Useful Travel Websites - No, Really
(Mostly) Beyond The Ordinary
TODAY'S RAMBLINGS
2 Minute Read
Hello Hump Day and if only my parents had visited a travel packing website before this trip in the 1950s.
Whoops.
Sadly, they of course had no websites, travel or otherwise, to which to turn.
At least you don’t have that problem.
Here’s what I use, and I have no affiliation with any, beyond relying upon them for vacations. Even the ones I take . . .
Flights | Trains | Ferries | Hotels | Cars
Let’s do a pedestrian one straightaway. For flights, I admit to starting here.
But for the record, and this is true for hotels and cars as well, I never book anything anywhere other than from the website of the company delivering the product or service in question. So while I may use Google Flights, my actual booking is done with the airline. Likewise, while Expedia, Trivago, and Kayak and their ilk might get me started, I never book a hotel or car with them. The potential hassles later aren’t worth whatever savings there might be, at least for this cranky old man.
I augment my flight searches with knowledge gleaned from here, a site that tells you all of the non-stop flights from a given airport.
And here, another boring one. But I don’t want to sit just anywhere when I fly.
And this is my go-to for flight status, beyond a given airline’s app. This has proven accurate, has every flight, and shows from where your flight is coming.
Finding what was on offer, train- and ferry-wise, in Europe used to be a challenge. Not with this site, and I do the same with this as I do with Google Flights: I use it to locate services and then go to the actual provider’s site to book.
Different Travel
It can’t always be an Adler, AVE, or Madrid. Here are a few sites that might give you some new ideas.
Collective Retreats: Unusual Glamping
A California Bonus
Having lived here as long as we have, we’ve developed tried-and-true favorites that we’ve come to rely upon, in the regions we know. So I don’t typically need help from the web.
Except . . . a couple of years ago, our travels took us to Paso Robles, an area with which (for some reason) we had little experience over the years. It was there we discovered this agency when we stayed at one of their properties.
California Central Coast Vacation Rentals
Heck, it was so good I wrote a Travel Guide about it.
Speaking of Travel Guides, I’ll close with what’s coming up, in 2025:
Cincinnati (for Giants Opening Day)
Las Vegas (for Dead & Company at The Sphere)
Hendy Woods Camping Cabin in Mendocino
Angel Island State Park Camping
Madrid and Valencia in Spain
Now breathe deeply and try to contain your excitement. At least until Friday’s debut of Chapter 1 of Ride of Your Life.
FROM THE UNWASHED MASSES
Speaking of novels, I would like to express sincere gratitude to the dozens those of you offering encouragement since last Friday’s announcement that I am going to pursue a dream and attempt writing one.
They may live to regret it, but we’re all about to find out.
Thank you for reading this newsletter.
KLUF
This may or may not refer to travel. It also may or may not refer to the length of my upcoming novel. Whatever its meaning, it’s nice and chill and Killer.