Earn 25,000 Continental OnePass Miles from Chase Bank

Pretty...pretty...pretty good offer here. Get 10,000 OnePass miles for opening a Chase checking account (minimum $100 opening balance), and either set up direct deposit or make (5) debit card purchases. Earn another 15,000 miles after your first qualified purchase on a Chase Continental Airlines Preferred Debit card ($25 or $65 annual fee applies - depending on dollar-to-point conversion you choose).

What I like about this offer: No long-term commitment: Give Chase a try, and if you are not satisfied, close your accounts and walk away with 25,000 extra miles in your account. Plus, baggage fee-waivers apply to debit card holders flying Continental Airlines. One more plus: 25,000 miles might just convert over to United Airlines miles next year as the merger process continues.

What I don't like: Very little: The annual fee, but it is fairly insignificant considering it is in exchange for 25,000 miles (a free domestic ticket in coach). The bank will probably need to run a credit report (read: inquiry) on you as well. And, must walk into a brick-and-mortar to open the account; no can do online.

Overall, seems like a pretty good deal! One I will be taking advantage of this week.

Free Lonely Planet City Guides for iPhone Users

To assist those stuck in Europe due to the Iceland volcano, Lonely Planet is giving away 13 city editions of its iPhone European guides. A message from Lonely Planet Travel Editor posted on the LP blog said: "Travelers stuck in unfamiliar places need access to practical information as well as suggestions on what to do whilst stranded...that's why we're giving away iPhone city guides to major affected destinations." The free download is available (to everyone...) until April 22nd. Click here to see the list of cities available.

$20 Rooms at Select Howard Johnson Hotels

(Update: Rates gone as of 4:55 PM)

HOT! A price mistake, or just a great deal?

$20 rooms are available at hojo.com for select properties throughout the U.S. Many cities do not have HoJo hotels, and/or not included in the $20/night results.

Here are a few of the cities we have found @ the $20 rate.

San Francisco Airport, Orange County, Torrance, Washington D.C., Clearwater, Florida, Anchorage, Alaska, and my favorite so far: Howard Johnson Inn Plaza de Armas in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Complimentary WiFi and/or breakfast are available at many hotels.

HoJo properties vary in quality! Some are rather amazing, others...not so much. Check TripAdvisor reviews before making your purchase.

To maximize this deal, link thru click on ebates and earn 1.5% cash back. Hurry, these prices won't last long.

Expedia $200 Off Coupon For Vacations of 3+ Days

How about a 3-day vacation, including air and hotel, for under $150? It's available for the asking.

Expedia has teamed up with Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG) and various airlines to give customers an instant $200 cash back on select Expedia vacation packages priced $200 (pre-tax) or more.

Check out this sample itinerary above. Flying round-trip Virgin America SFO to Orange County and a three night stay at Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites near Disneyland, for just $129 bucks! Plus, in addition to the frequent flyer points you earn for flying, if you are a member of the ThankYou network (yet another frequent travel program), you earn points for making this purchase through Expedia.

Here are the details (a bit vague) of this offer. Essentially, you need to book at participating IHG properties, such as Holiday Inn's and Crowne Plaza hotels, and select airlines, including U.S. Airways, JetBlue and Virgin America. Travel valid any day of the week through September 30, 2009. Enter promo code 200IHG during checkout.

So have some fun with this promotion. An opportunity for some cheap getaways to Phoenix, Portland, or Vegas, or apply the funds to a larger vacation elsewhere.

Click here to start your search.

Frontier Airlines Giving Away Miles To Celebrate Its Birthday

In celebration of its 15th birthday on July 5th, Frontier Airlines is giving away 1,500 bonus miles to EarlyReturns members for qualifying Fall 2009 flights. Members of the airlines' frequent flyer program can earn the bonus miles for each roundtrip flight booked between July 1 and August 31, 2009 and flown between October 1 and December 15, 2009. Registration is not required. If you are not currently a Frontier EarlyReturns member, sign up and earn an additional 1,500 bonus miles. Click here for more info.

Follow United Airlines on Twitter to Receive 15% off Cert

Be one of the first 50,000 followers of United Airlines on Twitter, and you'll receive a discount certificate for up to 15% off future travel. According to the terms of the offer, the amount of the discount will depend on how quickly the airline reaches the 50,000 goal. The e-cert is valid on most published United airfares between August 15 and November 17, 2009. Click here to sign up.

San Francisco to Rio de Janeiro $571 RT, Tax Included

It's not too often you find discounted airfares to South America, but indeed, we found one for you today. Some of the major carriers have been slowly dropping fares down to Rio. Right now you can fares from SFO to Rio de Janeiro for just $571 round-trip, including all taxes and fees. Travel is valid through September 30th on these fares. For example, we found SFO-GIG (Rio) September 10-16, connecting in Miami on American Airlines for just $571.70 "all in." Click here and search availability using the flexible dates option. 

Alaska Airlines Bay Area Sale to Portland

Starting March 13th, Alaska Airlines is launching a Bay Area fare sale, with fares starting at $49 each way for travel between Portland, OR and Oakland, San Francisco, San Jose, Sacramento and Santa Rosa/Sonoma County, CA. Hurry, this offer is only available until March 20th! Visit Alaskaair.com (visit on or after March 13th)

How to Bid Better With Priceline

Mike Grasso

If we think back just 10 years ago, our options for finding the best travel deals were fairly limited to travel agents and other good folks "in the know." Fortunately now we have a potpourri of resources, particularly online, that enable us to find a customized travel deals that meets our needs in term of value and taste. One website, a particular favorite of mine, called biddingfortravel.com takes finding great values to the next level. 

