We hope your Thanksgiving holiday was a success.
If you’re doing Black Friday/Cyber Monday shopping, be sure to check out my updated list of deals for travelers including discounts on plane and train fares, hotels, tours, gears and gadgets.
Here’s the link to my updated list.
Updated on November 23, 2018 with fresh Black Friday/Cyber Monday travel deals.
Have enough stuff? You can still take advantage of travel-related deals during this holiday shopping season.
Here’s the list I put together recently for CNBC.
Walt Disney World Resort guests get to race and dive around a track that stretches across Toy Story Land. (Matt Stroshane, photographer)
Black Friday and its cousins Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday, Travel Deal Tuesday and Super Saturday are all projected to be shopping blockbusters this year.
But if you and everyone on your gift list already has enough stuff, rest assured there will be plenty of great deals for travelers.
Some offers have already been posted. Others will go live later. But once Black Friday rolls in, get ready to wade through oodles of discounts on flights, hotel stays, tours, travel gear and gadgets.
To avoid getting overwhelmed by the options, do some research ahead of time on hotel prices and airfares to places you know you want to visit. That way you’ll be confident about snagging a deal when it flies by. Just be sure to read the small print; many Black Friday/Cyber Monday offers come with blackout dates and restrictions.
Here’s a sampling of what will be offered.
Get there
Amtrak confirms it will bring back its Black Friday sale again this year, offering significant discounts of up to 30 percent on train trips nationwide.
Look for airlines such as JetBlue and Cathay Pacific to bring back their Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals as well. Cathay Pacific will offer 60 percent off flights to Asia. Fare sale begins 11/19.
New: Emirates has both Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals from all 12 US gateways.
New: Use promo code “Friday” to get up to $750 off flights at Qatar Airways
New: Spirit Airlines: Use romo code 85PCT to get 85% off the base fee on Friday, Nov. 23 until 11:59 p.m. EST. Check the exclusions at Spirit.com.
*New: WOW air is offering $69 and $99 sales to Iceland and Europe and a 40% off promo code on WOWCYBERMONDAY. “Purple Friday” discounted fares are on sale now through November 25, 2018 for travel through April 2019. On Cyber Monday, November 26, WOW use the code “WOWCYBERMONDAY” for 40% off flights to all WOW destinations.
New: Turkish Airlines Friday Flyday will offer special discounted rates for travel travel from November 23, 2018 to May 15, 2019, with a maximum stay of four months.
*New: Eurostar, the high-speed rail service linking the UK and mainland Europe, is offering savings of up to 30% during Cyber Week (November 23 to 30) for travel between January 8 and April 18 2019.
Stay there
Hotels from Maine to Hawaii, and beyond, will be tantalizing travelers with room deals. Some offers may be offered to loyalty program members first, so this is a good time to sign up.
New: Travelocity and Orbitz: Save 50% off hotels by shopping on Travelocity and Orbitz mobile app and use the code FRIDAYAPP18 in Travelocity and THANKFUL in Orbitz to save an extra 18% off.
New: Hotwire: In app-only:
Black Friday: $10 off $100 hotel bookings
$40 off $300 hotel bookings
$75 off $500 hotel bookings
Cyber Monday: An extra 11% off Hot Rate Hotels sitewide with promo code: TREATYOURSELF from 11/25 at 8pm PST to 11/26 at 11pm PST.
Archer Hotel, with properties in Austin, Napa, New York City, Burlington, MA, and Florham Park, NJ (adjacent to the Jets training camp) plans a Cyber Monday deal of 25 percent off the best available rates plus direct-book perks of drinks or breakfast for two. Sale runs November 26 to December 3 at this booking link.
Arlo Hotels will offer 50 percent off stays (with no blackout dates) at the Arlo Solo and the Arlo NoMad in New York City with a portion of proceeds going to the Rainforest Alliance. Valid: Black Friday (11/23) to Tuesday, 11/27 for stays through Labor Day 2019.
On Cyber Monday, Aqua-Aston Hospitality, will be offering 25 percent off all 40 of its properties across the Hawaii islands, along with a number of mainland and Costa Rica resorts.
RetailMeNot and Hotels.com have teamed to offer some “Mystery Bookings” on Black Friday that offer 99 percent off.
All 5,300 IHG properties around the globe will be part of a Cyber Week Sale with discounts starting at 25 percent off the best available rate. IHG Rewards Club members get additional discounts starting at 3 percent. Book November 23 through November 30 (“Cyber Weeks Sale” rate) for stays November 26, 2018 through March 31, 2019.
The Kennebunkport Resort Collection (KRC), with 9 hotels and six restaurants in Kennebunkport, Maine will offer gift card bonuses on Cyber Monday. Buy a $500 gift card and receive a $100 resort credit; buy a $200 gift card and receive a $25 resort credit.
