Vayama Travel Blog

Time to enjoy a Tropical Christmas!

By Florin R. Ferrs

It’s Christmas 09, the New England snow is piled several feet deep outside and I’m envious of the hordes of tanned Australians surfing with Santa hats at Bondi Beach on CNN. I switch over to the Spanish channel but it offers no reprieve, every other news report seem to be from a beach resort in Uruguay chock full of tanned models and all the beautiful people of Buenos Aires enjoying one of the hottest days of their summer on the Uruguayan Riviera. This is when I wished I’d gone to Puerto Rico for Christmas instead of Connecticut, but one can’t choose where one’s in laws live.

This year will be different

Christmas 2010 will be very different. I will make it a Tropical Christmas and thanks to divorce and vayama’s discounted airfares to all the tropical Christmas destinations of the world, I’m literally spoilt for choice.

Here are my top 5 Tropical Christmas destinations for 2010

San Juan, Puerto Rico
Read the rest of this entry »

Learn about “Open Jaw” Airfares and get ready for some jaw dropping adventures.

By Florin R. Ferrs

Back in the old pre-web days, there was a quaint institution that some of the older generation might still remember: The neighborhood travel agent. This bygone professional actually sold airline tickets to exotic international destinations and one of the tools available to this aforementioned dinosaur was called an “Open Jaw Airfare”.  Nowadays your friendly airfare selling travel agent is gone the way of the landline telephone and been replaced by guess who: You.

It's all you now

That’s right, you are your own travel agent and amateur seller of airfare. I know what you are thinking, “But I haven’t had any training or the benefit of a yearly industry get together”.   Do not despair, you can learn how to become an airfare purchasing expert by simply reading this blog regularly.  The following is a good lesson that will come in handy when you plan your next adventure abroad and want to visit a whole region without having to pay paying trough the nose just because you’re a rookie.

The Jaws of the Good Life
Read the rest of this entry »

By Florin R. Ferrs

I love the fall and its fall festivals. It’s not too hot or too cold and fairly quiet before the Christmas rush, plus airfares are great this time of year. Here’s a list of my favorite Fall Festivals and the discounted international airfares to get there for less.

Oktoberfest:

The mother of all fall festivals. Get your Lederhosen and your drinking elbow ready to have fun, fun, fun on the St Pauli Tent. Nuff Said.

Bräu Frau

 Read the rest of this entry »

By Florin R, Ferrs.

Here we are, contemplating the end of summer and the slow march into the northern fall. Fall is my favorite time of the year to travel, one gets the best of both worlds. There’s cheap airfares to practically everywhere and low crowds since the fall is the calm before the Christmas rush. Plus one gets the added bonus of enjoying the spring if one travels to the Southern hemisphere.

Travel Light

I just booked a trip to South Africa this fall and scored a great deal on South African Airlines to Cape Town on vayama.com and I hear that the weather down there will be almost perfect this time of year.  I am looking forward to renting a car and driving along the Cape Wineries. The journey from my home in California to Cape Town will start with a Jet Blue flight from San Francisco to New York’s JFK and then connect with South African Airways in NYC. I had the option of checking my luggage in San Francisco airport all the way to Johannesburg, but as a frequent traveler, I pack light. I’m only taking with me a small day bag that doubles as my computer bag, plus a backpack with a handle that fits on the top luggage compartment above my seat. That way, I can be the first one out of the plane and not have to wait around carrousels for my possibly lost luggage.
Read the rest of this entry »

Travel Survival Tips from a Frequent Flyer
By Florin R. Ferrs

Labor Day is finally here, the end of summer rush is upon us and I am enjoying vayama’s six day Labor Day Sale to my favorite international destinations. I know that the airports might be busier than usual this Labor Day weekend, but the fall is the best time to travel as fares drop but the weather still holds up. And after years of successful frequent flying, I have developed my own travel strategies to survive even the worst Labor Day Madness. These travel survival tips will help even the occasional vacationer.

Always be Prepared:

When you fly, it pays to follow the Boy Scout’s motto and “always be prepared”, this means that whatever you do, don’t expect your travel agency, online booking portal, yelp, the airline, or anyone else to keep an eye on your reservation in the event of a schedule change, volcanic eruption, airline bankruptcy or pilot strike.

Always be Prepared...to Reconfirm.

Read the rest of this entry »