Dishin’ with the Diva

Travel News: When is a bargain not a bargain?

I found this post on The Travel Critic blog on how to spot a genuine bargain vs. a rip-off. With so many carriers, providers and other companies competing for your hard-won travel dollars, I think it’s well worth a read.

Quick Tip: Purchasing individual guide chapters

Lonely Planet recently started offering individual chapters from some of their guidebooks for download and sale on their web site. I’m a big fan of printed materials rather than audio or electronic books, but I like this for a few reasons:

1. If you’re only going to one specific spot in a country, you get get the info for the city or region without having to buy the entire guidebook, which can save you money to use on your trip.
2. The electronic chapters don’t take up space in or add weight to your luggage.
3. There is something to be said for immediate gratification, and you don’t have to worry if your local bookstore will have the guide you want in stock.
4. You can bring just the information you want with you on your trip without ripping up a book (a sacrilege to your friendly neighborhood Diva).

So when the time comes to plan your next getaway, you may want to see what LP offers before you start buying books.

Quick Tip – Temporary Utility Suspension

It’s probably not worth it for the average two or three week vacation, but if you’re going away for a longer length of time (a month or more), you may want to check with your utility providers to see if they have a vacation suspension available for their services. There’s no sense spending money on something back home that you won’t be using, right?

You may not want to do this with your power company, but you may want to consider it for your phone, cable, or internet service. Not to mention your paper delivery, if you have it, or your garbage collection. It may not seem like much of a savings, but I think whatever you don’t spend on something you aren’t using is money you can use for travel expenses.