Vacation ideas?

[Brandy]

Help! I am trying to be fun and creative on a budget! I am trying to come up with ideas for a vacation for next year. My budget is $2000-2400 for two people, for everything. I live near Tampa, FL (can get to Orlando easily) and am under 26 so I can't rent a car. My vacation time kicks in in March so I can go in April, the first two weeks in May, then September - December. I have three weeks vacation but would like to go for between 5-10 days. I don't camp.

Any ideas? Or ideas on good books/websites for cheap travel?

[maxandmolly]

A friend of mine got married at one of those romantic couple getaway type cabins in Gatlinburgh, Tenn, and the pictures were flat out GORGEOUS. It's about a....ten or so hour drive for you (if I remember right), so it would mean two days in the car, but no flying, no rental car worries. I think you can get a cabin up there with all the necessities (including a kitchen, so you can bring food and spend less eating out), even a hot tub, for pretty reasonable.

[ManteoChik]

I would suggest a cruise. You can get a cruise for a great price (around $900-$1500 per person) depending on the cruise line, time of year, and type of room.

I would check out priceline.com -> I went there and checked out cruises in the Caribbean and used October '05 as the departure date...

These are some of the destinations that you can will visit: Departs From Tampa, Florida visiting George Town, Grand Cayman; Costa Maya, Mexico; Cozumel, Mexico; Belize City, Belize

The cost for a room with a balcony was between $700-$900 per person and for a suite it was between $1200-$1500 per person. Cruises are a good deal because all your food and on board activites are paid for. You must buy your own alcohol (or pack some in a bag to put in a mini fridge) and you have to pay for any activities you do on shore excursions.

------ Here is another one:
Ship Name: Caribbean Princess
Sailing Date(s): October 14, 2006
Ports of Call: Departs From Ft. Lauderdale, Florida visiting Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; Philipsburg, St. Maarten; Princess Cays (Cruise Line Private Island)
Balcony: $849 Suite:$1049

**I've never been on a cruise and I want to go. We sent BF's parents on a cruise the year before last for christmas and they LOVED it. We got them a balcony room (which I would suggest.....they said it is soooo worth the money) but for the low cost of a suite it would be worth it to do that and have more room.

[Brandy]

This sounds so stupid- but I hadn't thought of a driving trip! What a dope I am! I'll have to think about that now too!

Courtney- cruises are awesome! I've been on 3 in the past 2-3 years. I've been to Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Bahamas, Key West, St. Maarten, St. Lucia, St. Thomas, Barbados, St. Kitts and some more I think. I've been on Royal Carribbean and Celebrity.

[maxandmolly]

You could also drive south- have you been to Captiva Island or Sanibel Island? It's kind of a touristy area, but it's really pretty, and there are some really nice on the beach motels that still have reasonable rates (unlike our area), there's olld lighthouses and such to sightsee........or maybe the Keys? But that's a much longer drive....

[ManteoChik]

Oh.....I just thought about Charleston, SC (very beautiful).

Maybe a trip up to Ashville, NC (one of my favorites in the mountains). It is absolutly beautiful especially in the fall. There was another thread in here about the Biltmore Estate and I posted some info about it...
NC Mountain's Link (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=6058)

[tlew12778]

I would go to Greece in September. Airfare would be $500-600 and you could easily stay under $1200 for two people for the rest of the week. With 2-3 days of total travel time that still leaves you with 5-7 days actual island time. I'd go to Mykonos and Santorinì. You can get apartments on both islands for about 50 euro a day, possibly even less since it's low season.

Alternatively I'd go to Thailand. I didn't realise how cheap Thailand was until I started researching it for our HM. If you look in the Thailand thread you will see members who have stayed in beach bungalows for like $3 a day! 5 star hotels are like $50/day. THe flight is more expensive but food and accomodations are a lot cheaper. I've seen 4 star packages for 6-7 days for like $500-600 plus air.

[justHB]

You could probably get airfare/hotel in the Bahamas for that price. I know my friend H goes to the Bahamas and Jamaica quite frequently for well under the price you're hoping to stick within.

[nettreefrog]

So many ideas...I don't know where to start :D

I would check out some websites including:

1 - Major discount travel sites--and look at package deals (www.hotwire.com, www.expedia.com, www.orbitz.com, www.travelocity.com, etc.)
2 - Sign up for www.travelzoo.com --and leave the planning to the last minute wherein you can choose from their top 20 deals. I have seen all kinds of stuff there... Right now, they have a deal for 7 nights in Costa Rica for $409/pp--and another for Singapore for $899. There are other sites like www.11hourvacations.com with similar last minute specials!
3 - I can guide you around Puerto Rico (where my FIL and some other family live), DC (my hometown), and NYC (where I live now) --So, if any of those three options sounds good let me know--and I'd be happy to help.