The bad news is that you have to pay this fuel surcharge no matter which carrier you use or which booking engine you use.

The good news is that you can avoid paying the fuel surcharge by not flying.

But wait, there is another way…

If I have said it once, well, I will say it again. FlyerTalk is one of the best, if not the single best, online resource for do-it-yourself travel planners to learn how to save money on travel.

Specifically for airfares, the Mileage Run Deals and Mileage Run Discussion boards are fantastic. There is also a board for Hotel Deals.

Consider those message boards–along with most of my prior posts–to be beginner to intermediate level discussions.

Why is this post called Air Travel 504?

Because this is the Graduate course. This topic will not be of interest to everyone. This is a very specialized and complicated topic.

Master it and you will be a lean, mean, airfare booking machine.

This is an independent study course using only one reference source.

The one source is a specific FlyerTalk thread . Currently 1198 pages and almost 18,000 posts it is called Trick It / Negotiate It / Special Savings Lounge Thread.

In it, contributors find extremely complicated and rare anomalies in airline reservation systems, such as quirky fares that do include the fuel surcharge. You can realize huge savings since the current fuel surcharge on flights between US and Europe is over $450.

However, the contributors do not simply tell you how to get these circumvention fares. Everything in the thread is coded.

A crude example (my creation) post: FD from lazy airport to kid’s summer wet game via land of ice and fire only using Keanu’s engine.

This would mean you can find a fare without the fuel surcharge (FD=fuel dump) between Los Angeles (airport code is LAX) to Naples (actual name is Marco Polo) via Iceland (land of ice and fire). Flights via Iceland can be assumed to be on IcelandAir–so the carrier is implied in this case. Keanu’s engine would be Matrix, which is a commonly used booking engine by FTers.

One reason for the encryption is that once a deal is discovered and publicized, the airline quickly fixes the problem.

Another reason is by speaking in code, the information remains cryptic to outsiders.

Outsiders can become insiders. All you need to do is spend the time to understand the lingo and processes.

It is not easy. And it will take lots of time to decode the puzzles. YMMV, of course, depending on your cryptography skill set.

Even better, insiders can discover and share their own findings, which contribute to the overall group benefit.

What do you think? Are you ready? If so, are you interested?

By the way, ever notice that the airlines do not lower the fuel surcharge when oil prices decline?

Charles McCool is an independent consumer travel advocate.

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool). You can also follow me on LinkedIn, Pinterest, Klout, and StumbleUpon.

© 2012, Charles McCool

For the latest profile, I am thrilled to present Shereen Rayle. Shereen is the owner and writer of Shereen Travels Cheap, a website that offers posts about her travels, current travel deals, budget tips and suggesting websites and products. She often writes about foods she has eaten on travels and where to find great restaurants on your trips. She is a Savvy Expert in Ebates’ Savvy Living Community, specializing in Travel, but also helping others to live more Savvy with money-saving tips and ideas. She is based in Portland, Oregon when not traveling the world.

Bio:

I like to call myself a budget travel enthusiast. I’m not a travel professional, getting paid to travel the world and sleep in the swankiest hotels, so saving money is seriously important when I plan my vacations. My husband and I like to get the most for our money, but still be comfortable and do as much as possible. With this in mind, I am constantly looking for ways to save on every aspect of a trip. Finding that so many others around me were also on a budget and didn’t even know where to start when planning an affordable vacation, I set out to write a book, with a corresponding blog, to help friends, family and all the other budget travelers out there take better vacations with the money they had. Readers can see some of the great current deals and tips, as well as ask me questions via my page on Facebook or my Twitter feed.

Shereen Rayle

Always in my luggage…

Sunscreen, iGo multi-charger, netbook, mobile and camera.

3 favorite home-away-from-home places…

- London
- Anaheim
- Ecuador

A favorite travel memory is…

Waking up from being totally jetlagged to my husband having planned an entire afternoon and evening in Paris for us. We spent hours at Pere Lachaise Cemetery and took a gazillion pictures of the incredible tombs.

3 favorite travel brands…

- Delsey
- Travelon
- Columbia Sportswear

3 money-saving travel tactics I use are…

- Fly on Wednesday or Saturday.
- Rent an apartment (or hotel with kitchenette), so we can make some of our own meals.
- Walk as much as possible.

3 ways that I have fun while traveling are…

- Finding yummy local restaurants
- Doing totally (and usually cheesy) touristy things
- Meeting new people.

8 word (or less) travel mantra…

Any budget can accommodate a great vacation.

