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Searching for the best fares ?for your next vacation? Check these new ?sites for great deals
Surf your way to your dream travel deal
A few new sites offer tools that make booking travel, or just travelling in general, an altogether better and more efficient experience.
TruPrice: This search engine computes airline fee information for you, eliminating unexpected surprises. It saves you from getting to the end of your booking and being hit with a host of extra fees. You won’t necessarily save on those fees here, but TruPrice allows you to quickly and easily find the total cost of a fare without going through the entire booking process. The site is quite new and only works for about 14 airlines, all U.S.-based, but it will definitely be useful when you’re booking that next trip into the United States. InsideTrip: A great site that provides a rating for flights based on 12 factors in three categories: speed, ease and comfort. It compares thousands of flights around the world, letting you know what to expect when it comes to on-time stats, common connection times, lost-baggage occurrences, amount of leg room and a number of other flight details.
Stash Hotel Rewards: If you like earning loyalty points for your hotel stay, but can’t seem to find a hotel program or online system that works for you, check out this site. It’s a free service similar to Hilton’s HHonors or the Marriott Rewards programs, but it’s mainly for independent boutique hotels. The property roster is still a bit thin, with only 76 hotels in 57 cities, but they expect to have about 200 by the end of the year. There are some great deals to be had at some fantastic, one-of-a-kind properties. Keep in mind that rate and point amounts vary by property.
Off & Away: At this travel site, you can bid on unparalleled luxury hotel stays at huge discounts in some of the most beautiful cities across the U.S. Users must purchase packs of one-dollar bids and use them toward the auction. If you win at auction, you get to choose from a wide range of available dates for your stay — the only stipulation is that you book within 24 hours of the auction.
New travel websites are popping up all the time. A little bit of surfing can save you a lot of money and hassle, so give it a try next time you’re in the market for a vacation.
If you’re primarily searching for deals, browse these sites for travel bargains:
Momondo — offers low airfares
BreezeNet — offers cheap car rentals
HotelsCombined — offers cheap hotel rooms
Hostelz — offers hostel stays around the world
CruisesOnly — offers low-priced cruises
HomeAway — offers vacation homes and apartment rentals
Originally published in TV Week. For daily updates, subscribe to the free TV Week e-newsletter, or purchase a subscription to the weekly magazine.