Hotels, restaurants, shops, and airlines are losing business… and some of them are coming up with creative ways to get it back. Here are three of the strangest deals of the season:
1. National Fee Relief: Expedia.com
To encourage you to keep traveling while the economy dips and dives, Expedia.com’s National Fee Relief sale cuts the booking fees on all hotels in the United States through December 1.
2. Baggage Fee Reimbursement Programs
- The Chamberlain Hotel, The Avalon Hotel, and Maison 140 (all in L.A.) have a “Money Bags” promotion that reimburses guests for the extra baggage fees they’re charged by the airlines. (Per reservation, up to $75 in hotel credit.)
- Loews Hotels’ “Baggage Buy Back” offsets the airlines’ checked-baggage fees by giving guests up to $30 in food and beverage credit. (Good until November 27.)
- Kimpton Hotels pays up to $25 toward your checked baggage fee until December 31. (Kimpton also has “Stranded in Style” amenities for guests whose flights are canceled – bath salts, complimentary wine or a movie, lounge socks, and a cocktail or appetizer at the hotel’s restaurant.)
3. The Race for Space: VirginAmerica.com
When you join Virgin America’s “Elevate” Loyalty Program, you get points that you can apply to free flights (as well as other benefits.) And when you acquire 10,000 points, you’re also entered in a “Race for Space” drawing to win a seat on one of Virgin Galactic’s upcoming space flights.
[Ed. Note: Stay up-to-date with the latest travel tools, tricks, and tips by signing up for The Right Way to Travel FREE e-letter from AWAI's Travel Division. Sign up here.]
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