My favorite non-travel website…

Ebates.com, because it saves me tons of money on everything I buy.

most memorable souvenir …

I pick up an ornament on every trip I go on, so each year my Christmas tree becomes more and more international.

favorite cheap eat …

Food carts! Specifically the ones in Paris that sell baguette sandwiches and crepes.

recent discovery …

Packable boots are amazing. I love a good, stylish boot, but they are always hard to pack and you definitely can’t wear them on a long plane rides. Packables are my new favorite travel companions.

I would like to meet …

Anthony Bourdain. I adore his sense of humor and love of food and travel.

Thank you, Shereen, for sharing your thoughts with McCool Travel and may you have countless more memorable travel adventures!

Follow Shereen on Facebook and Twitter.

Share responses by leaving a comment or contacting me directly by email (CharlesMcCool -at- gmail -dot- com).

Charles McCool is an independent consumer travel advocate.

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool).

© 2012, Charles McCool

onefinestay offers boutique vacation rentals in London. Travelers can rent local resident’s homes for a more authentic vacation experience. Here is Scott’s submission.

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In recent years there has been a huge rise in the number of travellers who are looking for an alternative to staying in a hotel whilst on holiday. This has been caused by many factors, the main ones being the increasing number of soulless hotels along with the trend of visitors wishing to explore the “real” city.

This is where home swap/stays become a very viable option, these allow tourists to stay in a real person’s home and sample the life of a real local.

There are three main ways in which home swapping works.

The first is a direct swap. This is when two homes owners from different cities or counties both agree to swap homes for a set period of time.  This is a great option for those on a tight budget as no money changes hand but it’s very reliant on the timings and desired locations of both parties matching up. The other main main issue with home swapping is the fear that the quality of the homes do not match and therefore one set of guests would feel hard done by.

The second alterative to staying in a hotel is to rent a spare room in a local’s home. This trend of “couchsurfing” has becoming increasing popular among young travellers as it provides an easy and cheap alternative to hostel rooms, which are often unsecure. Couchsurfing works by home owners posting information of their spare room on a website, travellers can then book and pay for the room online. The homeowner is then responsible for arranging the comings and goings of the guest during the stay. Some people have found this to be great way to travel as they get to meet the homeowner and get their tips on the local area. The fact that you are moving to a person’s home while they are still there can sometimes lead to a lack of privacy for both parties.

If you like the idea of staying in someone’s home but don’t want to have them there or if you’re travelling as a family then an entire home rental is the best option. A home rental allows travellers to live in a real home but the owner is away. Guests have access to the entire home, this means that you get things that you don’t get a in a hotel, such as a kitchen and a fully equipped living room.  A onefinestay rental allows guest to stay in an upscale London home and also receive all the services which you would expect from a hotel.

All three of these options allow travellers to see parts of any city that tourists don’t see without having to pay over the odds for a boring hotel room.

Thank you, Scott!

Charles McCool is an independent consumer travel advocate.

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool). You can also follow me on LinkedIn, Pinterest, Klout, and StumbleUpon.

© 2012, Charles McCool

Are you curious to learn how I saved over 90%?

Just to let you know, I did nothing tricky or against any rules. I really did pay only $82.50 for a flight that was listed for $914. The trip was within the continental USA but the itinerary was not a standard round-trip. That routing, plus purchasing the flight only two days before flying led to the extremely high price.

Basically, I wanted to book a last-minute six-day trip and selected Santa Barbara, California as my starting point. Initially I planned to return home from Eureka/Arcata but I changed my itinerary because of the weather forecast. Instead, I returned home from Phoenix, Arizona.

My flight itinerary was actually Dulles to Santa Barbara (via San Francisco) and Phoenix to Dulles.

Yes, that flight would cost $914 when booked only two days prior to flying. Insane!

OK, so that is some background.

Now, how did I pay only $82.50?

Short answer ======> I used frequent flyer points

Detailed answer follows…

Believe me when I say that I do not travel as much as I would like to. I did have enough points (25,000) in my frequent flyer account to redeem to a flight within the continental US. However, I am guessing that less than 10% of those points were from actual flights. I earned points from a variety of sources and you can too!

I earned points from buying things on the internet (electronics, gift cards, music, and more), dining at restaurants (10 points per dollar), and other offers (completing surveys, accepting targeted emails). Plenty of online sources detail how to earn hundreds of thousands of points, including by signing up for credit cards.

Indeed, there are many ways to earn frequent flyer points without flying. Here is a current post outlining how to get 30 points per dollar spent of flowers for Valentine’s Day. You can even buy points but look for bonus offers.

Now you know that you can easily earn frequent flyer points. It might take some time and work but you can do it!

