Want to save money on Spring Break? You might want to look into getting an Entertainment Book for your destination. Entertainment is now offering them at 50% off AND free shipping!
Popular destinations I saw on the list include:
- Orlando $17.50
- Hawaii $17.50
- Tampa $17.50
- Washington DC $17.50
- Orange County CA $20
And if you’re staying home, you can still save with a local edition. Most editions are $17.50 — shipped free.
The Entertainment Book has saved our family money when we’ve visited Aquariums, Zoos, Museums, ate dinner, and even rented hotel rooms.
Please note, that Entertainment doesn’t not ship quickly. They are most likely going to mail this media mail which can take 10-15 days. They do offer faster shipping for a fee.
Related post on the Entertainment Book. And more about vacations.
Going on a trip this Spring? If so, you might want to save a few dollars while you’re there. Did you know that you can buy an Entertainment book for the area you’ll be visiting? And right now Entertainment is having a SALE! 50% off plus FREE SHIPPING! Most of the books are under $20 shipped. Every time we travel, I check out a local book. It can save us tons of money while having fun.
Traveling to see the Mouse in Orlando or LA? There’s a book for that. Family in Texas? There’s 7 books. There’s even books for Puerto Rico, and Canada.
Get Discounts (many 2 for 1 or 50% off) at:
- Fancy Restaurants
- Bagel and Donut Shops
- Fast Food
- Hotels
- Attractions
Traveling this week? Or awaiting the arrival of a loved one? With last week’s snowstorm in the NE and an impending storm over the Rockies and Plains, it’s a good idea to have some websites and phone numbers handy. This can help reduce the stress of not knowing what’s going on with travel plans. Although I can’t promise that the lines will be shorter, or that airlines won’t loose your luggage, at least you’ll have information. And information is power.
Last month I shared some websites with you. For a quick refresher, check it out here. I’m going to give another plug to the FAA’s Flight Delay Information. I love the overall view of the country. Already this morning ORD (O’Hare in Chicago) is experiencing over 2 hour arrival delays. That’s only going to cause more problems as people miss their connecting flights. ORD is one of the busiest airports in the country.
Traveling by car?
Rand McNally’s Road Construction Search Engine – search by state and/or Interstate number
Safe Travel USA has links to all the State’s road conditions websites. All the links I checked worked.
State By State Road Conditions (that appear to be fully functioning)
I’ve seen this deal in the mail, at the grocery store, and in my e-mail. So, I checked it out for you. The Entertainment Book
is being offered for $19.99….all books. That’s just $19.99 shipped. And if you want a second book, it’s only $15 more. Regular price on these books are $30-$50 + $5 for shipping. So, seriously think about picking up a copy for yourself.
What I like about the Entertainment Book:
- Hotel Discounts — up to 50% off the rack rate at hotels across the country
- Attraction Discounts – water parks, putt-putt, bowling, museums, and some sporting events
- Airport parking discounts
- Hair cutting coupons
- Local stores like Play It Again Sports, Paint ‘n Play, pet store, shoe store coupons
- 2 for 1 coupons for local fast food, as well as sit down restaurants
In just a few months you can save more than the $19.99 cost.
Want to know which book to buy? Buy one for your local area and one for where you’re going on vacation or business. If you’re traveling to Orlando to see the mouse or the whale, you can save a bundle with the Orlando Entertainment Book. Going skiing? Get a book for Vancouver, Denver, or Lake Tahoe. Wherever you spend money. Check out the book. When we go out of town, I always check the Entertainment book and use at least the hotel discount. Sometimes I can get a great car rental deal and also a few dollars off food and attractions is always welcome.
Katie over at Cincinnati Cents just posted about a deal on membership at the Cincinnati Museum Center. We love going to the Museum Center and having a membership makes it easy to go for just a few hours at a time. I recommend getting a membership that includes parking so you don’t have to worry about forking over $6 to park each time you visit. The Center — housed at Union Terminal — used to bring many train passengers to Cincinnati. The building is full of great architecture. The Children’s Museum downstairs is full of fun for little kids up to about 10. Kids of all ages seem to gravitate towards the play water feature. Mine can play here for hours. Be sure to bring a towel to dry off. Upstairs there’s the Museum of Natural History and Science as well as the Cincinnati History Museum. I’ve only been to each of these a couple of times because the kids always beg to go downstairs. More info on the Museum Center is available at: http://www.cincymuseum.org/
Traveling this holiday season? Or anytime during the year? Here’s a few websites that I like to help me understand what’s happening in the air and at the airports.
