Jaunted - Tag: Summer Travel

Airlines Slashing Prices Deeper Than Usual For Fall

Omri — 2009-08-21T14:49:38-05:00

It's been a rough summer for the airlines and the upcoming fall doesn't look much better. Leisure travel is down and business travel, usually the airlines' bread and butter, is way down. The industry is responding the way industries respond to this sort of thing:

Airlines are cutting fares deeper than usual this fall in an effort to fill seats. American and Southwest both launched fare sales this week, and United is running several sales, too. While it's common for airlines to use discounts to fill planes during the slower fall travel months, the discounts this year are deeper and more widely available than last fall, said FareCompare.com CEO Rick Seaney.

The bargains aren't as enticing as what the airlines were doing right after the recession hit, but they're still objectively deep cuts and much better than anything you could have gotten last year.

The First Family Packs Their Bags For An Old-Fashioned Western Road Trip

kjb — 2009-08-11T09:14:06-05:00

It won't be too old-fashioned however, as we’re thinking that they won’t be taking the family station wagon to get to the National parks they're visiting next weekend. President Obama and his crew will be hitting up some of the country’s natural gems including the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone. The trip hopes to highlight the national park system and encourage everyone to get out there and enjoy the great outdoors.

The visit coincides with the park service’s fee free weekend, so the Obamas are clearly trying to save a couple of bucks. For regular park visitors this isn’t the best timing. The parks are probably going to be packed, especially at the Grand Canyon, where the normal entrance fee is $25 per carload. Add in a little security detail in preparation of the President’s arrival, and there’s going to be a big traffic mess.

Obama will be bringing his town hall style meetings with him, and will probably be chatting up the masses about his ideas regarding health care. He’ll also be swinging through Phoenix to speak at the VFW convention. Maybe after he’s done speaking, he’ll get a spot in line at one of our favorite pizza spots.

Related Stories:
· First Family to Visit National Parks [CBS News]
· Three For Free: Summer Weekends at 100 National Parks [Jaunted]
· Presidential Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Ken Lunc]

Port d' Hercule: Kaboom! International Fireworks Competition Takes The Sky In Monaco

egw — 2009-07-13T16:44:17-05:00

While stateside the year's highlights on the field of fireworks have already faded from the sky, this year's International Fireworks Competition is only getting started. The Monaco-based tourney kicked off last week with a €100,000 prize and high-powered bragging rights at stake.

Portugal and France face off against last year's champion Austria at the deep-water Port d'Hercule. The display with the best style, color, special effects and synchronization with music will get a repeat performance in November for Monaco's national holiday. Who knew the genteel principality was such a fan of the ol' boom boom pow?

Start strategizing your seat for the performances by Austria (July 24 at 10 and August 9 at 9:30) and France (August 23 at 9:30). Call the Jardin Exotique, which will be open free that night for viewing from its hillsides, at (377) 93 15 29 80 to reserve a seat if your yacht won't be available.

Related Stories:
· International Fireworks Festival [VisitMonaco.com]
· Daytime Fireworks, Cake, and "National Treasure" For The Fourth [Jaunted]
· Fireworks Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: pasujoba]

Are You Flying More This Summer Because of Cheap Airfare?

juliana — 2009-07-08T17:15:06-05:00

Even with all the checked baggage fees that make us cranky beyond belief, airlines have surprised us this summer by putting out some crazy affordable air fares, particularly amongst the LCCs.

JetBlue has their "cheep" fares and Southwest essentially is letting you pay per mile later this fall. But quite a few of the big airlines have come up with good deals to Europe and Hawaii so far this summer (provided that you're flexible and flying out of the right hub, of course.) Indeed, FareCompare.com says that air fares are 63 percent cheaper this month than last year.

We here at Jaunted have done a healthy mix of traveling between planes, trains and automobiles. But we're more interested in you. So tell us--provided that you were never down with "staycationing" in the first place--do you find yourself flying more this summer rather than road-tripping, busing it or taking the train?

Let us know how you have been traveling this summer in comments below!

Related Stories:
· Are You Still Going to Europe This Summer? [Jaunted]

Bare It All This Weekend At Our Top 3 US Nude Beaches

JetSetCD — 2009-07-01T14:32:20-05:00

This weekend may be Independence Day, but hopefully it'll be hot and sunny enough on both coasts to celebrate a little something else: freedom from clothing. We've run through our rolodex of scandalous vacations locations to retrieve the the best nude beaches, one for each side of the country and a bonus for Miami.

· Gunnison Beach in Sandy Hook, NJ
This is the clothing-optional mecca of the East Coast, since it's designated as the largest such beach and even offers police protection over the 5,000 or so visitors who drop trou here every summer weekend. Best of all, the nudity here is legal and within comfortable range of New York City for...you know...showing off your lack of tan lines at a cocktail bar.

Finland's Throwing A Crayfish Party, And Everybody's Invited

amandak — 2009-06-30T08:47:19-05:00

Music festivals, swamp soccer and wife-carrying—there's already so much to do in Finland over summer, and the country continues to attract us in very clever ways, this time going straight for our stomachs.

August and September are crayfish season in Finland, and we've just realized we don't want to miss out on a Finnish-style crayfish party. These shindigs feature, of course, crayfish galore, and lip smacking and finger licking as you try to get the most meat out of your crayfish. But thats not all: "Essential ingredients of a successful crayfish party are a merry mood and schnapps songs." Aside from overdosing on crayfish, you can get drunk with the Finns and sing songs about beautiful women and beautiful crustaceans.

Wikipedia warns us there is now a limited supply of crays left in Finland and many are imported from the US or China, so perhaps taking a night-time crayfish-catching tour is a good strategy—they're easy to book during the summer season. You might however need to take your own schnapps with you.

Related Stories:
· Finland Makes Most of Summer Sunshine With a Slew of Music Festivals [Jaunted]
· Wanna Play Swamp Soccer? Head to Finland This Summer [Jaunted]

[Photo: villoks]

Mammoth Lakes: Tear Up California's Mammoth Mountain On Your 10-Speed

kjb — 2009-06-26T09:17:17-05:00

Everyone knows that residents of California love their cars, but they’re probably stuck in them a little too much. That’s why we're looking to some offroading at Mammoth Mountain, just of the two-wheeled, human-powered variety. The ski resort has a lot to offer when the weather is warmer, and their mountain bike park has just opened for the season. Even without your car, you’ll be able to fulfill your need for speed with their downhill runs.

Of the different trails and runs for cyclists of all levels, both the Paper Route and Downtown runs will take it easy on you, while the Twilight Zone and Kamikaze represent the more black diamond options. With over 90 miles of trails, you should be able to find one you like, just remember your helmet and pads.