Walt Disney World Resort looking for a few good moms
Is a trip to Walt Disney World Resort your idea of the perfect family vacation? Do you know where to find the one and only campfire marshmallow roast at Walt Disney World Resort? Have you ever been to one of the resort's baby-care centers to change and feed your little one? Or maybe you and your family have visited so often that others have said you could write a book filled with travel tips?
If so, Disney wants to hear from you.
As part of the Year of a Million Dreams, Disney is conducting a nationwide search for moms who have mastered the art of planning a Walt Disney World vacation. Twelve finalists will be selected to serve on the first-ever online Walt Disney World Moms Panel, where they will have the opportunity to share their knowledge of the resort and personal secrets of success with other families who are considering this vacation experience. In exchange, the 12 panelists will receive a six-day/five-night vacation to the Florida resort for themselves and three other guests.
Through Oct. 5, interested applicants can visit www.disneyworldmoms.com and explain, in 300 words or less, why they should be considered for the Walt Disney World Moms Panel. Disney will select panelists with children of various ages.
Allegiant adds new Rockford flights
If you're looking for low-cost, nonstop flights to Phoenix, Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando or St. Petersburg, rapidly growing Allegiant Airlines flies to those destinations from Rockford.
It might be worth the drive, because the airline's new fares to Mesa, Ariz., (near Phoenix) are as low as $158 round trip and to Fort Lauderdale they run just $138 round trip. The new service to those cities begins this winter.
Seats are easy to book at www.allegiantairlines.com where you'll also find information about days of the week on which these flights are flown (service is not daily).
Megabus introduces double deckers
Megabus (www.megabus.com/us or (877) 462-6342), a daily, express bus company that offers $1 fares, recently began its first double-decker bus service with an inaugural trip from Chicago to Minneapolis.
A subsidiary of Coach USA, Megabus purchased 17 wheelchair-accessible double-decker buses and will integrate them into already scheduled routes in Ann Arbor, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, St. Louis and Toledo by January 2008. The 79-passenger double-decker buses are 13.2 feet high and are equipped with seat belts for every passenger and two wheelchair spaces.
The Megabus double-decker bus trips have $1 tickets for a limited number of seats. Passengers are encouraged to book early to receive these low fares. After all $1 tickets have sold, prices increase incrementally.
Reservations are done via the Internet. For information on arrival and departure times, log onto www.megabus.com/us.
Earn up to 40,000 miles on American
It's the 20th anniversary of the Citi/AAdvantage credit card and AAdvantage members can earn up to 40,000 American Airlines AAdvantage bonus miles by signing up for the Citi Platinum Select/AAdvantage World MasterCard or the CitiBusiness/AAdvantage MasterCard with no annual fee for the first 12 months.
Depending on your spending habits, you might just walk away with 20,000 bonus miles. New card members will earn 20,000 bonus miles if they make $750 in purchases within four months of becoming a card member, which seems easy enough. But to earn the other 20,000 bonus miles, you'll have to charge $20,000 on the card over the next two years (spend $10,000 during the first and second year, and it'll net you 10,000 miles for each year).
In addition to earning one mile for every dollar spent, cardholders will earn double miles on American Airlines purchases.
To apply or for more information, visit www.citicards.com.
Caribbean cruise with local band
Fans of OD TAPO IMI Tropical Pop and Steel Drums, based in St. Charles, can take seven days and nights away from the Chicago winter by going on a cruise in the Western Caribbean with the band onboard the Carnival Glory from Feb. 23 to March 1.
OD TAPO IMI (which stands for Oil Drums That Are Pounded Out Into Musical Instruments) is best described as Jimmy Buffett meets Blue Man Group and blends percussion, guitar and vocals with pop music. The band opened for Jimmy Buffett's Midwest tour in 2006 and 2002. In addition, it has performed at the Taste of Chicago, Milwaukee's Summerfest, QVC Home Shopping Network and "CBS This Morning."
On the cruise, OD TAPO IMI's guests will be privy to exclusive onboard activities with the band, such as private poolside shows; a live band karaoke show where guests can sing their favorite island songs with the band; and a drum circle at sea using cans, pans, boxes, containers and more with the band's percussionist, Meg Thomas of Chicago. There also will be a kids-only concert on the kids' deck with songs such as "Lion Sleeps Tonight," "Under the Sea," "Jump in the Line" that will blend in education about steel drums and their history. A Bang on the Drum seminar will offer guests a chance to learn about steel drums as well as the history of the band.
As of Sept. 6, cruise prices started at $735 per person and included all band activities plus taxes, port fees, gratuities and meals.
For more information about the cruise, contact Randi Closson of Lincolnshire Cruises & Tours at (800) 636-2469 or e-mail randiclosson@tds.net. Guests must book through Lincolnshire Cruises in order to participate in the onboard activities.
More information about the band can be found at www.FunConcert.com or (630) 584-4848.
Reach George Hobica athobica@gmail.com, Kim LiangTan at KimLiangTan@aol.comor visit www.airfarewatchdog.com.