Stop Laboring So Much To Pay For Travel

Travel is in the top 3 priorities for most Americans so how come most Americans never use all their vacation days? Too expensive to travel? Can't get time off? Overwhelming to plan a trip? Not sure where to go?

My goal is to show you that you can travel as a family and it does not need to cost a lot of money. But it does take some planning. Everything worth something takes planning and research, right?

Research about travel shows that we actually get pleasure from planning a trip and dreaming about places where we want to go. We enjoy the trip, of course, even if it doesn't go exactly as planned. Then research shows that we enjoy the memories of the trip for a long time after. 

So labor away, but then take time off and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Read my blog, ask questions and enjoy almost free family travel! 

Fly Cheap To Europe!!! WOW Air Sale

If you can be a spur of the moment traveller or even if you need to plan a few months in advance, you might check out the sale from discount airline WOW air.  WOW air is a discount airline out of Iceland which can be a plus since most of their flights make a stop in Reykjavik. Right now, you can find flights as low as $69 from the US to Europe. Sale prices are good for September, October and November.

I checked several routes and dates and found flights for $69-$99. The return varied from $149-$600.
WOW air will nickel and dime you for everything so you need to manage the fees or the ticket will end up costing you more. The airline will charge fees for carry on luggage, checked luggage, priority boarding and more. However, they are not charging for car seats and strollers. Nice surprise!
My cousin just flew WOW air from Newark to Dublin for a ridiculously low fare and she took just a small backpack for her free personal item.
We flew discount airline Norweigian Air this summer and had no problems. In fact, we had more issues on Austrian Air!

Earn Miles For Donating To Disaster Relief

The situation in Texas and Louisana is devastating to say the least. The rescue organizations say they are in need of cash to fund efforts and rebuilding. There are dozens of different ways to donate including earning miles for your donations. 

United Airlines and American Airlines are offering bonus miles if you choose to donate through their links.

United Airlines will give you 250 miles for a $50-$99 donation, 500 miles for a $100-$249 donation and 1000 miles for a $250+ donation. Use the link above. The offer expires September 15th 2017. 

American Airlines will give you 10x miles for your donation of at least $25. The offer expires September 24th 2017. Use the link above. 

Thank you for your help! 

Cash Back On My Solar Eclipse Hotel! Woot Woot

If you have been reading my blog for awhile, you know how much I love shopping portals. These are basically free money! There are dozens of them on the internet. Some operate as cash back portals, some offer frequest flier miles and some offer points. Depending on what your goals are, you can use one or a combination.
I tend to favor Ebates.com, American Airlines portal and the portal through my online grocery store. Between the 3 of those, I can earn cash back or American Airlines miles depending on what I need and what bonuses they are offering.
For the solar eclipse, I booked the Fairfield Marriott in Portland. I didn't have much choice since we were very late in making the plans.
But fortunately I was able to book through Ebates.com and at least earn almost $11 back.
Remember if I had booked the hotel directly, that $11 would have just vanished. I paid the same amount for the hotel, but I got $11 back. Nice! That's called almost free family travel.

*If you want to try Ebates.com, please use my link above. You will get $10 cash back after your first purchase.

Visiting London With A Teen On A Budget, Sort Of

London on a budget with a teen? It is possible and here's how to do it. We already covered flights in a previous post so let's start with hotels. Start with awardmapper.com to see if you can use your points or miles. FREE is, of course, always the goal! I couldn't find any good values for my points or miles for mid July. So I turned to bed and breakfast type hotels. I always look for breakfast included when travelling with my kids. If you start off with full tummies, it just makes the day better. 

Belgrave Road in London

There are a ton of budget hotels on Belgrave Road near the Pimlico metro stop. Most include breakfast and run about $100 per night for a private room and bathroom. We stayed at the Melbourne House. It is centrally located near a metro stop. Breakfast included croissant, cheese, meats, yogurt, fruit, coffee and orange juice. We even made sandwiches one day for lunch on the train. Only downside, there is no elevator! The farther out of town you go, the cheaper the hotels are, but you are out of town. 

From Heathrow, you can take the express train to Victoria metro station. Pick up an Oyster card in the to pay for the express train and pre-load it with funds. This makes riding the metro in London so much easier. You can use the automated machines to add funds. When you are ready to leave London, scan your card again so you get your deposit and unused funds back. 

Now what to do in London with a teenager. Where should we start? To be honest, I did not expect to like London as much as I did. It was quite a charming city with lots of places to walk. We started by walking by Buckingham Palace and through the nearby park. Then proceeded to walk to Big Ben. Of course, stopping for ice cream on the way. Be sure to include a chocolate flake on top of your ice cream!

