There is no shortage of travel bargains right now. We talked about some great airfare deals last week -- to Long Beach and Denver. Many of those bargains still are available, but there's a new crop this week. Plus some early-season hotel specials already are cropping up here in Alaska.
Some deals are better than others -- but remember this: When airlines are mad at each other, the traveler wins. And boy, are those airlines upset! That's good!
Alaska Airlines is the big dog in this fight -- and they're offering some great deals for travel next month. Between Anchorage and Portland, the roundtrip fare is just $396, all-in. Travel is permitted Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays all month long. Travel must be completed, though, by May 31, 2011.
The same restrictions apply for their other special fares, including Juneau-Seattle ($310 roundtrip, all-in), Fairbanks-Seattle ($398 roundtrip, all-in) and Anchorage-Kodiak ($190 roundtrip, all-in).
Era Alaska is offering several destinations for sale between now and May 31. Era is offering bargain flights between Anchorage and Kodiak seven days a week, starting at $178 roundtrip, all-in. Between Anchorage and Bethel the rate is $198 roundtrip, all-in. Alaska Airlines also is offering discounted flights to Bethel (Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays) for $218 roundtrip, all-in.
The big differences between Era and Alaska on intra-Alaska routes are:
-- Era flies smaller planes: the 37-passenger Dash-8 and the 19-passenger Beechcraft 1900. Alaska Airlines flies 737s.
-- Although you're required to provide certain pre-flight information to Era for the TSA, there is no metal detector or checkpoint that you have to navigate before getting on your flight. With Alaska Airlines -- you "get" to visit with the TSA before you get to the plane.
Condor German Airlines is offering a bunch of its seats at bargain rates. Okay, I went a little nutty checking the flights -- trying to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Here are some dates that work -- followed by the total fare, including taxes and fees.
Between Anchorage and Frankfurt:
June 18-26, 2011: $628 roundtrip, all-in
June 18/21/23-30, 2011: $678 roundtrip, all-in
July 7-19, 2011: $689 roundtrip, all-in
July 9-26, 2011: $689 roundtrip, all-in
July 26-Aug. 18/21, 2011: $637 roundtrip, all-in
Aug. 25-Sept. 3, 2011: $727 roundtrip, all-in
Sept. 8-17, 2011: $707 roundtrip, all-in
Sept. 20/27-Oct. 4, 2011: $662 roundtrip, all-in
Check these bargains from Fairbanks over to Frankfurt:
June 23-June 30/July 7, 2011: $538 roundtrip, all-in
June 30/July 7-July 14, 2011: $598 roundtrip, all-in
July 7/14-Aug. 4, 2011: $558 roundtrip, all-in
July 21-Aug. 11, 2011: $558 roundtrip, all-in
Jul 28-Aug. 11, 2011: $598 roundtrip, all-in
Aug. 18-Sept. 1, 2011: $598 roundtrip, all-in
Aug. 25-Sept. 8, 2011: $558 roundtrip, all-in
Check the flights yourself at Condor.com. The website is easy to use and you can pick your dates from a handy grid that instantly displays the total fare. I picked Frankfurt, but Condor offers connecting service to dozens of other destinations including Barcelona, Warsaw, Moscow and Paris.
Right here in Alaska, hoteliers are rolling out early-season specials. For the early-early bird, stay up in Fairbanks at the Princess, as low as $59 per night. On the banks of the still-frozen Chena River, there's a roaring fire in the lobby -- with free Wi-Fi.
As the wilderness starts to thaw, Princess Lodges is offering some other early-season deals at their other lodges around the state, including:
-- Mt. McKinley Princess near Talkeetna. The lodge is closer to Trapper Creek on the banks of the Chulitna River. Between May 18 and June 14, rooms are available for as little as $89 per night. I love the deck -- which looks out over Denali. Well, OK, you're looking up at the mountain. Way up, actually.
-- Denali Princess near the entrance to Denali National Park. Between May 19 and June 5, rooms are available for as little as $99 per night.
-- Copper River Princess near Copper Center. The lodge looks over the confluence of the Copper River and the Klutina River. The floor-to-ceiling windows in the lobby afford a million-dollar view of the Wrangell Mountains in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Between May 30 and June 15, get a room for as little as $79.
-- Princess links Anchorage, Talkeetna, Denali and Fairbanks with their private rail cars. Each car is a double-decker: all-glass dome on top, restaurant down below. They offer combo deals that include rail transport and accommodations at the Mt. McKinley Princess, the Denali Princess -- or both. Rates for an overnight stay, including roundtrip rail from Anchorage (in May and June), start at $99.50 per person. Of course, meals and drinks on board the train are "on your own." Oh -- don't bring your own grub/drinks on board. Strictly a no-no.
Full details, available dates, terms and conditions are available at PrincessLodges.com.
Scott McMurren is an Anchorage-based travel marketing consultant who has lived in Alaska for three decades, spending much of that time traveling the far-flung corners of the state. Visit his website at www.alaskatravelgram.com.