You KNOW merchants are in trouble when they are running WINTER sales in the midst of summer.
Toys 'R Us is running a "Christmas in July" Sale beginning this weekend (July 19) and running for a week. This is not unlike hotels offering deep discounts (with a deposit) now for bookings in winter. The hotels are REALLY different in that many of them are offering SUMMER prices for Fall and WINTER stays when their prices are higher.
Last evening (July 15), well after my last post, Southwest Airlines announced a flash sale. Purchase travel by July 30th for travel August 16th through November 18th, '09. Travel on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Southwest has to put bodies in the seats, and according to good ol' Yield Marketing (which is something you learn about when you study for an MBA), if you have a product and it doesn't sell at the MSRP, let us say n dollars, then see how it sells if the price is adjusted to n dollars minus r dollars. If demand increases, the price may be increased to just below the point of diminishing returns, let's say r dollars plus ten.
Basically if you have a plane with 136 seats and 50 of them are empty, it costs almost as much to fly with the empty seats as with them full. So FILL THEM UP. And if you are looking for deals, watch very carefully for other airlines to follow suit on the same dates with the same restrictions.
Good hunting.
Showing posts with label Specials. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Specials. Show all posts
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Where there ARE airline travel deals
You just have to BE there when they happen!
With my reduced summertime travel schedule I have been simply watching the travel industry from the sidelines. The "flashdeals" come and go everywhere, especially in Las Vegas. Some hotels in Reno, NV, namely the Grand Sierra (which used to be the Reno Hilton) have some outstanding deals... really hard to believe. I am most familiar with the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino; that's where many of us stay during the Reno Championship Air Races in September.
It's the "Getting There" part which is usually what hurts. Most of the major airlines have had "flashdeals" of their own, beginning with one airline and spreading to most major lines within less that a day. There was a spectacular deal the week of July 6th which lasted just THREE DAYS for travel through most of the autumn months. Fares most people could afford out of pocket... that cheap.
The airlines have their own bills to pay. LARGE bills for fuel, maintenance, all those people, loans for the airplanes, rent for airport facilities, taxes, etc. Revenue, money coming in, is really really important.
The WALL STREET JOURNAL always has an interesting spin on travel. Earlier this week, there was a piece about the U.S. airlines flying into a credit squeeze. They all need cash. (duh.) the WSJ simplifies it this way:
Think "Money I don't have to spend." That will get you motivated.
With my reduced summertime travel schedule I have been simply watching the travel industry from the sidelines. The "flashdeals" come and go everywhere, especially in Las Vegas. Some hotels in Reno, NV, namely the Grand Sierra (which used to be the Reno Hilton) have some outstanding deals... really hard to believe. I am most familiar with the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino; that's where many of us stay during the Reno Championship Air Races in September.
It's the "Getting There" part which is usually what hurts. Most of the major airlines have had "flashdeals" of their own, beginning with one airline and spreading to most major lines within less that a day. There was a spectacular deal the week of July 6th which lasted just THREE DAYS for travel through most of the autumn months. Fares most people could afford out of pocket... that cheap.
The airlines have their own bills to pay. LARGE bills for fuel, maintenance, all those people, loans for the airplanes, rent for airport facilities, taxes, etc. Revenue, money coming in, is really really important.
The WALL STREET JOURNAL always has an interesting spin on travel. Earlier this week, there was a piece about the U.S. airlines flying into a credit squeeze. They all need cash. (duh.) the WSJ simplifies it this way:
- The country is in a terrible economic slowdown.
- Businesses are cutting back trips and the number of people taking trips.
- Airlines count on business travelers for the big bucks, like, buy a ticket this morning to travel this afternoon.
- Business travelers just aren't there.
- When this happens, the airlines try to attract vacation travelers.
- If people are not making money, they certainly don't have a load of jack to spend on airline tickets to fly the family to Six Flags.
- Therefore, marketing departments will try lowering fares on select routes. If other airlines follow and lower fares on other routes, pretty soon you have a "flashsale", and you HAVE to be right there when one starts.
Think "Money I don't have to spend." That will get you motivated.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Las Vegas in the News, AGAIN
Las Vegas is hurting. You knew that.
In an effort to get ANYONE new to come to Vegas, marketing had gone to an image of "Las Vegas is for everyone," meaning that as long as someone had a few bucks for fun, Las Vegas doesn't care if you are a hog farmer from Montana. Just come to Vegas, and bring money.