As their website states, their primary goal is to promote informed bidding when using Priceline travel products. Many of us are familiar with the popular "name your own price" line pioneered by Priceline many years ago.  Under this method, you can bid for travel (cars, airline tickets, hotels) at a price you feel is reasonable without, at least initially, knowing who the supplier of the travel is. If your bid is accepted, then Priceline congratulates you and confirms the details of your itenerary, including which airline, car rental, or hotel accepted your offer. But how do you know if you over bid? What if that good deal could have been a great deal? This is where biddingfortravel.com comes in. 

Based primarily on user successes with Priceline's bidding system, biddingfortravel.com organizes their site by travel product and region, allowing you to scan recent Priceline bids in order to put in an offer that is likely to get accepted and ensures you don't overbid. So while a rate of $200US for the 5-star Intercontinental De La Ville in Rome would be a bargain (rack rates are over $250), a rate of $154 was accepted by Priceline - as reported on biddingfortravel.com.

Of course if you underbid, Priceline requires you to become more flexible (i.e: larger car, expand hotel search to a different region, etc.) then rebid. If you just want to increase you bid amount, you must wait 24 hours. So a review of the biddingfortravel site before you place a bid helps ensure your offer amount is within reasonable levels. 

HOT! $10/Day Car Rentals From Alamo

Last week we brought you the Hertz free rental car offer where you receive a free one day car rental - few strings attached. Allegedly you had to pay a few bucks for taxes and fees, but my experience over the weekend resulted in a completely free rental.

Now Alamo has upped the ante by offering $10/day car rentals - up to four days in length, through May 31, 2009. Pickup as early as Thursday, return as late as Monday. For example, I just booked a four day rental for Honolulu, Hawaii, with a total cost of $52, compared to the previous $147 I had reserved. Best of all, like the Hertz offer, pre-payment is not required. This offer is valid in most U.S markets and it's good for both airport and in-city rentals.

Six Free Issues of Condé Nast Traveler Magazine

(Thanks to saveatmsu on fatwallet)

Chevy is running a promotion whereby people can receive six free issues of select magazines, including Condé Nast Traveler magazine. Fill out this form by January 7, 2009 to take advantage of this offer.  Use offer code: 85924565

Rite Aid $3.99 Passport Photos

Bay Area residents living near a Rite Aid store can appreciate this weeks circular. On the Photo Shop page (page 12 locally, but may vary by market) advertises Passport photos for only $3.99 a set, after a $4 rebate. Best of all, Rite Aid rebates are submitted electronically, saving you the hassle of submitting forms and receipts by mail. Passport photos can often cost between $8 and $20 elsewhere. Click here to view this weeks Ride Aid circular.

San Francisco to Belize $363 "all in"

Continental Airlines is offering a $263+ airfare to Belize City, Belize (BZE) for travel now through October 28th. This is not considered "peak season" for Belize, but depending on your tolerance for weather (more variable than all sun) and number of other tourists visiting at the same time (not a ton of them), you may actually find this a good time to visit. The total cost is $363 round-trip, including taxes and fees. Visit http://www.continental.com/ to book.

Read more: Belize weather

1000 Bonus Starwood Points For Summer Hotel Stays

The Starwood Preferred Guest program is offering 1000 bonus SPG points for summer hotel stays at participating Starwood properties around the world. Four Points by Sheraton will earn 500 points.

First, register here. Then stay Sunday-Thursday at participating properties through September 30, 2008 to earn the 1000 bonus points. Click here for a comprehensive list of eligible properties.

Free Hotel Room Using The 'Best Rate Guarantee'

By Mike Grasso

What's better than finding a good quality hotel at an inexpensive price? Finding the same hotel and paying nothing for it. Not talking about working for a hotel, not speaking of becoming a hotel secret shopper, you simply check into your hotel and pay nada for it. Have I hooked you in yet?

Here's how it works:

Many hotels have a 'best rate guarantee' (BRG) policy on their website. After you purchase the room from the hotel if you find an identical room at a better rate from a competitor, such as Orbitz or Travelocity, many hotels will refund your money and give you the room at no charge. The 'best rate guarantee' of course is a way for hotels to drive customers purchase directly from the hotels website, rather than them having to pay commissions when you book on other travel websites. While many hotels offer 'best rate guarantees' not all of them give you a free room. Others will give you a discount or hotel points.

A'las a blog that seeks out best rate guarantee deals has arisen. Each day the good folks at best rate guarantee hunt for free accommodations using hotels' BRG policy. Recent posts include free nights in San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Susanville, Redding, Reno, Burbank and Anaheim.

Most of the BRG opportunities (the fully refundable ones), you don't actually need to prepay - all you need to do is enter a credit card. Then, your rate is changed, without real money ever being involved.

In addition to finding these slick deals, they provide step by step instructions on how to properly submit a BRG claim to the hotel.

Two thumbs up to this site for providing travelers another useful tool when planning their next journey.

Winter & Spring 08' European Fares under $500

Need some travel ideas? Winter and Spring 08' Airfare Deals available now from United & Lufthansa Airlines All fares verified to be $500 or less, roundtrip, taxes included. Travel thru most of March 08'
San Francisco - Madrid, Cologne, Basel, Berlin, Barcelona, Geneva, Zurich, Manchester, Frankfurt. Visit: http://www.travelocity.com/ or www.farecompare.com

HOT FARE. Sacramento - Philadelphia, PA $105+tax roundtrip ($137 all in) December 1-19th
Continental, Delta and Northwest Airlines.

HOT FARE! San Jose to Los Angeles $80/roundtrip, taxes included! American Airlines
Travel Tuesday & Wednesdays in October and first 2 weeks of November.
Visit http://www.farecompare.com/