After earning a pool of frequent flyer points, you can also redeem for high ticket flights, like I did. In fact, last-minute flights, expensive open jaw flights, and first class upgrades are some of the best redemption values for frequent flyer awards.

Why did I pay $82.50?

A $7.50 fee had be paid for airport fees ($2.50 per airport used). If I would have booked this itinerary a year in advance, I would still be required to pay the $7.50. That fee depends on the itinerary. If I had returned from Eureka, then I would have paid $10.

I had to pay a $75 fee for booking within 21 days of the flight.

My multi-city itinerary was super easy to book on the airline’s website.

What is the best frequent flyer award deal you have found?

You can contact me directly by email (CharlesMcCool -at- gmail -dot- com).

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool). You can also follow me on LinkedIn, Pinterest, Klout, and StumbleUpon.

© 2012, Charles McCool

If you are reading this with the expectation of reading my travel bucket list, then turn your vehicle around and head for the next travel blog post.

You see, I have not compiled my travel bucket list. ::gasp::

Long ago I wrote down that I wanted to visit all 7 continents and more than 100 countries. That was when I created a top ten list of things I wanted to do in my lifetime. Those were the only travel items on my list.

Instead, when I do have the chance to travel, I simply pick destinations based on many factors. Do I feel like going to a familiar or new place? Road trip or single destination? Strict budget or not?

I kind of want to visit everything and everywhere.

When I travel, I often visit places I have not been to or even heard of. I do things I have not done.

So, how would I know to put them on a to-do list?

The travel bucket list phenomena is intriguing, though.

Do you have a travel bucket list? Is it full of places, activities, or both? When you complete an item do you replace it with another?

I developed a simple theory on my road trip last week. Without any deep thought or research I will throw this idea out here to the world:

- in our 20s, our philosophy is Carpe Diem

- in our 30s, our philosophy is No Regrets or Just Do It

- in our 40s, our philosophy is Life Is Good

- afterward, as in the movie with Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson, we create bucket lists.

Yes, I know that many younger people have bucket lists. My theory is that it is not really a bucket list but more of a Carpe Diem list; that is, “I want to see everything.”

Even though I am in the Life Is Good category, my travel list is still Carpe Diem. I will have to think about that one.

What do you think about bucket lists? I would love to see your comments.

You can contact me directly by email (CharlesMcCool -at- gmail -dot- com).

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool). You can also follow me on Pinterest, Klout, and StumbleUpon.

© 2012, Charles McCool

While mostly entertaining, The Amazing Race provides an armchair traveler’s view of people, transportation, and attractions of far away lands. I enjoy watching the show to see what travel tips I can file away for future use.

With that in mind, here are 8 great travel lessons from The Amazing Race:

1. Use Specific Terminology. Ask for flight, bus, train, etc., that arrives the soonest or earliest–instead of the fastest or quickest. Some teams have waited to take later flights that arrived sooner, due to better routes or shorter connection times.
2. Arrival Time May Not Matter. Many times, teams arrive in the middle of the night only to find the next challenge unavailable until the attraction opens the next day. So, if the desired attraction is not open until 9 am it does not matter if I arrive at 1 am or 6 am. Rather than waste those waiting hours, take later transport, more luxurious transport, or plan to visit other places.
3. Protect Your Documents. Teams without money were able to panhandle. Teams without passports could not continue. Documents are more important than money or any material item.
4. Money Cannot Buy Happiness. Over and over again, teams treasure the experiences, challenges, competition, and memories over the potential prize.
5. Ask Locals. Native residents know the best transportation, traffic patterns, and shortcuts. Taking a little extra time to speak with locals often saves time in the long run–and almost always is a more memorable experience than going at it alone. On the other hand, not every cab driver is competent. It is just a crap shoot. Ask how far destinations are before picking transportation. Many times on the show, teams would walk too far when they could have taken a taxi or bus and vice versa.
6. Friendliness Is An Asset. Really, has being selfish or belligerent ever benefited anyone? Teams that are genuinely nice to each other, other teams, and people in the places they visit seem to have good karma on their side.
7. Being Good Looking Is An Asset. A pretty face and smile has gotten teams out of paying cab fares and extra assistance from locals. However, that benefit is short lived as those recipients always seem to fail in future episodes. I cannot recall any of the “pretty teams” winning the whole race. Anyone can be unique in some part of the world. I remember episodes where excess attention was made about hair color (blondes), height (Globetrotters), celebrity (Survivor contestants), and familiarity (Asian-American in Asia, African-American in Africa).
8. Go With The Flow. Don’t stress. Locals like to help. It always works out. Always. Well, almost always. Just don’t lose your passport.

