Review: Travel tips for more miles on less cash

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By Frank Thorsberg

(IDG) -- Successful holiday travel is a lot like successful gambling: it's all about knowing the averages and playing the most favorable odds. And, if you're flexible, there are some great bargains to be had, especially in the world of airline tickets (see "Sites of passage: travel tools," link below).

Priceline.com is helping travelers find holiday bargains with a color-coded calendar highlighting the best days for the best deals. The online calendar also shows the days when airlines sell their seats at the deepest discounts.

When's the worst time to travel? According to the calendar, fares are at their peak on December 21 and 26, and January 1, 2, 5, and 7.

Cutting the Clutter

The big travel sites -- Travelocity and Orbitz -- are great resources, but sometimes they can be overwhelming with so many flights (see "Orbitz.com starts charging handling fee," link below), times, and fares to choose from. How can you quickly cut through the clutter?

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An outfit called 11thHourVacations.com has come up with one decision making shortcut. By using its Ideal Vacation Find, travelers can narrow their search based on personal preferences.

You can use the tool to sort best deals by what you like to do, the departure city, date of departure, and length of stay. I searched for a three- to four-day trip in late December, with hiking and attending cultural festivals as my desired activities.

With Chicago as my departure city, the service recommended a cold-weather cousin, Niagara Falls. A two-day hotel stay ranged from $64 at the Brock Plaza, a short drive from the Falls, to $220 for two nights at the Marriott FallsView, which is 100 feet from the water's edge.

Another option: Phoenix for less than $550 per person, including airfare and hotel. Want to get out of the country? The site promised a sweet deal to Bermuda for $671.30, but couldn't deliver at that price until late January. You'd have to pay close to $1060 for a one-week vacation starting December 24 at the Sonesta Beach Hotel and Spa.

Last-Minute Luck

Lastminutetravel.com bills itself as an online shopping mall for spur-of-the-moment explorers. You can search for bargains today, tomorrow, or weeks ahead. You can look for flights to a specific destination or spin the wheel of chance and see whatever's available at the moment you click your mouse.

For example, using New Orleans as a base, a sample search for immediate travel on December 11 turned up roundtrip $310 fares to Kansas City on Continental and American with a return on December 16. Shift those travel dates to a December 13 departure and December 17 return, and the price more than doubles on United ($652.50).

Keep on top of special offers from your favorite carriers with e-mail newsletters. Many airlines, including Southwest, which isn't a part of Orbitz and Travelocity, update their specials weekly. Southwest offers $30 holiday fares for flights within Texas and California, plus destinations in the Midwest. You can sign up for e-mail notification on Southwest's Web site.

It really pays to be flexible when making plans to travel during the busy holiday season. The more bendable your schedule can be, then the more mileage you can squeeze out of your vacation dollar.