Flight Delay Information
This is powered by the FAA. It shows a map of the US with major cities airports. The markers can be green (no delays), yellow (some delays) or red (it’s going to be awhile). You can click on the city for a pop-up of what the issues are with each airport. Often during November and December there will be gate holds, weather issues, mechanical breakdowns, etc. Sometimes inbound or outbound flights are affect but not both. Sometimes the entire airport is shut down while the problems dissipate. If you don’t see your airport listed, just type in it’s 3 letter code for the same information.
Individual Airline Websites
Air Tran – choose the ‘Flight Status’ tab and enter either the flight number or the origination and destination cities.
American -choose ‘Gates and Times’ (below flight reservations area) and enter either the flight number or the origination and destination cities.
- Flight Status Notification via e-mail, text, or voice. We haven’t flown American lately so I haven’t used this service.
- Give Scheduled, Estimated and Actual departure and Arrival Information
Continental – choose the ‘Check Flight Status’ tab and enter either the flight number or the origination and destination cities.
- In my experience, Continental isn’t fast about updating it’s website with flight information.
- Standby list If someone you know is trying to fly standby on a Continental flight you can look and see if they got on.
- Seat Map - This shows how full the plane is. This allows me to be more compassionate to an incoming traveler if I know that there were no extra seats on the plane.
- Where’s the Aircraft Coming From? — I LOVE this feature. This helps you understand if there’s going to be a delay based on where the airplane is really at. Several times a family member has been flying Continental and were just being told that they didn’t know how long it would be before an incoming plane would be there. I jumped on the web and found out that the plane was stuck in another city and not allowed to leave (via the FAA site above) for 2 hours. This allowed the family member to get some food, get comfortable and wait it out without worrying that their flight would be called and they’d be away from the gate.
Delta – Flight Status on the bottom left side. Enter the flight number or the departure and arrival cities for specific flight information.
- If the flight is a US flight, you can “watch” the plane travel on a Google Map. Just click “Flight Details.” The map does not automatically refresh, so you’ll need to refresh your window (F5).
- In my experience, Delta does a decent job of keeping their flight information updated on the web.
Jet Blue Flight Status tab. Enter the flight number or the departure and arrival cities for specific flight information.
- Like Delta, Jet Blue allows you to View a Map of where a plane is, using Google Maps. These maps refresh every 2 minutes.
- Shows estimated and actual flight departure and arrival time and gate information.
- Shows destination weather. Researching for this post makes me a little said I can just hop on a plane and go to sunny LA with only 9% humidity.
- Need airport info? help is just 2 clicks away. Once you’re in Flight Status select the Airport Info link under the city name. Lots of helpful information there.
Southwest – Check Your Flight Status Enter the flight number or the departure and arrival cities for specific flight information. Very basic information with scheduled and estimated departure and arrival information.
Bonus info:
Worried about being stuck in the airport for hours before, during or after a flight? You might want to bring a laptop with a network card. Now through Jan 15, 2010 47 airports are offering free WiFi. Check out the list here. Some listed airports already offer free WiFi and as far as I know will continue to offer travelers free WiFi after the holidays.
Don’t throw away your ValPak mailing arriving in mailboxes this week. Inside you should find a coupon for $5/day parking at CVG’s FastPark and Airport Fast Park. This coupon is good for stays of at least 5 days and includes tax! Also available is a $6/day (including tax) preferred rate parking with no minimum.
Whenever we fly, we always park at one of these locations. They are conveniently located next to the airport property and offer shuttle service to the terminal. Their drivers have always been helpful and courteous. Sometimes they’ll even pick you up and drop you off right next to your car. Great service. Now you can take advantage starting at $5/day.
Don’t know if you’ll be flying before Jan 3rd? Why not keep the coupon in you glove box, just in case. Making habits like this can save you a few bucks.