Someone smart decided that was the wrong approach, so now, they are going back to the "What Happens Here, Stays Here" thing. If you haven't seen the TV spot yet, watch for a "TV news reporter" walking along the edge of an abandoned swimming pool, saying no one is coming to Vegas, and you can have the place to yourself. When her "take" is complete, she rips off her TV reporter suit to reveal a swimsuit, as people who have been hiding all dash out to the tables, chairs and the pool. Vegas is still kinda "hip", and the spot seems to be saying "If we can convince the world that nobody comes here any more, then we (who know better) can have more of the place to ourselves."
For folks who would like to TRY las Vegas on for size, TravelZoo, one of my favorite newsletters, notes that The Palms (speaking of hip) has a special deal through June of $79 a night Sunday through Thursday including a $50 dining credit plus other goodies. This is not the lowest price in town, but if you want to see how "the other half" lives, this place is a killer. The Malloof brothers, owners of the Sacramento Kings, didn't want any beds that were too short for any of their basketball players. Just gives you an idea.
I recall observing, while staying across the street from the Palms at the Gold Coast for $25 a night, that I could be staying at the Palms for another couple hundred a night. It IS a beautiful place, and at the special price, it is well worht it. Even if you DON'T stay there, go to one of the bars and drink in the atmosphere. Even try the PLAYBOY Club.
In an effort to get ANYONE new to come to Vegas, marketing had gone to an image of "Las Vegas is for everyone," meaning that as long as someone had a few bucks for fun, Las Vegas doesn't care if you are a hog farmer from Montana. Just come to Vegas, and bring money.
Someone smart decided that was the wrong approach, so now, they are going back to the "What Happens Here, Stays Here" thing. If you haven't seen the TV spot yet, watch for a "TV news reporter" walking along the edge of an abandoned swimming pool, saying no one is coming to Vegas, and you can have the place to yourself. When her "take" is complete, she rips off her TV reporter suit to reveal a swimsuit, as people who have been hiding all dash out to the tables, chairs and the pool. Vegas is still kinda "hip", and the spot seems to be saying "If we can convince the world that nobody comes here any more, then we (who know better) can have more of the place to ourselves."
For folks who would like to TRY las Vegas on for size, TravelZoo, one of my favorite newsletters, notes that The Palms (speaking of hip) has a special deal through June of $79 a night Sunday through Thursday including a $50 dining credit plus other goodies. This is not the lowest price in town, but if you want to see how "the other half" lives, this place is a killer. The Malloof brothers, owners of the Sacramento Kings, didn't want any beds that were too short for any of their basketball players. Just gives you an idea.
I recall observing, while staying across the street from the Palms at the Gold Coast for $25 a night, that I could be staying at the Palms for another couple hundred a night. It IS a beautiful place, and at the special price, it is well worht it. Even if you DON'T stay there, go to one of the bars and drink in the atmosphere. Even try the PLAYBOY Club.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
The Airlines are trying to Squeeze Capacity
The Wall Street Journal is a great place to discover travel hints. Scott McCartney, who writes a regular feature called "The Middle Seat", notes in the WSJ of Tuesday, April 20th, that the airlines are parking more planes in an effort to limit the number of available seats for any given flight. This, in an effort to raise prices.
Many of these airliners, some only a few hundred hours old, are being dead-stored in Marana, Arizona, which used to be a "secret" CIA base, home to Evergreen Airlines. The maintenance personnel tape over all the openings, check the fluids, roll the tires into "bags" and maintain the planes once a week. For this (the example as used in the story) an airline will pay $60,000 per MONTH to store a 747, in addition to paying the note with the bank. It's still cheaper to do this than fly a load of empty seats around the sky.
What this mean to you is that the airlines want to raise fares. If you were not aware of it, several lines DID raise fares this past week, only to lower them again when other lines didn't also raise theirs. (That's called "Who Blinked First.")
If you plan to go somewhere this spring, summer or fall, now might be a good time to firm up travel plans and buy those airline tickets. At this moment SPIRIT AIRLINES is having a ONE-DAY SALE, a real "flash sale" with fares as low as $18. Read it for yourself HERE.
If you are looking at Las Vegas, which would be REALLY PLEASED to see you, the Las Vegas Hilton has a flash sale with prices from $50 - $60 per night (including weekends) with a load of extra goodies included. The resort is on Paradise Road just across the street from the Las Vegas Country Club, and the Monorail is right out front.
And if Las Vegas IS your destination, the show at Bally's, "Jubilee!" is discounting tickets about $35. I have seen that show three times, and it is a great piece of production.
If this interests you, the specials are all from Travelzoo, and you have to do your booking through the site links here. I'll be watching for more specials, so please come back to check.
