Fares and Finds

Travel Tips and Deals for Maritimers

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Finding An Affordable Week In Europe Despite High Airfares

When checking Google Flights, it seems that low fares Halifax to Europe in the next few months are relatively scarce. In spite of that, I set out to find a few examples of week-long trips to Europe that are less than $1500 per person for flight and accommodation. Instead of just hunting for the cheapest airfares, I looked for interesting places where you can find good lodging at a reasonable price. [Read more…]

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Air Miles Round-Up Contest (Aug. 6 – Sept. 15, 2019)

It’s a collection of Air Miles coupons. If you use offers at 3 different partners you get 1 contest entry and 5 offers will get you 3 entries. You are limited to 3 entries max. The prize is a package of 5 $100 gift cards chosen from various Air Miles partners. The country is divided into 4 regions and there will be 125 winners in each area. Check out all the details on the contest website. I suspect a few collectors were hoping for a repeat of the “Pack To School” promotion. That doesn’t seem very likely now. [Read more…]

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I Bought A SPIbelt – A Travel Item I Didn’t Know Existed

A few weeks ago Mountain Equipment Co-op emailed me a coupon code for $10 off a purchase either in-store or online. At first I was going to let it pass because free shipping requires a $50 minimum purchase. Picking up at the store would necessitate a trip to Halifax and I didn’t know when that would happen. Fortunately, I received another email about a one day promo for free shipping with no spending requirement. So I looked around the website and discovered an interesting potential purchase. [Read more…]

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We Booked A WestJet Member Exclusive Fare – Was It The Right Move?

I recently wrote about the annual passholder discount for the onsite hotels at Universal Studios in Orlando. The 3 hotels in the premier category offer the added perk of unlimited express access to many attractions in the parks. Upon finding 2 nights at the lowest rate, we made a speculative booking. We also booked a nearby Doubletree on Hilton points for the arrival night. A couple of days ago we went ahead and booked a flight. [Read more…]

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Interesting Stopovers On One-Way Alaska Miles Flights From Halifax

I previously wrote about ways you can collect and use Alaska Mileage Plan miles. The flights for which you can redeem these miles are relatively few out of Halifax. Still, within those options are further opportunities to maximize the value of your miles by including an extra destination in your trip. Alaska Mileage Plan generously allows one to add a free stopover on a one-way redemption. I played around on the Alaska Airlines website to see what possibilities exist and there are some interesting ones. [Read more…]

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Universal Orlando Hotel AP Rates – Confusion, Perseverance And Deals

About a year ago we booked 2 nights at one of the 3 deluxe onsite hotels at Universal Orlando as part of a short December trip. We took advantage of a great opportunity to get a rate that is somehow both a bargain and a splurge. Our other nights were spent at a nearby Best Western on points. It worked out so well that we decided to try again this year. However, the website is doing strange things. We did eventually find a rate similar to last year so we made a speculative cancellable booking in case we decide to do a repeat trip. [Read more…]

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Cheap Flights Halifax To Europe In October (Mix And Match One-Way Fares)

Sometimes you need to get a little creative to figure out a good flight deal to Europe. A nice thing about WestJet and Condor is the ability to book a one-way flight at a reasonable fare. This allows you to combine separate flights on different airlines into one reasonably priced trip. In contrast, if you look at one-way fares to Europe on Air Canada your search for a deal will hit a dead end very quickly. While checking today I noticed a few great one-way fares in October. [Read more…]