Vacation Type: Bicycle Touring Family Programs

Travel Location: Europe France Bordeaux

Explore the 17,000-year-old cave art work at Font de Gaume.
Cycle the beautiful Dordogne Valley and explore its castles.
Enjoy excellent food and wine in the chateaux of Bordeaux.
Children may participate.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of Preparing for a picnic.

Butterfield and Robinson
70 Bond Street
Toronto
Ontario
M5B 1X3
Canada
Telephone: 800-678-1147 U.S.
Fax Number: 416-864-0541

Vacation Type: Bicycle Touring Art Tours

Travel Location: Europe France Tours

Visit beautiful chateaux in the Loire Valley.
Stay in the Domaine de la Tortiniere chateau for two nights.
Savor several wine-tasting sessions.
This activity is for adults only.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of Smiling for the camera outside a chateau.

Butterfield and Robinson
70 Bond Street
Toronto
Ontario
M5B 1X3
Canada
Telephone: 800-678-1147 U.S.
Fax Number: 416-864-0541

Vacation Type: Bicycle Touring Wine Tasting Tours

Travel Location: Europe France Chablis

Bicycle through the Chablis and Burgundy region of France.
Savor the taste of Burgundy while dining in exquisite restaurants.
Dine in a restaurant that won a three-star rating from Michelin.
Children may participate.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of Views of Vezelay.

Travent International
P.O. Box 305
Waterbury Center
Vermont
05677-0305
United States
Telephone: 800-325-3009
Fax Number: 802-244-6126

Vacation Type: Older Adults

Travel Location: Europe France

Learn about and experience the culture of another country.
Meet interesting people from all walks of life as you attend your program.
Challenge your mind with thought-provoking courses at Elderhostel.
This activity is for adults only.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of Elderhostelers explore castle ruins in Ireland.

Elderhostel
75 Federal Street
Boston
Massachusetts
02110-1941
United States
Telephone: 617-426-8056
Fax Number: 617-426-8351

Vacation Type: Language Schools Native Culture Tours

Travel Location: Europe France Paris Brussels Lausanne Quebec City

Enjoy a lively and fun approach to learning French or German.
Gain unique insights by staying with a host family.
Immerse yourself in the life of your host country.
Children may participate.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of Study French in the heart of France.

Berlitz International Inc.
293 Wall Street
Princeton
New Jersey
08540
United States
Telephone: 800-257-9449
Fax Number: 609-683-5895

He’s not a rich person, never known him to travel with a 1st class ticket, though I know he earns enough money online without having to work (not sure how) to be able to take time off to travel.

After receiving another email from him while he was traveling to Africa for I think the third time this year! He emailed me on the plane again, think he does it to show off as he knows I’m lucky to afford two short holidays a year.

This time he’s on his way to Botswana to explore the Okavango Delta then on to Namibia for some kind of wildlife reserve and to finish of Africa visit Mount Kilimanjaro which I think is in Kenya!

I decided to ask him how he can afford to do what he does, how does he afford the airfare tickets to so many places?

He was quite candid in his response and we got to chatting online about how he manages to travel to so many exotic locations for so little money by air! Traveling to see wild life isn’t really my thing, I prefer ancient ruins like the pyramids in Egypt, palaces/temples in Tibet or even prehistoric caving in France.

As we all know the biggest cost in traveling is the airfare tickets (and it’s getting worse), Bernard (my friend, though I call him Bernie) confirmed the biggest cost is air travel tickets since the countries he tends to travel to the cost of living is far lower than where he lives.

Basically once he gets to a country paying for food and accommodation is easy from the money he makes online (I must ask him what he does as I wouldn’t mind traveling a few years without having to work ).

Anyway, Bernie told me about a book about cheap airfare travel only available online that’s written by a sacked travel agent! Apparently this travel agent got pissed off about being given the boot so wrote a book revealing industry travel secrets about cheap airfare travel etc… and keeps the book updated with how/where to get cheap flights etc… No idea if the sacked travel agent bit is true, sounds like a marketing ploy to me, but as long as the cheap travel secrets are useful, I don’t care if it’s a sacked travel agent or a teenager with his Dad’s lap top (OK maybe I’d worry then ).

I’m planning on a two week vacation mid September 2008 to Egypt to see the pyramids (for the first time) and so was interested in cheaper airfares: with how things are going might not even be able to afford to leave the country!

