Bargain Biatch

Top Online Travel Sites

2009-11-09T09:17:09-05:00

Before I even think spending one dime or even one of my (mom’s) frequent flier miles, I always take a trip into cyberspace and surf the web for deals. In addition to my old favorites like Sidestep, Kayak, Cheap Tickets, Travelocity, Trip Advisor and Booking Buddy, here’s a new list of my newest top five.

Dealbase: Featured on the Today Show as one of their top go-to websites, it compiles package deals from thousands of hotels, newsletters, rewards clubs, and online travel agencies, and then pulls apart their components, pricing them à la carte to let you know how much you’re really saving.

Bing Travel: Formerly Farecast.com, now backed by Microsoft it works and looks even better. It forecasts whether fares on major domestic routes will go up or down. It’s super sumple and uses a seven-day Price Predictor to give research-backed recommendations about whether you should book now or wait until fares drop.

Tripkick: Like seatguru.com , which guides fliers to the best seats on airplanes, this site gives travelers the inside scoop on the best hotel rooms based on view, noise level, size and even bathroom layout.

Luxury Link: Bid on luxury resorts and the best deals are if your dates are flexible. It’s kind of like eBay for travel and packages are about 65 percent off. And if you don’t want to bid, there’s a “buy now” feature.

Gas Buddy: Reported and updated by regular drivers, the site lists stations and their gas prices (for all fuel grades, including diesel) by state, city, or ZIP code. The interactive Trip Cost Calculator helps drivers plot their route according to which places have the best fuel prices for their vehicle type.

TKTS, Half Off Fela, Such A Deal

2009-11-06T14:39:28-05:00

Give my regards to Broadway, for a discount that is. The TDF/TKTS offerings have been great. Their daily emails to announce what’s on the board have included In the Heights (30% off), South Pacific (40% off) and Oleana, Hair and Burn The Floor slashed 50 percent. At the Brooklyn booth I scored great orchestra tickets to Fela for half off and wanted to catch the new version of the last years off Broadway Show production.

And what an entertaining, booty shaking, foot stomping show it was. From the time you hit the door you knew it was gonna be a party. The music was pumping and the performers were already dancing and grooving. The show was about the life of indomitable Fela Kuti and followed the path of his life and music and the inspiration for both. And you can’t really separate the man form his music which was a socially conscious expression of fighting for what he believed in and against the greed and corruption of the Nigerian overnment. And he also believed in free communal love and smoking a whole lotta weed. Even if you’re not familiar with Fela, the sheer energy of the show, the music, fantastic choreography and beautiful dancers will have you jumping out your seat. Too many standout performances to mention but special praise for Sahr Ngaujah in the title role.

Winter Getaways: Book Your Fun In the Sun Now

2009-11-04T08:19:12-05:00

Temperatures might be a bit of a rollercoaster ride but don’t play yourself, in the next few weeks they’re only going down. So plan for the inevitable bitter cold and book a trip now. BookingBuddy is offering some great early winter deal to Jamaica from Cheap Caribbean. They have 4-day deals starting at $450 and that’s all inclusive, meals, beverages tips and air. Choose the resort and know that you’ll get a ton of bang for your buck since each deal is over 60 percent off.

And check out AirTran fare sale. They’re offering very competitive fares throughout the US starting from $39. There are conditions and blackout date but you can’t beat the prices good until January 2010. But if you’re planning a Thanksgiving escape, I read that from now till Turkey Day, expect to pay an additional five bucks for every day you procrastinate.

Death and Taxes: Save Money On Two Of Life’s Little Annoyances

2009-11-02T08:41:34-05:00

Obviously I’m all about living luxe for less but does that include dying on the cheap.