Surely you have a favorite travel lesson learned from The Amazing Race. Or maybe a memorable story. Please share in the comments.

You can follow The Amazing Race on Twitter and Facebook.

You can contact me directly by email (CharlesMcCool -at- gmail -dot- com).

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool). You can also follow me on Pinterest, Klout, and StumbleUpon.

© 2012, Charles McCool

Costco food courts, as a reminder or if you are unfamiliar, offer huge slices of pizza for $2 (and whole pies for $9.99), sandwiches and bakes, salads, ice cream, and more. They are perhaps most famous for their hot dog and fountain drink combo which has been priced at $1.50 as long as I remember (at least since 1990).

I will not pretend that Costco food court items positively contribute to your 2012 resolution for better health but they are outstanding bargains. Less than $1.50 for a fruit smoothie–which would cost over $4 elsewhere. That hot dog and drink combo costs less than just a drink at most other places. And much more.

So, here are the two ways to further save money:

First, Costco frequently mails coupon books to members. Perhaps every other coupon book has a discount coupon for whole pies from the food court. Usually $9.99, the whole pizza will cost less (perhaps $7.99 or $5) with the coupon. For a visiting group of kids or football viewing party, you can do much worse. Similar sized pizzas will cost over $15 at other local shops.

The second method is a little more tricky. I am a Costco Executive Member. Any Costco member can be an Executive member for an extra $55 a year. It does entitle you to some benefits but the most important to me is a 2% rebate on all purchases.

However, the Costco food court only accepts cash, you might say.

I discovered that I can pay for food court purchases at a register while buying warehouse items. That way I can use my credit card and can essentially get  2% discount on food court items. After paying for the items at the register, I go to the food court and show them the receipt and get the food items.

Sure, 2% is not a tremendous discount but it is a discount.

In addition, if your American Express card offers cash back or mileage benefits, then you are inherently also getting those discounts. I try to think this way whenever I make any purchase (online or not, store or restaurant, product or service).

For interesting passionate Costco information, visit AddictedtoCostco.com.

You can contact me directly by email (CharlesMcCool -at- gmail -dot- com).

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool).

© 2012, Charles McCool

An essential travel skill, however, is being able to find convenient restroom facilities. This is especially important when exploring unfamiliar locations, being unable to access your current temporary residence (many hostels and inns close during the day), and on road trips.

For those times when a tree or bush will not suffice, here are 8 great general places that usually provide reliable restroom facilities.

1. Visitor Centers. Whatever the name–tourist office, information center, convention bureau–locations that cater to visitors almost always have clean restroom facilities. In addition to doing your business, you can find deals and information on dining, lodging, and sightseeing for local businesses.
2. Public Areas. This is a catchall category which may include libraries, bus and train stations, conventions centers, universities, police stations, attractions, churches, parks, and museums. Any venue where the general public visits is surely to have at least one comfort station.
3. Grocery Stores. I prefer supporting small businesses and typically shop at smaller grocery stores when traveling. However, the larger chain grocery stores are more likely to have convenient restroom facilities. Allow time to visit both!
4. Department Stores. In the United States, large chain stores such as Target and Wal-Mart are convenient pit stops. Places like Home Depot and Lowes work, too. In other countries, large stores can include supermercados (and hipermercados) and multi-story units with cafeterias.
5. Gas Stations. While getting fuel for your vehicle, make use of their restroom facilities. It is a time-honored road trip tradition.
6. Fast Food Restaurants. If any road trip tradition competes with the above, it is stopping at a roadside McDonalds or Burger King to use the bathroom. The modern, city dweller equivalent might be Starbucks.
7. Hotel Lobbies. When exploring large cities, hotel lobbies are fantastic places to take a break. Large lobbies are wonderful for resting and, of course, their restrooms provide relief. More elegant, prominent properties have superb holiday decorations.
8. Recreation Centers. Public (or private sometimes) rec centers are often great places for restroom breaks. When I lived on the Monterey Peninsula, I usually stopped midway through long bike rides at the Pebble Beach Pro Shop. Countless other times while traveling, I have taken breaks at pools, tennis and sports facilities, and public parks.

Charles McCool is an independent consumer travel advocate.

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool).

© 2012, Charles McCool

Here is Logan B.’s submission.

—–

If you’re going to be floating down the Amazon River it may be difficult to keep in touch with the outside world when you’re away, but thanks to modern global communication, you’re never too far away to reconnect a little bit.  It is important that when you’re on vacation, you leave your stressors behind.  Jet charter, commercial flights, bus, ferry, train rides, and all other modern forms of transportation use computerized systems in their terminals and many offer wireless network access.  If you’re traveling from one place to the next, you are not on the ‘relaxing’ portion of your vacation.  This is the time to capitalize on reconnecting, make a quick phone call, read a newsfeed, or (if you can find one in a language you know) a newspaper.

