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

Sunday, March 23, 2008

LAND

* Palace Resorts, a collection of 10 all-inclusive properties in Mexico's resort areas, is offering several discounts for summer travel, including a kids-stay-free promo and an early-booking deal. Prices vary by resort and date. For example, a family of four with two children age 12 and younger sharing a room at the Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort in Cancun pays $2,538 for seven nights in mid-July; price is normally $3,343. Book by April 18. Info: 800-635-1836, http://www.palaceresorts.com.

* Purchase a Eurail Select Pass of six, eight or 10 days and receive a free day of travel. Book by March 31; valid for up to six months from booking date. Prices vary. For example, a seven-day pass good in three adjoining countries over a two-month period is $445 per person double ($519 single). Also, from March 25-31, book Eurail passes costing $500 or more through Railpass (877-724-5727, http://www.railpass.com) and receive a 12-language phrase book and rail map worth $22.

SEA

* Book a Princess cruise tour to Alaska through eCruises.com and receive a $400 per-cabin shipboard credit. Deal is good on select 11-, 12- and 13-day itineraries. Prices vary. For example, a 12-day package departing Vancouver, B.C., on May 31 that includes a seven-day cruise on the Sapphire Princess and a five-day Alaska land tour is $1,877 per person double (taxes included); the cruise line is charging $1,965. Book by March 31. Info: 800-223-6868, http://www.ecruises.com.

* Already booked on a cruise? Viator is offering 8 percent discounts on shore excursion bookings of $200 or more. For example, a four-hour SUB (Scenic Underwater Bubble) Bahamas Adventure, usually priced at $103 per person, is $190 for two after the discount; booked through the cruise line, the excursion is about $119 per person. Book by April 30 at http://www.viator.com using promo code SHORETRIP.

* General Tours World Traveler has discounted its Delights Along the Danube cruise by $1,250 per person. The Sept. 14-21 cruise aboard the MV Mozart starts at $2,749 per person double and includes daily shore excursions, such as a private concert by the Vienna Boys Choir; unlimited wine with dinner; airport transfers from Munich; and port charges and taxes. Info: 800-221-2216, http://www.generaltoursevents.com/danube.

AIR

* JetBlue has sale fares of $64 to $179 each way from Washington Dulles. Round-trip fare for nonstop service to San Diego, for example, is $319, including $21 in taxes; fare for nonstop flights on other airlines is about $475. Travel April 2-May 14; 14-day advance purchase required. Book by Thursday at http://www.jetblue.com, or pay $10 more by calling 800-538-2583.

* Fly nonstop from New York to Pisa, Italy, for $809 round trip, including $46 in taxes. Delta is offering the sale on flights April 1-May 15, with a return by June 14. Monday-Thursday travel is cheapest. Book by tomorrow. Connecting flights on other airlines start at $866. Buy at http://www.delta.com, or pay $20 more by calling 800-221-1212.

PACKAGES

* A six-night South Africa in Style package is priced from $1,999 per person double (plus $321 in taxes) for departures in May, Sept. 16-30 and Dec. 1-15. The South African Airways Vacations deal includes round-trip airfare from Dulles to Cape Town, with return from Hoedspruit; four nights at any of three five-star hotels in Cape Town; two nights at the Jackalberry Lodge in the Timbavati Private Game Preserve; some meals; game drives; and transfers. Priced separately, air and hotels alone would cost about $635 more per person. Info: 888-722-4872, http://www.flysaavacations.com.

* Receive a $100 prepaid American Express card per reservation on Bahamas vacations of seven nights or longer if purchased at Bookit.com by today. (Book four to six nights and receive a $50 card). Travel April 1-June 15. For example, a package in early May that includes round-trip airfare from Reagan National and seven nights at the Atlantis Resort & Casino on Paradise Island is $2,903 per couple, a savings of about $111. Additionally, purchase a package of three or more nights by today and qualify for a $200 cash rebate from the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism ( http://www.nassauparadiseisland.com). Info: 888-782-9722, http://www.bookit.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.