Well, I guess so. I don’t give a shit about dying large, as long as I look good at the end. I have no desire to have my earthly remains entombed in a fur-lined coffin bedazzled with jewels. And since I’m not a Pharaoh I’ll skip the pyramid, donate my organs and burn up what’s left…. extra extra crispy please. But if I didn’t want to be cremated, I’d definitely opt for the bargain choice of a Wal-Mart casket. Apparently you can get a perfectly acceptable body box for less than 2 grand, roughly half the cost of funeral home offering. And who cares anyway? You’re dead and it’s just some hunk of pine that going to be stuck in the ground. So thank god, or whatever deity, statue or herb you pray to for Wal-Mart, the funeral merchandise for the people.

And for more topical but no less important money saving tips, now is a good time to think about taxes. As the year comes to close, there are a few year-end tax tips that can save you money if you act before the ball drops.

First make that big tax deductible purchase like the fabulous new Mac Book Pro that I’m working on right now. I called MacMall and pulled the trigger Dec 30 and took the phat deduction.

Next pay your January mortgage payment in December early and you can deduct an extra month. Same if you have your taxes done early and pay any State taxes you owe. You can deduct it from the year the current year.

Finally sell your loser stocks. If you intend to unload any of that worthless paper, do so before you flip the calendar and take the losses this year. Then raise a glass to toast good riddance to those bailed out bankrupt companies that stole your money

Movie Review: Transformers 2: Revenge Of The Fallen

2009-10-30T11:17:33-04:00

Don’t judge me but I like the mega Sci Fi action flick full of computer generated special effects….every now and again. And with the rainout of the baseball playoff Transformers 2 was the perfect choice I thought the first movie was great, exciting, funny and just what a mindless blockbuster should be. And the second installation got off to a blazing start. The opening scene is a tornado of action that sets stage and re-introduces you to the cast of characters both human and autobot. Shia LaBeouf as Sam is stil appealing and heading off to college, Megan Fox is still hot but waxen and the Mechanical creatures do some awesome transformations. For the first half of the movie the action is divided between some hysterically funny college scenes and the US Military fighting Decpticons and in a convoluted plot twist, the worlds of course collide. Then things take some hard to follow turns with the search to recover an alien shard and an ancient key which will unlock the hidden buried alien secrets. Then as the movie hurtles along changing venues from the US to Japan and finally Egypt but the action and battle scenes go on WAY TOO LONG. It became hard to distinguish the good robots from the bad ones and I couldn’t really unravel the plot. And towards the end of the movie LeBeouf is mysteriously sporting a serious looking hand bandage and I realized it was related to his real life drunk driving incident that occurred while shooting the movie. So the movie ended, mankind was saved and definitely expect Transformers 3.

Banking Credit: The Good and the Bad, But Really It’s All Kind Of Ugly

2009-10-28T10:40:53-04:00

First the good. Key Bank; I will not stop the fact that I’d never heard of them stop me from opening an account, because $225 is all the introduction I need. That’s what they’re offering if you open Key Privilege Checking Account. To get the money of course there’s a few requirements like using your debit card for one transaction and making two direct deposits but overall it a pretty simple way to score some real cash. But as with any bank, they charges some serious overdraft fees make check you balances early and often.

Now the bad. Skank of America is experimenting with charging customers new annual fees on cards that were previously gratis. The new fees typically range from $29 to $49 but the highest reported was a whopping $59. Bank of America is apparently testing the waters and testing the patience of its customers to see how much reaming they’ll endure before cancelling the card. Consumer advocates have advised customers to call Bank of America directly to protest the fee since cancelling might have a negative effect on your credit rating.

Eat (a little) Drink (at lot) And Be Very Merry

2009-10-26T08:54:44-04:00

What’s with tapas? And no this isn’t Seinfeld rerun. I just really don’t get tapas. Perhaps my palate isn’t sophisticated enough to appreciate the small tasty bites. They just confuse me and I always end up eating a full meal afterwards anyway. But if you’re into eating little bit of food, take a trip to Spain by way of Harlem, well Spanish Harlem and stop in to Mi Florditia. They have some excellent cheap and filling small plates, but really the draw for me is delicious Mofongos that gut busting football or carbs stuffed with meat (Puerco por favor) They also serve a delicious Spanish style breakfast like juevos con yucca and every kind of Spanish omelet imaginable.

