Airlines roll out last-minute sales for Labor Day

by Katie Hammel on

There are just two weeks left until Labor Day, but it’s not too late to plan a getaway for the holiday weekend. In fact, waiting until now to book your trip might even save you money with some of the great last-minute deals that are available.

American Airlines Flights
American Airlines has several destinations on sale for Labor Day. Buy your tickets to Belize by August 28th and travel Monday through Thursday, starting September 1st, for as low as $217 each way. Book a trip to Jamaica by August 24th for travel any day of the week after September 1st, and prices will start at $84 each way. Tickets to Cancun, booked by August 25th for Saturday and Tuesday travel after September 1st, start at $88 each way.

United Airlines Flights
If you can stretch your weekend until Tuesday (departing on Saturday), book tickets to destinations within the United States on United Airlines by August 25th to save. Prices vary by departure and destination cities, but sample fares include Chicago to New Orleans for $89 each way, Atlanta to Denver for $109 each way, and Miami to Washington Dulles for $69 each way.

Spirit Airlines Flights
Spirit is well known for its near-constant sales to destinations within the United States, Central America and the Caribbean. It’s like the Gap of airlines – never pay retail because, just as the Gap will knock 50% off those jeans in two weeks, chances are that Spirit will soon offer a better deal for the flight you want. Their current sale ends tomorrow, August 25th, and discounts some of their more popular routes to as low as $33.90 each way. As with all of their sales, $9 Fare Club members and those in hub cities like Fort Lauderdale and Detroit save the most and have the most options. But even the rest of us can still get some good deals for Labor Day. For example, New York to Medellin, Colombia is $138.90 each way, Boston to Myrtle Beach is $68.90 each way, and Atlanta to San Jose, Costa Rica is $128.90 each way.

Expedia.com Deals
Beyond flights, Expedia has deals on just about everything else – hotels, cars, cruises, package deals – for your Labor Day travels. Deals vary widely by location, but some of the highlights include discounts of up to 50% off hotels in Las Vegas, Orlando and Chicago (among other cities) and 3-night Royal Caribbean Bahamas cruises for as low as $262 per person for an inside cabin.

If these deals don’t work for you, there’s still plenty of time to plan your perfect Labor Day vacation at a great price. Check out Hotwire’s Travel Ticker, peruse the sale list on Travelzoo and follow your favorite airlines on Twitter. JetBlue and Southwest regularly post their top deals on twitter, so you’ll be the first to know about great fares.

Favorable fares may be coming to a close

by Tom Johansmeyer on

In past years, Memorial Day signaled the end of sweetheart flight prices. This year, a sinking economy stretched the deals a bit longer, but experts say the good times may be coming to a close. Remember the problems last summer, with higher prices blamed on jet fuel? Well, we could see the cost of oil work the same dismal magic this summer.

Rick Seaney, CEO of FareCompare.com, cites recent fare increases of $10 to $20 per roundtrip as an indicator that we are the brink of an upswing. But, these are counterbalanced by new lows elsewhere. A recent survey by Travelocity shows ticket prices down 17 percent for trips between Memorial Day and Labor Day. So, buyers and sellers are locked in a silent struggle to determine how much your next vacation will cost.

With an eye out for possible deals, customers are waiting, booking their flights 86 days ahead instead of the usual 90. While this doesn’t seem like much, it takes a lot of last minute purchases to bring the average down.

Even if airline fares are coming back, you can still take advantage of the lows now. If you’re thinking about taking a vacation, stop … and take action instead.

May Day: Festivities around the world

by Brenda Yun on

May 1 is May day, and here in Hawaii it’s called Lei Day. Most of the islands’ schools are off today, and surfers will likely be in the water (as the first legitimate south swell of the summer season is here). You will find me and most of the Oahu’s daytime party goers celebrating Lei Day in Kapiolani Park, on the eastern end of Waikiki. There, between 9-5, will be a lei making contest, good old fashioned hula and musical performances, as well as plenty of food and locally made gifts.

Lei Day is all about giving and receiving aloha — and wearing leis that are one of eight colors, each representing one of Hawaii’s eight major islands. At Barack Obama’s (and my) alma mater, Punahou School, there is a grand Holoku pageant that features a royal court and lots of Hawaiian music and Polynesian dancing.

In other parts of the world, May Day means something rather different:

  • In England and other parts of Europe, a Queen of the May is crowned, and there is dancing around a maypole to celebrate the first day of summer.
  • My students tell me that only in Zurich (but not in other cities in Switzerland), there right-wing groups riot in the streets.
  • In other countries such as Greece and Australia, today is International Workers’ Day, kind of like the U.S.’s Labor Day (in early September)
  • Finally, in (post-)Communist countries like China and Russia, there are formal parades in the streets to celebrate the people’s earnest work.

However you celebrate today, I hope you receive a little “aloha.” Welcome to summer!

Labor Day themed sculptures: Hammering Man in Seattle and beyond

by Jamie Rhein on

Outside the Seattle Museum of Art is a kinetic sculpture called Hammering Man. The man who lifts and lowers his hammer four times per minute is one of several Hammering Man sculptures by artist Jonathan Borofsky.

Through his Hammering Man statues, Borofsky’s aim is to pay tribute to the workers of the world, as well as, indicate that the world is linked together through our labors. The sculptures hammer away at the same time.

Borofsky’s sculptures, in a way, are an artist’s version of what Matt Harding demonstrates with his dancing. The same dance, but the location changes. (Read Jerry’s Talking Travel interview with Matt here.)

The Seattle version is the second largest of Borofsky’s Hammering Man creations. The largest is in Frankfurt, Germany. You can also see outside sculpture versions in Dallas, Texas; Seoul, Korea; and Basel, Switzerland. Other versions are in wood and are located at various museums.

Last summer, when we went to Seattle on the way to Montana, we passed this sculpture on a Seattle Duck’s tour of the city. At the time, I didn’t know that the piece was part of a larger concept and could not view the whole sculpture from where I was sitting. In order to see it, we drove back to the museum.

As Borofsky says about this particular work, “At its heart, society reveres the workers. The Hammering Man is the worker in all of us.”

The statue, and the others like it, seems fitting for a Labor Day shout out.

Staying Home for Labor Day

by Josh Lew on

After reminding themselves that three-and-a-half dollars is still a lot to pay for a gallon of gas, many Americans have decided to stay near home instead of hitting the road during the Labor Day holiday.

The staying at HQ thing is nothing new. The number of people on the road was significantly down during both Memorial Day and July 4th. AAA did the math and predicted a 1% drop in auto travel over Labor Day and an even more significant 4.5% drop in air travel compared to last year. But there was good news for train and bus companies, the new dynamic duo of travel. According to AAA’s survey, the ridership on these modes of transit will rise more than 12%.

Many people will just be staying at home, opting for a barbecue and a soak in their kids’ inflatable pool. I guess people will just have to look towards Thanksgiving and the New Year for a better travel climate. Right?
According to Farecast, airline tickets will be 35% more expensive this holiday season than the 2007 holidays. Looks like the trend of staying home isn’t going to go anywhere.