More All-Inclusive Deals

Apple Vacations is offering a handful of deals at the all-inclusive Riu Resorts in the Caribbean. Packages – including airfare – start at $699 per person for a four-night stay, and $899 per person for a seven-night stay. Destinations include Cabo San Lucas, Jamaica, Aruba, and Punta Cana.

All-inclusives sometimes get a bad rap – which is sometimes warranted – but I’ve had some of my best beach experiences at all-inclusives. (I count the Riu Santa Fe in Cabo San Lucas among those “best beach vacations”.) If you go with low expectations for the food especially, you can’t be disappointed. And in my experience, all-inclusives almost always constitute a better deal.

The fine print on the Riu deals… book today for travel through February 2009. (Sorry I didn't get the notice out sooner!)

Visit Mexico this fall on the cheap

Shermans Travel reports a handful of package deals at adult-only beach resorts in Mexico. Travel before October 31 and you can visit Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, or Playa del Carmen for what appear to be fairly good rates.

I love to travel to the beach in the fall – it’s much less crowded and temperatures are generally more tolerable. Certainly, you have to risk hurricanes, but Cabo and Puerto Vallarta are fairly hurricane-proof.

I checked the rates from Charlotte for a four-night late-September trip to Cabo and the rates were just below $900 per person. Comparable trips to Puerto Vallarta and Playa del Carmen were $777 and $800 per person, respectively, with a direct flight on the way to Playa del Carmen. Hola Mexico!

Deals in Hilton Head? Not so much.

It had been a while since I visited HHI. But the trip made me wonder about the validity of the recent claim by Orbitz that Hilton Head constitutes the best beach vacation deal for August. Maybe airfare is relatively inexpensive… maybe… and maybe you can find a good deal on a hotel and a rental car (which you’ll need to get around the island). But once you’re there, the deals end.

It’s hard to find a spot on the island for a good, casual dinner without spending $25+ per person just on your entrée. During the day, if you’re sticking around the hotel pool, you can expect to pay $3 for a bottled water and $5 for a Corona in a can. That can add up quickly. And forget about room service - $15 for cereal and a bagel? Are you kidding me? Even the mini-golf is expensive.

Had we been staying longer, it would have been worth it to rent a condo or house, and then cook most of our own meals. And maybe we would have succumbed to the timeshare pitch in order to get the $100 restaurant certificate. Maybe.

This is not to say that we didn’t have fun… great beach swimming, lazy afternoons, a round of golf. But if there were deals to be had on HHI, we certainly didn’t find them.

When in Rome...

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Ok, so it’s cliché, but it’s also a great travel mantra… especially when traveling outside of the US. Try to absorb as much authenticity as you can from a place and don’t sell out to the tourist traps. That’s what makes one a traveler vs. a tourist, right?

In that same spirit, National Geographic Traveler released its “Stay List.” The list features the top 150 hotels in the US, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean with a sense of place.

What a great idea! It’s just too bad that authenticity comes at such a high cost (in many cases).

Coronas, Flip Flops, and a Ball Cap

The countdown is on… my toes will officially be back in the sand in a matter of days.

With this imminent beach trip comes a set of traditions that follow me to almost any beach I visit… rites of beach passage, if you will. Jimmy Buffett. Local seafood. Coronas. Flip-flops or bare feet only. A ball cap. An early morning walk on the beach (before the heat and crowds arrive). I suspect that most people have their own beach traditions, many of which may be the same as my own. (Does a Corona taste as good when you’re landlocked?)

And so, it’s time to start thinking in the beach vernacular – one that is less hurried and more appreciative of the simple things in life. Cheers!

A Little Love for PCB

US Airways announced this week that it’s cutting its Charlotte-Panama City flights as of Sept. 1. Bummer.

You may associate Panama City Beach with a spring break destination (and all that comes along with that). Some people call it the Myrtle Beach of the Gulf Coast, with all of its mini-golf courses, high-rise hotels, and pancake restaurants. But what you may not know is that the area is home to some of the prettiest stretches of beach in the United States. We’re talking white sand beaches with warm gulf water so clear you can see the color of your toenail polish while standing in shoulder-height water. (For someone who grew up swimming off the beaches of New England, this came as quite a shock the first time I visited.)

On the east end of PCB is St. Andrews State Park – a beautiful, clean beach for day visitors. Its concessions stand has a good supply of kites, skimboards, and an impressive selection of ice cream novelties.

If you’re planning on staying a little longer – and are looking for more of an upscale experience (or just want to see how the other half vacations) – head west past the high-rises to Route 30-A and visit what are known as the Beaches of South Walton: Rosemary Beach, Seaside, WaterColor, and Grayton Beach, among others. They’re all relatively new villages designed with the principles of New Urbanism, and dotted with open-air restaurants, quaint shops, art galleries, and vacation rental offices. And did I mention the beaches?

Air Travel: Getting Grounded?

Will air travel cease to exist as we know it? I’m not one to latch onto fear-mongering, but the current trends in the airline industry are leading me to believe that the short-term future of flying is in peril for the average American.

What it comes down to is simple math… increased fuel prices = increased airfare = decreased passenger traffic = more and more flight cuts. USA Today found that the most popular vacation destinations in the US will be among the biggest air-service losers. “Many flights to Honolulu, Orlando, Las Vegas and other favorite vacation venues have vanished or will soon because cheap tickets bought by tourists don't cover the cost of getting there.”

Similarly, smaller regional jets don't carry enough people to pay for fuel on many routes. The Air Transport Association predicts that “100 cities this year could lose all commercial air service and that as many as 200 could lose service next year.”

And yet, consumers will still carry the burden of higher fuel costs. If a small-town traveler loses commercial air service, he will have to drive further – and thus spend more at the pump – to get to an airport. Or he may decide not to fly at all, especially if his travel is for leisure purposes.

I’m pretty sure I’m not the first person to follow this line of thinking. In fact, many hotels and other travel-related businesses are counting on the fact that travelers are sticking closer to home for vacations: they’re offering up deals specifically targeted to locals.

Florida seems to be leading the pack with this trend. The Inn on Fifth in Naples offers special room rates for Florida residents ($129/night for the first weekend in August vs. $150 for non-residents). In Fort Lauderdale, the Pelican Grand Beach Resort’s “Day at the Beach” program offers up a 10-hour mini-vacation starting at $99 – including an oceanfront room for six people, use of the pools and other resort facilities, and free ice cream for the kids.

Further up the East Coast, the Sheraton Myrtle Beach Convention Center Hotel is offering a 10% discount to residents of the Carolinas, although the rate is prepaid and nonrefundable.

Marketing to locals – whether the pitch constitutes a bargain or not – is a solid (dare I say, grounded) idea. Regardless of the direction the airlines are headed, there will always be travelers who want to save a little money and avoid the hassles of flying to get to their next vacation destination.