Now for some drinking. Zagat the foodie institution that back in the day before Internet searches was everyone’s dining bible is looking to branch out (stay alive). They’re trying to reclaim their “major playa” status by launching a wine guide. It’s basically a wine of the month club curated by Zagat and as a sort of membership drive, they’re offering a great introductory deal where you’ll get 12 bottles of selected reds for only $69.99 plus $19.99 for shipping…really, can’t we just call it $70 and another 20 bucks to deliver? And they’re throwing is four free wine glasses when you place your order. I think of it as the Gevalia Coffee promo for winos so it’s a good deal and although wines are shipped monthly, you can cancel, of delay or shipment once you’ve scored the original promo but do read the find print

GoldStar, The Gold Standard For Saving

2009-10-23T08:49:06-04:00

Spend Less Go Out More: That’s the motto of Goldstar, A FANtasic website that offers A weekly summary of events, and discount coupons and comps to the popular venues and activities. It’s free, just sign up and check off your personal favorites like pets show and porn, perhaps pornographic pets show….no judgement. Then get you’ll get personalized updates just for you and access to half-price tickets. Some of the upcoming deals include $20 Knicks tickets, (of course the team will suck but for 20 bucks I’m tempted) half off Harbor Cruises and low priced seats to Comedy Clubs like Carolines and musical venues like BB Kings.

And because I love the name, check out Cheap Cheap Cheap, it’s a website that lists a cornacopia of bargains and has a round up the best deals on the web from apparel to electronics. Maybe they should call it Save Save Save.

Chase the Groupon

2009-10-21T08:31:51-04:00

Wow, I’m typically so not a joiner but Groupon made me a total lemming so I have to blog about them again. The daily deals are great and so far I’ve taken advantage of about a half dozen of the bargains. Some of the highlights have been half off wine tastings at NY Vintners, $45 for a 70-minute massage, a two person (or family) membership to the Brooklyn Museum for $35. Unbeatable!

Today’s deal is a mini facial and massage for $55 and there’s also a side deal and this time it’s a discounted entry to the Stylefixx. It’s a premiere shopping event that has lots of freebies like food, cocktails and sample products.

But the above deals aren’t Free so how do I plan to pay for this? By opening a Chase checking account of course. Well not really because I already have one. But if I didn’t I run down to my nearest branch because they mailed me a coupon offering $125 for opening a new account. There are a few requirements and a minimum amount of fine print but it’s a definite deal. If you didn't get a coupon there's still a $100 deal online or go to your nearest branch and request a coupon code.

Best Vacations Deals to Europe Right Now

2009-10-19T08:43:52-04:00

Going to Europe in summer’s high season means sharpening your elbows to fight the crowds. It’s a hassle with major destinations jam packed with tourists like yourself (except uglier) trying to get t glimpse of the main attraction. That’s why a fall trip is such a great option, fewer people, still good weather and lots of savings for folks who held out during the summer and are looking for an off-peak getaway. And amazingly the dollar remains fairly strong against the pound and the Euro. According to a travel article in the NY Times, some of the best deals are to Amsterdam and London where you can find great packages at sites like Orbitz and Expedia. And Spain is another good value with low airfare to Madrid and Barcelona. You could make either city your jumping off point and take side trips through out Spain. And if you’d prefer an Anglophile experience, VistiBritain has been running a Get More Britain For Your Buck Campaign and deals include budget lodging for 60 pounds per night or book 2 nights and get a third free at several upscale hotels.

Tour companies are also offering discounts like the ubiquitous Perillo. They specialize in cheesy TV ads and package tours to Italy. The commercials aside, I’ve heard they put together very nice trips and currently have a special to Rome including airfare from New York starting at $1400 per person.

But Book Soon. Airfares are going up and these deals won’t last long.