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Travel Inspiration

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Times Square, Nov 2012

Greetings!

This page contains an eclectic list of trip reports, rants, destination guides, and other fun stuff to help get your travel planning juices flowing. Don’t forget about Pinterest, which is also a great source.

Dear Deal Mommy

How Many Tours is Too Many?

Are all-inclusive resorts a good deal?

Can a family of 4 do a 10 day summer vacation in Europe for $5,000 without miles?

I need a New Year’s Getaway!

Help me Take my Granddaughter to the Macy’s Parade!

Parenting on the Fly

Before you rent a car with a kid, learn from my 60 seconds of terror

Babies, toddlers, and flying: the real poop

Breaking all the Rules

Drone Parenting, or why I threw my kids off a mountain in Guatemala

You just might be 3rd Culture if…

Moms on a Boat

The Choices I make; The choices I don’t

Embracing your inner Griswold

Alanis Morisette, Homework, and Miles When They Matter

Travel and The Deal Kids

Chasing the Amazing Race

Camp Mom Does Vegas

Travel Lessons from 1st Graders

Deal Girl’s Christmas Wish

Deal Girl meets the Bidet (Paris)

The Horrid Adrenalini Deal Kids (Ireland)

The Real Reason I do all this (New York City)

When Toys Imitate Art Imitate Travel (Guatemala)

Epiphany, Electrified (Austria)

Deal Kids, meet Pedro: Adventures South of the Border (Carolina)

Up in the Air

3 tips that saved me $856 on a plane ticket

Why my In-Laws from Iowa have Status in a Greek Frequent Flyer Program

Profiling, but not what you think. Would you board a plane with someone who is clearly drunk?

Sometimes First Class is Cheaper than Coach

An Ode to Avios

Arrive late for your connection? At least Lufthansa will take care of you!

Turkish Airlines gives kids 1000 free miles. 6 reasons why you should care

A no-brainer way to save on airport parking

Hotel Hacks

Luxury Link: $50 off invite credit and Deal Mommy Tested

Jetsetter: a luxury hotel site that hands out credits like candy

3 hotel chains that are suprisingly good overseas

The two magic words (and one quick webform) that get me Hotel upgrades for free!

My 10 stay shortcut to IHG Club Platinum! hint: buy points at .2 cents each

IHG Pointbreaks for Real Life: Sanity Savers

Where Hotels are all the Same, Details Matter

Marriott Megabonus: 2 nights O’Hare Airport = Free Stay in a 700 year old Convent in Grenada

Here is why I always tip housekeeping

A Club Carlson Gold Benefit No One Talks About

Gilded Cage Syndrome

Honey, Hyatt Blew Up the Toiletries!

Credit Card Faves

Mastercard Priceless: Freebies and Deals you might not know about!

The single best Ultimate Rewards points redemption value

A Credit Card Bonus I love: concert venue perks

American Express FHR: Hotel Steals!

SPG Auctions: Cirque de Soleil day

Transportation

A Trick I Learned to Save on Amtrak with Kids

Megabus: Not just for the Big Apple Anymore

Need a taxi to the airport? Rent a car instead!

The Deal Mommy Guide to Car Rentals

Firefly: Hertz’s discount little sister, and your $9.99 BFF

When NOT to Priceline your car rentals, and my tips for success when you do

 

Tips and Tricks

Facing the Fear: Lessons Learned from 20 Years of Solo Travel

4 Takeaways from the 2014 DC Travel Adventure Show

2013 in Numbers: How The Deal Family Traveled, and How We Did It Without Going Broke

Destination Anywhere?

Goldstar: Cheap and free event tickets nationwide

Instant Inspiration: Travel Guides to Anywhere, USA

My secret weapon to slash museum costs

When Politics Disrupt Your Plans

Traveling during Rainy Season? Bookmark this page!

The question I ask before taking advantage of any travel deal

Do you take Oblications? Here are some tips to save!

How I rent excess time share for $249 a week.

When is an experience worth full retail? Here is how I decide.

Here’s how I got 24 nights of summer vacation in 2012 for $2124!

Do good for FREE: give a $25 loan from Kiva to a group you choose.

Travel Tools and Gear

Learn 5 languages for free

My $7 Security Solution

Eagle Creek’s Lifetime Guarantee on my 1995 Honeymoon suitcase.

Destinations

USA

Colorado

Aveda Institute Denver Review: My 1/2 off Spa Secret

Florida

Trip Report: Hampton Inn and Suites Vilano Beach/St. Augustine

Trip Report: Coconut Palms Beach Resort II

The Deal Mommy Guide to Orlando:

Do NOT visit Disney before checking out this site

Lodging without breaking the bank

Here is how I save on tickets!

