What's the Deal?
The week's best travel bargains around the globe, by land, sea and air.

Sunday, May 6, 2007

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LAND

* Paraiso de la Bonita, a 90-suite luxury property south of Cancun, Mexico, has a three-night Mayan Adventure Quest package that includes lodging, choice of one-day adventure excursion, a three-course dinner, 50-minute massage and midsize car rental for a day. Price starts at $1,899 per couple (plus 22 percent taxes and service fees) for stays through Dec. 19. Priced separately, rooms usually start at $695 per night, massages cost $127, the adventure tour costs $108, dinner about $40 and car rental about $22, for a total savings of about $758 per couple. All hotel stays include private airport transfers, breakfasts, welcome bottle of tequila and daily yoga classes. Info: 866-751-9175, http://www.paraisodelabonita.com/.

* Book a night at Glacier Bay Lodge, the only lodging in Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park, and get the second night free. The Twice as Nice package, good May 24-June 17, is $164 (including $14 taxes) for two nights single or double occupancy. The 56-room lodge on the shores of Bartlett Cove has kayaking, hiking, whale-watching and fishing. Info: 888-229-8687, http://www.visitglacierbay.com/.

* Golf is free at the Balsams Grand Resort Hotel in Dixville Notch, N.H., May 18-June 28 and Aug. 26-Oct. 14. Book a room Sunday-Thursday and play unlimited rounds of golf at either the 18-hole Panorama course or the nine-hole Coashaukee executive course. The $198-a-night deal for two includes breakfast. Priced separately, rooms usually start at $178 a night, a round of golf costs $30 at Coashaukee and $70 at Panorama, and breakfast is $20. Service fees and taxes are an extra 23 percent. Info: 866-380-6798, http://www.thebalsams.com/.

SEA

* A five-night kayaking trip from Port Hardy on British Columbia's Vancouver Island has been discounted by $100 per person. Sea Kayak Adventures Inc. has the deal for trips departing June 25 and July 9 and 16. Price starts at $1,650 per person double and includes lodging at God's Pocket Resort, meals, kayaks, guides and boat transport from Port Hardy to the resort. All experience levels welcome; instruction is provided. Taxes are 6 percent, but half is rebatable. Book by May 20. Info: 800-616-1943, http://www.seakayakadventures.com/.

* Save $200 per person when two or more sign up for a Learn to Sail course by the Offshore Sailing School on the Chesapeake Bay. The four-day course includes 90 minutes of classroom instruction and 3 1/2 hours of on-water instruction each day, plus four nights at the Inn at Perry Cabin in St. Michaels, Md. Price after discount is $1,567 per person double (including taxes). Course is offered Thursday-Sunday, with Wednesday check-in, June 14-Oct. 25. Book by June 15. Info: 800-221-4326, http://www.offshoresailing.com/.

* Norwegian Cruise Line is discounting its Oct. 28 cruise of the Norwegian Spirit from New York to New England and Canada by more than 50 percent. Rate for the six-night cruise is $499 per person double for an inside cabin (brochure rate was $1,099). Taxes are an extra $74 per person. The cruise visits Halifax, Nova Scotia; Bar Harbor, Maine; and Boston and Martha's Vineyard, Mass. Book by calling 866-234-0292 and mention promo code PGSD1.

AIR

* Planning an extended summer trip to Israel? El Al has sale fares of $1,115 round trip (plus $84 taxes) for nonstop travel between New York (JFK or Newark) and Tel Aviv. Depart July 1-24 and return Aug. 20-31. Nonstop fare on other airlines starts at about $1,436. Info: 800-223-6700, http://www.elal.com/.

* Get to Richmond International Airport to take advantage of $10 fares on Skybus, a new airline that will begin service May 23. The discount carrier will offer fares starting at $41 round trip (including $21 taxes) for nonstop service from Richmond to Columbus, Ohio. From there, you can hop a Skybus nonstop flight to Los Angeles starting at about $121 round trip (including $21 taxes); $10 seats to L.A. are sold out. The airline, which books only through its Web site, says it will offer 10 $10 seats on every flight aboard its fleet of 156-passenger Airbus A319s. Info: http://www.skybus.com/.

PACKAGES

* From May 7-12, book any of 60 escorted tour itineraries with General Tours World Traveler and get a $200-per-person discount. For example, a nine-night Peru Explorer tour, which visits Lima, Machu Picchu, Cuzco and the Sacred Valley, now starts at $2,324 per person double (taxes included) including airfare from Baltimore, lodging, tour guide, land transportation within Peru, 15 meals, several sightseeing tours and flights between Lima and Cuzco. AARP members receive an additional $100-per-person discount. Info: 800-221-2216, http://www.generaltours.com/.

* An eight-night escorted tour of Croatia and the Adriatic Sea has been reduced by $150 per person. Depart in July or August and the price is $2,599 per person double (plus about $150 taxes). The package, from Foreign Independent Tours, includes airfare from Washington Dulles to Dubrovnik, Croatia, with return from Zagreb, Croatia; eight nights' lodging in six hotels; breakfasts; five dinners; and motorcoach transportation with guide. Priced separately, air and hotels alone would cost about the same as the complete tour. Book by May 16. Info: 800-248-3487, http://www.fittours.com/.

-- Carol Sottili

Prices were verified and available on Thursday afternoon when the Travel section went to press. However, deals sell out quickly and are not guaranteed to be available. Restrictions such as day of travel, blackout dates and advance-purchase requirements sometimes apply.

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