While it’s essential that you get your time away and enjoy it, a big part of stress that comes from a vacation is getting caught up when you return.  You have no idea what is going on in the world, at work with your friends and family and it can be difficult to adjust.  The dread of knowing this transition will be a challenge can often taint the vacation before, during and after.

Don’t let this happen to you.  Just create a few clear boundaries to keep one toe back in the real world while the rest of your body is carefree and enjoying your much needed vacation.  Here are a few suggestions to help you achieve this balance.

1. Bring your smartphone or tablet.  This doesn’t mean that you have to keep the phone on or answer any calls or return any emails, but it does let you passively check on things once a day or so.  Turn it off the rest of the time if you like, but let yourself at least check your inbox so you know what work emails have come in and can think about them on the back burner as they come in a few at a time.  This way, you’re not overwhelmed by the flood of two weeks of emails the day you get back.
2. Check out the news every few days.  It depends on how rural and removed your travels are taking you, but check a news stream or pick up a paper every few days just to check and see if your town is on fire.  It’s embarrassing when you get back from a trip and people inundate you with the latest major events that hit close to home.  You may know someone that lives in an area that has been effected by some sort of disaster and this way you can check on them sooner rather than later.
3. Call or email home every few days.  You’re on vacation, nobody expects you to be super accessible, but calling or using Skype or emailing, even a post card is very reassuring to those at home that you’re ok and they don’t have to worry about you.

There is a balance to be had between checking out on vacation and completely disconnecting from reality.  You can recharge and stay involved at the same time, just observe a few of these tips and relax and enjoy yourself!

—–

Thank you, Logan.

Charles McCool is an independent consumer travel advocate.

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool).

© 2011, Charles McCool

Travel companies are some of the biggest resource wasters. Here are some ways to combat.

1. Reduce Travel. Dang, that is a tough first step. Do you really need to take that trip? The less we travel, the less resources we use. Tremendous carbon output would be avoided if instead of flying across the country or the world for a meeting, make it work via email, IM, phone, teleconference, and so on.
2. Use Digital Boarding Passes. For flights this month, I used eight sheets of paper to print boarding passes for my party of four. Sure, I recycled the paper but would have preferred to not use any paper. Some airlines offer electronic boarding passes on iPhones and other mobile devices. I will send that airline a note requesting that they implement a paperless boarding pass option.
3. BYOB – Bring Your Own Bottle. Flight attendants on the same airline passed out dozens of small plastic bottles of water. For every passenger that brings an empty bottle to the airport and fills it with water (from a fountain or soft drink dispenser) vast resources are saved.
4. Encourage Travel Companies to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. The same flight attendants collected the plastic water bottles in the same bags with trash, newspapers, and magazines. I doubt that it is all sorted later into recyclables and trash. I will also send the airline a note encouraging it to implement a recycling program.
5. Avoid Renting a Car. To say it another way, use mass transportation. If your hotel provides a shuttle, use it. Use rail, buses, trolleys to get around town. Even better, walk or bike. I love that many US cities are setting up bike rental stations.
6. Rent Hybrid Vehicles. OK, if you must rent a car, rent a hybrid vehicle. Hybrids use less fuel and resources.
7. Reuse Towels. Do you launder your bath towels every day at home? If you are staying in a hotel, B&B, etc., for more than one day, use the same towels for the entire visit. Be diligent about helping the property save water by not washing your linens. Most annoying are hotels that have a policy but do not follow it. If they have a sign in the bathroom saying they will only replace towels on the floor or in the tub but then replace all of the hanging towels anyway–then notify the manager.
8. Eat Local. Local equals authentic. Farmers markets are good for the local economy and for you (healthy, fun). Local restaurants use the freshest possible ingredients. Resources are reduced because transportation issues are reduced. Quality is often better. One of London’s best restaurants is The Roof Gardens’ Babylon Restaurant, a sustainable entity of Richard Branson’s Virgin empire.

These are only a few steps. There are countless others. One of the most important aspects, I believe, is awareness. Contact travel companies are let them know that they need to do a better job of reducing their use of natural resources. Perhaps I will re-visit this topic in one year to assess the progress.

What are your suggestions?

Charles McCool is an independent consumer travel advocate.

For frequent travel deals, follow me on Facebook (McCool Travel) and Twitter (@CharlesMcCool).

© 2011, Charles McCool