Saving money on Souvenirs

The Free Disney World Character Meal

The coolest playground on Earth? The Rocket Garden @Nasa_Kennedy gets my vote!

Angry Birds at Kennedy Space Center: Genius, Idiocracy, or both?

Illinois

Sleeping at McDonalds (Hyatt Lodge at Hamburger U)

Is this the Best Museum Store in the World?

Maryland

Holiday Inn Solomons Island Trip Report

Baltimore Aquarium: the perfect two hour tour

Trip Report: Brookshire Suites Baltimore

Inn at Perry Cabin Trip Report

Nevada

Landry’s Select: Vegas Freebies

Hard Rock Hotel Trip Report

TheHotel at Mandalay Bay Trip Report

Excalibur Trip Report, including 3 Tips especially for Mlife Platinums

New York

Radisson Martinique trip report

Top tips to save on tickets and attractions in New York City

Downtown with Kids: The Strand Bookstore and Peanut Butter and Company

Macy’s Parade for Less!

NYC for the Holidays? Mastercard piles on the Freebies!

Pennsylvania

Park Inn, Harrisburg, PA, an Unexpected Treat

Virginia

Hampton Crowne Plaza trip report

Washington DC

Cherry Blossom Viewing Tips from a 20 year veteran

Caribbean

Planning a #vacation during #hurricane season? Here is what you NEED to know!

Dreamin of Atlantis? Here’s a tip that will save you $ and earn you points to boot!

Canada

Residence Inn Montreal Westmount trip report

2013 is the year you MUST visit Quebec City: Last summer for free Cirque de Soleil shows!

Mexico

Mexico, aqui vengo!

Mexico City Salvation

Cielito Lindo

Extreme Slugbug, World Peace, and Chickens

Panama

The Airport Where Everybody Knows Your Name

Europe

Traveling through Europe with Kids 15 or Under? Use this Trick to get ALL of them around for free!

Planning a Trip on the Eurostar? 4 Mistakes I Made So You Don’t Have To

Plus Size in Europe? Here are my favorite stores!

Before you book a train ticket in Europe with kids, you MUST ask this question!

Driving with Kids 12 or Under? Read this Post to Avoid a Nasty Surprise

Camp Mom 2013: 11 days in Europe for $1420

England
$112/night abbey hotel near London

France

Radisson Paris Blu Bologne Trip Report

Hyatt Paris Etoile Review Part 1, Part 2 Part 3

Ireland

Top 5 reasons Belfast is better than Dublin

Ireland Car Rental: A Nasty Bit of Fine Print that Could Ruin Your Vacation

Poppin’ Tags in Belfast

Dromoland Castle trip report

How we got from Boston to Dublin for 25K miles round trip!

The Best Meal We Ate in Dublin Faced the Bedding Department

Austria

Our $84/night Austrian Castle

Charlemange’s Strudel

Italy

Luxury Link: Here’s the one I picked.

Canary Islands

Ritz Carlton Tenerife review

Asia

Pay with a Kit Kat on a Japanese Train

My $18/night Bangkok Apartment, AKA Why are you using points in South East Asia again? (Thailand)

Bali? No Way! (Indonesia)

Souvenir Stories

Garrett’s Popcorn (ORD)

I’m a Bag Lady

Misha Bear (Poland)

My Favorite Souvenir from Bangkok (Thailand)

The Joys of European Newsstands

The Scent of Ireland is NOT Found on a Bus Tour

Rants

Would you fly around the world in 4 days just because it’s cheap?

What’s the “Deal”? Not this clunker to Hawaii, Washington Post Travel!

The Mid Atlantic Beach vacation is a total waste of money.

When 1 Euro is just too much

Get over yourselves, haters!

“Hot Hawaii Deals from $216 a night!” Really, Fodors?

Coca Cola Promotion goes horribly wrong, prints slur on bottle cap

True Deal Mommy Confessions

On Solo Travel as a Mom and Wife

Eis Capades (Germany)

Geography Fail

Camp Mom 2013 Recap: Holy Crap, it worked! (Europe)

Hopeless! (Tenerife)

On Children’s Day, Sweet Potatoes, and a Trunkful of Cocaine (China)

Missoni, a Love Story

I wish I had known…

The Deal Mommy Origin Story, or how Points Saved my Sanity

The Real World” and The Real World

There will never be another 22 (or 32, or 42…)

Lessons learned from 2 years of blogging