Find budget hotels in Europe
The dollar keeps falling in relation to the euro, making European travel pricier than ever. There is help, however.
EuroCheapo.com, www.eurocheapo.com, a Web guide to budget hotels in Europe, has launched CheapoSearch, a personalized search tool created specifically for budget accommodations. Users can find and book small hotels, pensions, bed-and-breakfasts and hostels throughout Europe and compare rates from multiple reservation agencies.
Enter the city, country and date of your travels and, if possible, the part of the city you prefer, and the site will come up with many options, starting with Editor's Picks at the top of the list. A good, clear map with markers shows you where each hotel is located.
Checking Lisbon, Portugal, for example, for dates in October, one finds the Editor's Picks include the Easy Hotel, at $51 per night, and the Lisbon Poet's Hostel at $51.
Descriptions are brief but honest. If there are no views, or if the decor is spartan, this site will tell you, so there will be few unpleasant surprises.
Eurocheapo.com has an inventory of more than 25,000 good-value hotels across Europe. For Paris alone, there are more than 225 listed. Staff members select a hotel for the site only after showing up unannounced.
For an interesting article on how to pick the best cruise cabin, go to SmarterTravel.com, www.smartertravel.com, and click on Features to select "How to Pick the Best Cabin at Sea."
Staff writer Erica Silverstein gives both general tips and specific recommendations. She writes that NCL and Regent Seven Seas Cruises get best marks for overall deluxe cabins, and that Carnival and Holland America have the best standard cabins.
Best inside cabins are reported to be on Carnival, Disney Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean. She quotes Spencer Brown, editor of Cruise Critic, in his praise of Carnival: "Carnival's standard cabins are larger than average and well-equipped."
Read this article for many more tips before you book your next cruise.
Hyatt Hotels, www.hyatt.com, is offering a fourth night free at many of its resorts until Dec. 19. The Sunshine on Sale package offers a night free if you stay three at selected resorts in the U.S., Mexico and the Caribbean.
If you pay with an American Express card, you will also get a $50 Hyatt resort credit.
Go to the site and click on Specials and Packages. U.S. resorts included in this offer include some in Arizona, Florida, Colorado, California and Hawaii. After you select one to research, you can check availability and price instantly on the site.
In print
"Study Abroad, Travel & Vacation in College," by Stephanie M. Oxford, is published by Where in the World Publishing at $9.95. This is a small book, fewer than 150 pages, but it has everything you need for planning a study-abroad experience.
From setting your objectives and goals at the start to how to spend time in another country while you study there, it is full of practical tips. The author lays out a simple, step-by-step guide and offers handy checklists as well as tips for figuring how much money you might need.