Spring break is nearly upon us and while many travelers are looking forward to a relaxing escape in warmer climes, some of us prefer to hit the slopes for some late season skiing or snowboarding instead. It has been a banner year for many resorts across the western U.S., where heavy snows have fallen for much of the season, but if you’re looking for the absolute deepest powder in the country there is only one place to go – Mammoth Mountain.
Mammoth has had an absolutely terrific winter so far with a tremendous amount of snow falling across the region. As a result, the resort currently has a base of between 7 and 16 feet depending on where you are at on the mountain. On top of that, the Sierra Nevada range was hit with new snow storms just this week adding an additional 2 feet of fresh powder over the past couple of days alone. All of this precipitation has earned Mammoth the distinction of having the most snow of any resort in all of North America this year.
If you’re still looking for a great ski destination for the upcoming spring break, it really is tough to top Mammoth. The resort features 118 trails spread out across 3500 skiable acres, which means even on a busy day there is still plenty of room to move. Sixty-five percent of that terrain is aimed specifically at the beginner or intermediate skier, which makes the resort a great place for those who are still looking to build their skills. Add in some great lodges, restaurants and bars, and you’ll have everything you need for a memorable time both on and off the slopes.
Sometimes on our travels, we come across a scene so perfectly photogenic, we have to wonder if it was staged. Today’s Photo of the Day was taken by Flickr user thetravelingteacher in Jakarta‘s Old Batavia, or Kota, area. The line of rented bicycles with matching helmets is so beautifully colorful and unusual, it almost looks painted, and I bet she wasn’t the only passerby who took a photo. Not sure those helmets would pass many safety tests, but they sure are fashionable. Why shouldn’t we match our accessories to our transportation?
Sometimes, you just need to get out of town. It doesn’t matter where, so long as it’s far away.
For these kinds of trips, flexible travelers can now avail themselves of a new booking platform: GetGoing.com.
The site, which celebrated its public launch yesterday, features an innovative Pick Two Get One platform, which provides airfare discounts of up to 40% if travelers can prove that they are flying for leisure by being flexible about their destination.
Here’s how it works:
– Search for the type of trip you want to go on. It can be a geographic region, like Europe or Asia, or a more general theme, like “History and Culture” or “Beaches and Sun.”
– Select two destinations from the options provided to you, then select two potential itineraries. At this point, you can see the discounted fare you will receive, but not the airline.
– Fill in your traveler details and credit information, then hit “complete this purchase” and let GetGoing decide where you’ll go.
I recently test-run the platform for an upcoming trip to Europe in May. Some of the discounts were significant, like $854 to Tel Aviv ($211 discount) and $631 to Moscow ($146 discount). But most fares were about on par with what I found by searching discount engines like Skyscanner and Kayak. And since the engine is airline-blind until the deal is done, you can’t factor frequent flier mileage programs into your deal search equation.For me, what’s most exciting about GetGoing’s platform is the ability to search for trips based on an idea, rather than a specific destination. For example, you can search for discounted fares to destinations on the New York Times list of Places to Go in 2013, like Managua or Istanbul. Or, search “Adventures and Outdoors” for destinations like Billings, Montana, and Los Angeles, California (we suppose there are all sorts of adventures to be had there).
According to GetGoing, “a little flexibility can save a lot of money.” Your experience on the site will depend on just how flexible you’re willing to be.
A team of French archaeologists believe they have found a sunstone, a strange crystal that was said to help mariners locate the sun even on overcast days.
Some of the medieval Norse Sagas mention this device. In “Rauðúlfs þáttr,” King Olaf asks the hero Sigurður to point out the sun in the middle of a snowstorm. Sigurður points to where it is behind the gray sky. To test him, the king had a follower “fetch the sunstone and held it up and saw where light radiated from the stone and thus directly verified Sigurður’s prediction.”
One recent study suggests the “sunstone” was a double-refracting crystal, which allows light through when the light is polarized in certain directions. They brighten or darken depending on the polarization of the light behind it. Clouds block the sun’s visible light but let through a concentration of polarized light that can be detected by the crystal as it’s moved around. Double-refracting crystals such as cordierite, tourmaline and calcite are common in Scandinavia.
Some scholars have expressed doubts about the sunstone’s existence because “Rauðúlfs þáttr” is a highly allegorical tale full of magical events.
Now it appears the tale may not be all that fantastic after all. Archaeologists from the University of Rennes have been studying finds from a British ship that sunk in 1592 near the island of Alderney in the English Channel. They found a rectangular block of Iceland spar calcite crystal, a type known for its double-refracting properties. The crystal was found next to a pair of dividers that may have been used for navigation.
The researchers suggest that their discovery shows the use of sunstones lasted well beyond the Viking era.
As much as we might not want to admit it, many of us enjoy the whole process of flying. Maybe it’s the thrill of the hunt when exploring a complex matrix of flights, airlines and prices. Perhaps exercising the survival skills that find power for electronic devices we bring along satisfies a primitive need. Whatever the reason, we like to fly. Some travelers like to fly so much that we spend more than we need to. A good battle plan combined with budgetary prowess learned from other activities can go a long way.
Eat before arriving
Frugal grocery store shoppers know that arriving hungry can lead to impulse buying, and most don’t even eat what they select until later. Arriving at the airport famished, maybe a bit earlier than normal to make up for sequester-induced lines, has trouble written all over it. Airport food courts are grounds for impulse buys. Forty pounds ago, I used that as an excuse to overdose on food I would have had serious guilt issues with if consumed elsewhere. A decent airport app like FlySmart can offer healthy suggestions.Bring an empty water bottle
Heading out on a hike, camping or just the drive to work, eco- and budget-friendly travelers bring a reusable water bottle. Head to the airport and many forget or don’t know that the same reusable bottle will indeed make it through the security screening process. In most cases, the $4 bottle of water at the conveniently located kiosk by the boarding gate costs more than a whole bunch of reusable water bottles. Concerned about the taste of that tap water found after screening? Go crazy and buy a self-filtering water bottle.
Let an expert help
This could be the “insert name of travel agent here” part of the story and, for many, that might be a good idea. Those comfortable with using an attorney for legal matters, an accountant for taxes or even a good mechanic for auto repairs could easily buy into that notion. For air travel, many of the sources we feature here like AirFareWatchdog, Kayak and others can go a long way to maximizing savings on airline fares – obviously a big ticket item in the whole scheme of things. Better yet, ask a local travel blogger based out of your hometown airport. Odds are they have it down to a science.
Leave time for the satellite lot
When going to a concert, major sporting event or local convention center, penny-wise drivers park remotely, realizing that convenience equals higher prices. Parking close to the terminal at almost any airport will cost dearly compared to the price of a secure, remote lot. AirportParking boasts savings of up to 70% off the price of terminal parking, and allows reservations and payment in advance. In Orlando, for example, terminal parking is $10 per day; remote parking from a number of lots is less than half the price.
The whole idea of applying money-saving strategies learned from other activities to air travel comes with a bonus too. We’re already comfortable with the process so applying does not require learning a new skill or forging a new path where no one has gone before.
Looking for some other money-saving ideas to use when at the airport? Check this video: