Calling all trip planning gurus!

[trillionaire]

So, I''ve only been to MX and Jamaica, and FI has only been to Jamaica, but we''d like to plan a trip somewhere other than those places...

Where could we go for $3-4K??? I really have no idea, we''ve never done a big vacay that wasn''t with our families!

Anywhere in the Caribbean, South America/Latin America, Europe are options! I think the other continents are out of our budget for now...

any suggestions or great deals that anyone knows of? Good companies to use, etc?


Thanks!!!

 

[Loves Vintage]

In what month are you planning to travel, and what would you like to do when you are there? Nature and hiking? Beach and relaxing? City and museums? Country and quiet? A combination?

 

[princesss]

You could do Madrid and Barcelona pretty easily on that budget (it''s still too early to book tickets for after your elopement, but a month beforehand tickets from DC are $790/pp non-stop on Air Lingus).

 

[trillionaire]

Date: 10/9/2009 4:17:35 PM
Author: Loves Vintage
In what month are you planning to travel, and what would you like to do when you are there? Nature and hiking? Beach and relaxing? City and museums? Country and quiet? A combination?

FI says he doesn''t care what we do He did say Alaska was out, lol. We''re just really excited to travel, so neither of us are bing very choosy... How are prices for fall travel? We haven''t decided on a firm date yet, so we''re wide open to possibilities...

 

[trillionaire]

Date: 10/9/2009 4:21:21 PM
Author: princesss
You could do Madrid and Barcelona pretty easily on that budget (it''s still too early to book tickets for after your elopement, but a month beforehand tickets from DC are $790/pp non-stop on Air Lingus).

Oooohh! Spain would be incredible! I''ll definitely have to look into that! NON-stop would be amazing!

 

[Mara]

we did 2 weeks in spain this summer, which was really fun, we used miles for airfare but depending on when you go you can get some great deals. we had friends who went in spring (may) and got like $300 pp airfare... but they had 3 legs. they didn't care, it was so cheap.

hotels for us for about 12 nights were about $1600 but i shopped around and tried to get the best deals for like 2 months...we had 2 four+ star hotels and they were only like 110 euro a night. they also spent around that in spring. we went to madrid, barca and portugal. i booked everything myself.

note that barcelona is the most expensive out of all the cities in spain, hotels CAN run you like $500 depending on when you go. again my friends went in spring and it was cheaper than our trip in summer. www.tablehotels.com is one of my favorite boutique hotel booking sites. we also used www.venere.com.

i priced out greece and for the same time period it was like 3-4k. i know italy can be pricey but depends on when you go. same for paris, hotels can be like $200-300 a night to start with.

we loved tahiti when we honeymooned there and the trip was like $3500 for 7 days in moorea. i think there are some deals right now too.

the one thing i would say is you should factor in spending while you are there on the trip as well to your mental budget. like while we used miles for our airfare and got the hotels at a deal, dinners in spain were expensive...we spent about $2k while traveling. so it's not just about the trip itself but how much you spend while there...it's hard to have a frugal mentality when you are on vacation!

 

[princesss]

Spain''s great (I''m biased, though, having studied there for 4 months). Mara''s right about meals adding up, but I know in Spain you can just order the "menu" (meh-NOO) and you get the daily special which is a set menu for pretty cheap. They advertise them outside, so you know what you''re getting. Then you can spend that extra $$ on sangria!

I''d definitely try to travel in fall - off peak can save you tons of money, and it''s beautiful. Plus you don''t get all sticky and sweaty when you''re walking around.

 

[Inanna]

I'm going to throw it out there that you can save on lodging and food by getting a vacation rental house/apartment. You have the option of preparing your own meals and it generally gives you a more "authentic" vacation experience - you're living like a local! I've had great experiences with VRBO.com and they list vacation rentals around the world (do be sure to choose a place with at least a few reviews if you go this route though). Here is an apartment in Barcelona for 600 EU for the an entire week: http://www.vrbo.com/188882

 

[chiapet]

A few airlines (like Singapore airlines and JAL) are offering special deals to Japan right now: $899 includes flight and 4-nights hotel stay, with the option to extend your vacation if you want. The promotion runs from now until March 2010.
How about Puerto Rico or Dominican Republic? Not that expensive and close by.

 

[serenitydiamonds]

Date: 10/9/2009 4:04:27 PM
Author:trillionaire
So, I''ve only been to MX and Jamaica, and FI has only been to Jamaica, but we''d like to plan a trip somewhere other than those places...


Where could we go for $3-4K??? I really have no idea, we''ve never done a big vacay that wasn''t with our families!


Anywhere in the Caribbean, South America/Latin America, Europe are options! I think the other continents are out of our budget for now...


any suggestions or great deals that anyone knows of? Good companies to use, etc?



Thanks!!!

I would suggest Costa Rica, it''s extreme beautiful, adventurous if you want, and completely relaxing. Here is a hotel I stayed on which is right on the water, and the beach is empty. Nearby you can do horseback riding on the beach and if you like adventure you can pop into some rain forest or volcanoes which are 2 or so hours away.

http://www.pelicanbeachfronthotel.com/

Here''s a picture I took from the place you eat breakfast, you can see the beach in teh background.

--Joshua

 

[tyty333]

We did St. Johns last year...it was really beautiful. Very small island and mostly a national park. Lots of snorkeling and
pretty beaches. Very relaxing. We stayed in our own Villa. It was really nice. I believe they have a Westing and a
Marriot there if you want the resort feel. You fly in to st. Thomas so you can also spend some time on that island.

Atlantis in the Bahamas is a cool place too if you sort of want to stay on a resort.

 

[trillionaire]

Thank you all for your suggestions! I feel like a kid in a candy store, how fun and exciting!

Gosh, I''m really getting the travel itch! FI''s parents leave today for Fiji! (jealous!!!)

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your help! More suggestions are always welcome! You all have the BEST ideas!

Has anyone heard of or used the Lonely Planet books for travelling? Someone recommended them to me, but I''ve never even heard of them...

 

[tyty333]

No, I have never used that site...I just wanted to mention tripadvisor.com. You probably already know about
it but just in case. Lots of good (and some bad) reviews on places/hotels. I always double check with them
before booking anywhere.