By José Balido
Three top travel industry voices got together this past Sunday, February 28, at the New York Times Travel Show to share their tips and wisdom with the traveling masses – or what’s left of them, in the current economy. Still, 60-plus hardcore travel hounds, myself included, braved the bitter wind and snow early on Sunday morning to hear them speak, and this is what we learned:
George Hobica (AirfareWatchdog.com): To find the best airfares, don’t check when you need them. Set up an airfare alert ahead of time for the routes you generally fly, and you’ll always be on top of those hard-to-get, absurdly low fares that pop up on airline Web sites for a couple of hours and then disappear.
Gabe Saglie (Travelzoo): The best travel deals today are in the luxury sector, and chances are, you can afford more of them than you would think. Remember, the recession is hitting everybody hard, and the big guys are sometimes just as eager to fill the rooms as the Mom-and-Pops. Always ask.
Bob Drumm (General Tours World Traveler): A tour can save you 25% to 40% over individual travel. Now, for dyed-in-the-wool independent travelers, the thought of spending ten days with 30 strangers on a bus can make the skin crawl, but depending on the group, you may actually have a great time… and in this economy, it’s hard to argue with the economies of scale of an established tour operator.
Val D’Elia of Travel with Val proved a charming moderatrix, adding a funky deal of her own: ask for the “Dirty Sheets” discount at Marmara Manhattan Hotel on the Upper East Side to save your wallet and the planet at the same time. Housekeeping will change the sheets every three days, and knock $20 off your nightly bill. Now that kind of dirt we can live with.
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