The Tower Of London was a definite highlight of this visit. There are discount tickets online, but you may need to wait 30 minutes to recieve a confirmation email with your ticket voucher. You have to take the voucher to the customer service window to exchange it for tickets. The tower offers free walking tours every 1/2 hour and I highly recommend at least doing the 1 hour tour for a part of the time. Includes lots of good history. There is a separate line for the Crown Jewels exhibit, but it is included in your ticket price. Definitely take the time to see the exhibit which includes many crowns, scepters, and much more. 

We walked by Big Ben, River Thames, Westminster Abbey, Parliament Square and then hopped the metro to the theatre district, Picadilly Circus. FYI, Westminster Abbey closes at 3:30pm. The changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace happens at 11am. Checked out the 1/2 price booth near Leicester metro stop. There is a board in front that lists the shows available for that evening. We were able to pick up 2 tickets for 22.50 pounds each to see American In Paris. Awesome!

London with a teen is not complete without a day to the WB Tour, The Making of Harry Potter. I must admit that I have only read the first book, but this exhibit and tour is fascinating even for the non fan. You must book tickets online and in advance. I couldn't find any discounts so we just spent the money. When you buy your ticket, you are assigned a time to enter. Do not stress out if you are late or early. Once you arrive, you actually can enter within 30 minutes of your assigned time. You will need to take the train to Watford Junction. The train leaves from Victoria Station and you can buy tickets from the automated machines or the ticket window.  Tickets are 9 pounds there and 4 pounds to return. It can cost more during rush hour. The trains leave every 20 minutes or so and the train takes about 20 minutes. It took us 1.25 hours to reach Watford Junction. Once you arrive in Watford Junction, you will need to wait for the Harry Potter shuttle bus. The ride to the park is included in your ticket. The driver will ask you to pre pay your ride home so be sure to have 2.50 pounds per person.

You can bring your own food and drinks into the park. There is a cafe inside and it's not too overpriced. The tour begins with a guide who takes you through the grand hall and then it is a walking tour that you do at your own pace. There is a lot of reading about the different sets and costumes. Plan to spend about 3 hours at the park.
You can't be in London without enjoying high tea. We chose the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory High Tea at One Aldwych Hotel.  It is inspired by the hotel's partnership with the musical. This was definitely not almost free, in fact, for two of us, it cost about $115. Definitely a splurge, but worth it if you love chocolate. Starts with little sandwiches and then a dessert platter. Lots of interesting teas as well and a nice atmosphere.

So all total, we spent $400 for the hotel, $115 for the high tea, $100 for Harry Potter, $40 for the Tower Of London, $45 for a show and $100 for transportation. We ate fish and chips one night and at an inexpensive restaurant the other. You could spend less, but we enjoyed the splurges.

Southwest Increases Its Bonus! Companion Pass Time!

If the Southwest companion pass is on your wish list and it should be on everyone's wish list, then now is the time! Southwest just increased the bonus to 60,000 points on all 3 of its cards, Southwest Premier, Southwest Business and Southwest Plus. 

The difference between the 3 cards:
Southwest Plus - $69 annual fee, $2,000 minimum spend, 3,000 points on your anniversary
Southwest Premier - $99 annual fee, $2,000 minimum spend, 6,000 points on your anniversary
Southwest Premier Business - $99 annual fee, $3,000 minimum spend, 6,000 points on your anniversary

In order to qualify for the companion pass, you will need to open 2 of these cards. You want to time it so that you reach the minimum spend in early January. The beauty of the companion pass is that it is valid for the rest of the year you earn it and the following year.
You can use it for anybody who flies with you and you can change your companion 3x each calendar year.

I have had the companion pass for the last 3 years and have used it to go to the East Coast a few times with my daughter and I took my son to Washington DC and San Francisco. You can use it for international flights to. Southwest flies to the Caribbean, Mexico and Costa Rica.

And besides the companion pass, you will have earned yourself 125,000 Southwest points. Now that's almost free family travel!

Eurostar - How to find seats on a budget

Travelling from Paris to London couldn't be easier these days via the Eurostar high speed train. You can have breakfast in Paris and lunch in London. Amazing! I remember the old days when you had to take the train to the coast and then the ferry across. It was a 12 hour trek.
Couple of things you need to know to make your Eurostar experience a good one.
Book your ticket online early! Ticket sales open 60-90 days before the travel date. Check Eurostar.com for tickets and prices. The price will go up as it gets closer to the departure date. A friend of mine bought hers the day before and it cost $400 per seat. Ouch! If you book early, it will cost $45 per seat.
One of my favorite how to ride the rails website is seatguru61.com. By the way, the Eurostar train services London, Paris, Brussels and other cities in those countries.

The Eurostar leaves from Gare Du Nord in Paris and arrives at the Victoria train station in London. Arrive early for departure because you need to pass through passport control which took us almost an hour. Once on board, seats are comfortable and there is WIFI, but it is spotty. The train is very smooth even though you are travelling at 85 mph. In fact, it really doesn't feel like you are going that fast until you ride on a regular train.
So bottom line, book early and enjoy the ride!