I needed to be sure I’d be able to book my air ticket in advance: I can’t drop everything at a moments notice like Bernie can and travel to whatever country is cheap that day, has to be a specific country (and airfield) on a particular day (when my planned vacation starts). He assured me this was possible and the money I’d save on the one return airfare ticket would easily reimburse me for the cost of the online book.

I was still skeptical, but he’s never led me wrong before so bought the book from the website My AirFare Secrets (the books called “Save on Airfare Secrets”).

I’ve had the book a couple of weeks now and have been checking out the cheap travel information and discussing my findings with Bernie to confirm I understand everything correctly and OMG, this is going to save me a fortune on airfare tickets, hotel bills, car rental and even food!

It’s no wonder Bernie decided to extend his world travel vacation, he must spend less a week living while traveling the globe than I do stuck at home watching reruns on TV.

Even with this cheap travel guide I still couldn’t afford to do what Bernie does, (I have to work for a living) but I think if I save as much on the travel tickets as I’m estimating in September I should be able to afford three and maybe even four vacations a year (normally have two vacations).

You will be pleasantly surprised at the savings possible, I would find a great airfare ticket deal and email Bernie to confirm I’d understood things correctly, the airfares are way too cheap (Bernie had a few good laughs at my expense )

If you go on just one vacation a year and travel abroad, the information within Save on Airfare Secrets will save you a big chunk of cash, no BS.

I’ll add an update here in September how things go with my Egyptian vacation: I am so looking forward to this, been wanting to travel to see the pyramids for almost 10 years so well over due.

Update: As planned I went on my Egyptian vacation (got back late last week) and the country is even better than I could have ever imagined, the people are so friendly and interesting (I must go again).

I used half a dozen tips from the Save on Airfare Secrets book and estimate I saved over $2,000 on the trip from cheaper flights, cheaper hotel rooms and even cheaper car hire! Like I said above if I saved enough from this vacation I might be able to go on three vacations a year rather than two. Well if I save a similar amount on my next vacation AND I can wangle another two weeks off from my boss I’ll be able to afford a third vacation next year

The image to the right in one of my vacation photos, click the image to see a full size version.

Vacation Type: Gourmet Tours Gourmet Tours

Travel Location: Europe France

Float above mountains, valleys and historic sites during a Bombard tour.
Feast on elegant picnic lunches while aloft.
Soar over the Alps, Tuscany or Istanbul.
Children may participate.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of Balloons aloft in Switzerland.

Bombard Balloon Adventures
6727 Curran Street
McLean
Virginia
22101
United States
Telephone: 800-862-8537
Fax Number: 703-883-0985

Vacation Type: Bicycle Touring Family Programs

Travel Location: Europe France Rennes

Visit and stay near spectacular Mont-St.-Michel in France.
Enjoy the food, wine and fish of the Brittany coastline.
Enjoy a trip on a fishing boat during this cycling tour.
Children may participate.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of A child enjoys a ride through France.

Butterfield and Robinson
70 Bond Street
Toronto
Ontario
M5B 1X3
Canada
Telephone: 800-678-1147 U.S.
Fax Number: 416-864-0541

Vacation Type: Downhill Skiing

Travel Location: Europe France Chamrousse

Ski the slopes at three Winter Olympic sites.
Stay in the beautiful resort towns of Albertville, Chamonix and Grenoble.
Enjoy the scenic splendor of the French Alps.
This activity is for adults only.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of A skier on the Alpine slopes.

Euro Ski Safaris
P.O. Box 342
317 Fourth Street
Huntingburg
Indiana
47542-0342
United States
Telephone: 800-489-4459
Fax Number: 812-683-5055

Vacation Type: Charter Sailing With Crew Sailing

Travel Location: Europe France

Sail in famous cruising areas off the coasts of France, Spain or Italy.
Cruise among Greek islands and take time to enjoy their natural beauty.
Visit superb archaeological sites along the Turkish coast.
Children may participate.

Vacation Contact Detail

Travel picture of Visit ancient ports on the Mediterranean.

W.I.L.D./W.A.T.E.R.S. Outdoor Center
Warrensburg
New York
12885
United States
Telephone: 518-494-7478
Fax Number: 518-494-4984