring break options included sitting at home with my mom and dad staring at the snow fall in St. Louis. So I got to thinking... I have never been to the Bahamas before and I have always wanted to go there, but on my budget that kind of travel is just not possible. What did I do? I talked mama and daddy into taking me. It wasn't too hard, but it did take a little buttering up. Use these tricks and you'll be sipping Pina Coladas on the white sands of Paradise Island before you know it.

1. Agendas succeed when it appears that no agenda exists. Start by sending your mom and dad a sweet note in the mail just to tell them you love them and you miss them. I got crazy and went to moo.com and had personalized greeting cards made. I usually use them to send to friends all over the country, but I designed a special one with a picture of my parents and me to send to them... they loved it!

2. Your next phone conversation with your dad needs to go something like this:

Hi Daddy! Classes are fine but I am already on the countdown for spring break. My friends all want me to go to Panama City. MTV Spring Break will be there, and I think things might get too crazy for your little girl... but I don't really have any other options because it is the only trip I can really afford, and all my friends are going, so I guess I will too. Well, gotta run. Love you daddy! Bye!"

3. Give him some time to think about his precious daughter surrounded by 500 drunk guys at a wet t-shirt contest. Also, give yourself enough time to "seriously reconsider your spring break priorities," and call back and tell him that after a serious self-reflection, you decided that you could not see yourself partaking in a week of debauchery on the beach (what they don't have to know is that it is because your liver needs a break from the debauchery you take place in on a daily basis in college).

Tell him that you think you want to go to Iraq and volunteer in an orphanage for a week. Hopefully, they will say yes. If they are anything like my parents, however, they will not send their daughter to a war zone for spring break, but they will know your heart is in the right place, and it will open their mind to other spring break options.

4. Step 4: Throw yourself a pity party and say that you will just come home and do nothing on spring break. When they give you the witty parent line along the lines of, "Come on, honey, we aren't that bad are we?" You say, "No, its not you guys. I never get to see you and I would actually love spending spring break with you, but I don't want to go home... that's lame."

They will feel sorry for you and you can tell them that you will do some "research" about places you would all enjoy as a family. All this takes on your part is pulling up the power point you have already made explaining all the wonders of The Atlantis in the Bahamas. Mom can lay by the beach, dad can play golf, little brother and sister can go to Kid's Club, and you can be free to mix and mingle with like-minded college kids from all over the country.

So here's to you, mooching college kid who still wants to live off your parents money for a few more years. Good luck!

City Spotlight: Kaikura

Kaikura, New Zealand is one of the most beautiful places in the world. It is a quaint town on the South Island of New Zealand know as an eco-tourism mecca. I had the chance to visit Kaikura with the University of Georgia Study Abroad in the Pacific program in the summer of 2007.

I recommend going swimming with dolphins, horseback riding, vineyard tours, and renting bicycles to explore the quaint little village. It is right on the water but also has a beautiful mountain backdrop. If you ever make it to New Zealand, Kaikura is a town you do not want to miss.

How Legit is the Curier Industry?

I hope your travels are going well. I just got back from a trip to Los Angeles. I followed my own advice and did the AirTranU fare for a last minute little trip. Everything went VERY smoothly, however, let me warn you, AirTran does not have TV's on their flights from Atlanta to LAX. It was probably the longest 5 hours of my life. Miserable. Anyway...

I started talking to the man sitting next to me on the airplane and we started chatting about traveling (duh... it is kind of all I talk about). Well, he told me about something I have never heard of before. He said in college, he spent a summer being a courier. I had no idea what the guy was talking about, but he informed me that companies sometimes need things shipped immediately, both domestically and internationally. Rather than paying UPS or FedEx ridiculous amounts of money, they hire couriers to fly their goods for them. Couriers usually trade a free (or EXTREMELY cheap) ticket for their luggage space. When he told me this, I was completely FREAKED out. I was convinced he was discretely asking me to be a drug trafficer or something. However, when I got home, I checked out a courier website he told me about and it seems pretty legit.

I am in no way advocating this as the right way to travel, but I am curious about it and am wondering if anyone has any more information to share.

I will keep researching, too, and keep you all updated if I find out anything more.

Money in tha Bank...

This is not very travel related, but this site will help you save money so you CAN travel. It has some of the most creative and useful ways for college kids to save money. It has great tips like call 1-800-goog-411 for FREE instead of calling the real 411. Check it out, save some money, put it in a piggy bank, and start planning your trek across the globe!

City Spotlight: Amsterdam

Amsterdam has always been a city of intrigue. The mysteries hidden behind the walls of the Red Light District and the meandering canals cutting through the city create a culture of vibrance and an exciting atmosphere for any fun loving college student. While Amsterdam isn't usually number one on any college kid's travel list, it is easier to get to than you may think. EF College Break, a travel company offering ridiculously inexpensive travel options for college students, offers trips to Amsterdam for as low as $1,200. Check out EF College Break trips to Amsterdam to get more information on the programs they offer.

Shameless Plug: Enter the code Holley1000 to get another $50.00 off your trip (and I get $50.00 too! We both win!). Want other options? STA also offers trips to Amsterdam, both sites are worth checking out, but EF College Break offers a "low price guarantee" so if you can find a comparable trip at a lower price, EFCB will match it.

Want something to do once you get there? Check out jpayette's blog on college kids in Amsterdam at Getting Around the World. Let me know if you have any questions!

Happy travels!