Many of these airliners, some only a few hundred hours old, are being dead-stored in Marana, Arizona, which used to be a "secret" CIA base, home to Evergreen Airlines. The maintenance personnel tape over all the openings, check the fluids, roll the tires into "bags" and maintain the planes once a week. For this (the example as used in the story) an airline will pay $60,000 per MONTH to store a 747, in addition to paying the note with the bank. It's still cheaper to do this than fly a load of empty seats around the sky.
What this mean to you is that the airlines want to raise fares. If you were not aware of it, several lines DID raise fares this past week, only to lower them again when other lines didn't also raise theirs. (That's called "Who Blinked First.")
If you plan to go somewhere this spring, summer or fall, now might be a good time to firm up travel plans and buy those airline tickets. At this moment SPIRIT AIRLINES is having a ONE-DAY SALE, a real "flash sale" with fares as low as $18. Read it for yourself HERE.
If you are looking at Las Vegas, which would be REALLY PLEASED to see you, the Las Vegas Hilton has a flash sale with prices from $50 - $60 per night (including weekends) with a load of extra goodies included. The resort is on Paradise Road just across the street from the Las Vegas Country Club, and the Monorail is right out front.
And if Las Vegas IS your destination, the show at Bally's, "Jubilee!" is discounting tickets about $35. I have seen that show three times, and it is a great piece of production.
If this interests you, the specials are all from Travelzoo, and you have to do your booking through the site links here. I'll be watching for more specials, so please come back to check.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Special Promotional Products Offers
We are receiving special manufacturers' offers every day. Among them are price specials on T-shirts of five gross (720) or more. But the T-shirt specials are good for only three days. If you are going to need T-shirts in several months, you can buy them now and warehouse them until you need them printed. We can transship direct to you, and you can have a local screen printer complete the job.
Also Bic Pens has some GREAT special offers right now, but most end April 30. If they do what they usually do, they will have a new round of specials during late spring and summer.
Also Bic Pens has some GREAT special offers right now, but most end April 30. If they do what they usually do, they will have a new round of specials during late spring and summer.
AS was expected....
ORBITZ announced it is waiving booking fees through May for any trips booked on Orbitz.com or Cheaptickets.com. This means that they join Expedia and Priceline as major online ticket bookers in dropping their fees. This is a big deal; those fees help to pay the rent for each of these companies.
Travelocity.com had also dropped their fees until May 31. Travelocity is part of Sabre Holdings Corp. I couldn't get a straight answer on the phone, but I think that this Sabre is the reservations arm of AMR Corp, the parent of American Airlines, the booking consortium used by many major (legacy) carriers.
Anyhow, do your homework, and remember you may be able to find better fares directly from your airline of choice. And Southwest don't play dat game. You have to check Southwest yourself. And speaking of SWA, they have been offering some killer deals in conjunction with resorts in, among others, Las Vegas. Check it out.
I have received emails noting that some of the special offers listed have expired, i.e., they are no longer valid. The reason I leave them up is to help emphasize the timeliness of the postings. I write about these offers for your benefit, and I point out that they have hard expiration dates. It's like, use them or lose them. If you are new to this BLOG, you can see that I am finding great special offers for all kinds of travel, and I am giving you the opportunity to take advantage of them.
Travelocity.com had also dropped their fees until May 31. Travelocity is part of Sabre Holdings Corp. I couldn't get a straight answer on the phone, but I think that this Sabre is the reservations arm of AMR Corp, the parent of American Airlines, the booking consortium used by many major (legacy) carriers.
Anyhow, do your homework, and remember you may be able to find better fares directly from your airline of choice. And Southwest don't play dat game. You have to check Southwest yourself. And speaking of SWA, they have been offering some killer deals in conjunction with resorts in, among others, Las Vegas. Check it out.
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I have received emails noting that some of the special offers listed have expired, i.e., they are no longer valid. The reason I leave them up is to help emphasize the timeliness of the postings. I write about these offers for your benefit, and I point out that they have hard expiration dates. It's like, use them or lose them. If you are new to this BLOG, you can see that I am finding great special offers for all kinds of travel, and I am giving you the opportunity to take advantage of them.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Ahhh... the Las Vegas Story is never ending
More News, and more GOOD News
In an earlier post, I mentioned MGM Mirage is up to its fanny in large bitey things. Yesterday's Wall Street Journal carried an extensive story on how Dubai World, a conglomerate owned by the government of Dubai, is suing MGM Mirage to limit their exposure to damages arising from the $8.6-billion City Center project. Bottom line --- Dubai wants out. 76 acres in the heart of the Strip has already seen large sums of money spent on its development, but Dubai is signaling in the lawsuit that it probably won't make a $100-million payment on the project due Friday, March 27.(There is also some pretty good name-calling followed by mud-slinging from Dubai World, blaming MGM Mirage for mismanagement and massive cost overruns.)
Once again, I would suggest that you watch for some pretty good "flash sales" from MGM Mirage; they need some cash NOW, and they will probably be making special reservations offers for months down the road. But remember, one night only in advance, refundable, and use a credit card.
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Because we see Las Vegas so frequently, I tend to take things for granted. One of those things is my mentions of Boyd Gambling and their hotels, and there is one which I tend to forget about. One of Boyd's earliest properties is SAM'S TOWN on Fremont Street, far from downtown. That's a neat old place which caters more to the fifth wheel travel trailer crowd. It's far enough away from the heart of the action that we may visit, but we don't stay there.
On the other hand, the ORLEANS Hotel and Casino, a Sam Boyd property, has a deal through the Thursday before Labor Day. Three nights midweek (Sunday through Thursday) OR Two nights weekend (Friday and Saturday) for "only" $219, including a $100 "property credit." That credit can be used in almost any restaurant, bar, showroom, movie theater, even room service. That's a pretty good special when you break it down.
Downtown, the GOLDEN NUGGET has a co-op deal with Southwest Airlines. (Ya hafta GET there, remember.) SWA has cut one-way fares for Vegas; from $49 to $99. AND you can have a Golden Nugget North Tower Room for $25 per night, a Gold Club Room for $50 per night. We have stayed at the Nugget, and it's a nice place with very convenient parking. It's a real "Old Las Vegas" feel, being in the middle of downtown.
There are a load of disclaimers, but you can click HERE and read them all for yourself. You have to book by April 6th for travel through August 14th.
I leave up old posts just so you can go back and see what you MAY have missed. New offers will be posted as I hear about them. And remember Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor; Anthony knows everything.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
GOOD Travel News, and MORE GOOD Travel News
And the OFFERS just KEEP ON COMIN'
I am a regular on US Airways, an irregular on Southwest. Both have "frequent flier" programs.
Airlines carry frequent flier mileage on their books as a debt that has to be paid. Since free seats seem to dry up pretty quickly, the lines need some way to move the miles. The more unused miles out there, the softer their balance sheets look. So that's why we all get magazine offers, hotel offers, vacation trip offers, etc. from various lines, hoping we will burn those miles off their pages.
"If you can't raise the bridge, lower the river." US Airways (my "hometown airline") is attacking the debt problem from the other end. Today they are very nearly begging me to join their VIP club, so I can have some place quiet to go after the screeners pat me down. Anything to bring a buck in the door. So, watch for more "flash deals" from the airlines.
We are trying to keep up with the "special offers". Sometimes we luck out and find a SUPER special offer, which we pass along as quickly as we can. However, there are some specials you can track for yourself. One is TripRes.com, a site with outstanding hotel deals and more. The link should take you right to Las Vegas hotels, but you can also look for cars, restaurants and more in MANY cities.
And HERE is what I mentioned yesterday, Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor. If there is a deal to be had in Las Vegas, this guy knows what and where it is. One of the prominent posts on his home page is The LVA Top 10 values. You can join his membership club if you want to, but it is not necessary for most lookups. This is well worth your bookmarking and referring to frequently if you are planning a trip.
More when I can.... Frank
Airlines carry frequent flier mileage on their books as a debt that has to be paid. Since free seats seem to dry up pretty quickly, the lines need some way to move the miles. The more unused miles out there, the softer their balance sheets look. So that's why we all get magazine offers, hotel offers, vacation trip offers, etc. from various lines, hoping we will burn those miles off their pages.
"If you can't raise the bridge, lower the river." US Airways (my "hometown airline") is attacking the debt problem from the other end. Today they are very nearly begging me to join their VIP club, so I can have some place quiet to go after the screeners pat me down. Anything to bring a buck in the door. So, watch for more "flash deals" from the airlines.
We are trying to keep up with the "special offers". Sometimes we luck out and find a SUPER special offer, which we pass along as quickly as we can. However, there are some specials you can track for yourself. One is TripRes.com, a site with outstanding hotel deals and more. The link should take you right to Las Vegas hotels, but you can also look for cars, restaurants and more in MANY cities.
And HERE is what I mentioned yesterday, Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor. If there is a deal to be had in Las Vegas, this guy knows what and where it is. One of the prominent posts on his home page is The LVA Top 10 values. You can join his membership club if you want to, but it is not necessary for most lookups. This is well worth your bookmarking and referring to frequently if you are planning a trip.
More when I can.... Frank
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