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants is offering 25 percent off its Best Flexible Rates to IHG Reward Club member (free sign-up) from November 19 through November 30 for stays November 19 through March 31, 2019. Kimpton will also be donating $5/night to charity (The Trevor Project and No Kid Hungry)
Millennium Hotels and Resorts will offer 25 percent off flexible rates at its 13 hotels across the United States. My Millennium loyalty club members will get an extra 5 percent off. Book November 21 to 27, 2018 for stays November 21, 2018 – March 31, 2019.
Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, more than 30 Myrtle beach-area properties will be offering deep discounts of up to 55 percent on stays that stretch through spring and summer 2019. Offers will be posted here.
From November 22 through November 27, Provenance Hotels, with properties in Portland, Seattle/Tacoma, New Orleans, Nashville and Stillwater, MN, will be offering discounts of 40-50 percent off stays through February 2019.
*New: Red Roof Inn: Up to 30% off during the Cyber Monday 72-hour sale (Nov. 26 until Nov. 28). Good for stays through Feb. 28, 2019. Use code VP625099.
Between November 22 and November 26, Viceroy Hotel Group, with 12 properties in cities ranging from Beverly Hills to New York City and Chicago, will offer discounts of up to 45 percent, as well as additional perks such as complimentary upgrades and resort credits.
And from November 23 through Monday, November 26, Pacifica Hotels will offer 40 percent off room rates at 34 beachside properties in California.
Keep an eye out for deals at individual hotels as well.
Walt Disney World adventure-seekers can nab 50 percent off the best available rates on two and three-bedroom suites at The Grove Resort & Spa Orlando. (Use code Cyber to book from Black Friday through Cyber Monday). And from Black Friday through Cyber Monday, the Hard Rock Hotel San Diego will offer rates starting at $99 for stays through January 15 and add $100 drinking and dining credit to the first five reservations booked with the BF2018 code on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. One guest will also win a complimentary two-day stay, redeemable in 2019 including breakfast, parking and VIP check-in.
Tours, tickets, gear and adventures
Companies offering tours, packages and expeditions, including Intrepid Travel, Friendly Planet Travel and Liberty Travel, all have Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals on tap. Glamping Hub, an online booking platform for unusual accommodations such as tree house, tiny homes, yurts and airstreams, will add 20 percent in value to gift cards purchased on Cyber Monday
From November 20 to 29, Visit Orlando will offer an extra 10 percent off purchases at OrlandoTickets.com on top of the deals and discounts offered to more than 40 theme parks, attractions, activities and dinner shows. Most are valid one year from purchase, Use code “GIFT.”
Sea Bags, which recycles sail cloth into travel gear, will offer a 20 percent discount storewide online and at its retail locations from Black Friday through Sunday, November 25. The company’s Portland and Freeport, Maine locations will be selling select for up to 60 percent off. On Cyber Monday, the online discount will be 25 percent, with free shipping.
Don’t shop; do
For those who would rather skip the shopping ritual altogether, there are plenty of other options.
On Friday, November 23, the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, WI will be holding its 7th annual Black Friday Beerfest.
And in solidarity with outdoor gear store REI, which closes all 153 stores, processes no online payments and pays its employees to spend Thanksgiving and Black Friday outdoors, state parks and recreation areas in Minnesota, Georgia and other states around the country will host Free Park Friday as part of the #OptOutside movement.
Getting ready to do some holiday shopping? Don’t forget airport shops, which often offer “street pricing.” That means products purchased at airport shops cost no more than they do in town.
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport has once again put together a handy online Holiday Catalog to help travelers plan their airport shopping. Lots of Arizona-themed and locally-made items are listed in the catalog. And, yes, cactus plants are regularly packed for travel.
In the Northwest, Oregon’s Portland International Airport (PDX) is a popular shopping destination for travelers and locals alike.
I head there from Seattle each year not only because Oregon have no sales tax, but PDX has a pre-security shopping area featuring branches of many popular local stores.
Here’s a selection of items that recently showed up in a PDX gift box I received. Included: shortbread cookies from Flying Elephants Delicatessen, a tote bag from Powell’s Books, a CD compilation of music by Portland-based artists, a whiskey sampling from House Spirits Distillery and a scarf, mug and socks from the Pendleton Woolen Mills. (Thank-you, PDX!)
During the holidays, not only do many airport shops have their most popular gifts wrapped and ready to go, many airports offer free gift wrapping for unwrapped items you may have tucked in your carry-on.
Heading to an airport during this holiday season? If you see something cool, unusual and locally-themed that you think would make a great gift, please snap a photo and send it along. If your item is featured on StuckatTheAirport.com, we’ll send you a travel-themed gift.
Hammer Made at MSP Airport
Back-to-school sales are starting and now might be a good time to send out the reminder that airports can be great places to take advantage of tax-free shopping.
Minnesota and Pennsylvania don’t charge sales tax on clothing or shoes – so look for shops in the mall-like shopping areas of both Minneapolis-St. Paul International and Pittsburgh International Airports.
Ecco shoes at PIT Airport
And don’t forget the super-charming pre-security shopping street at Portland International Airport. There no sales tax on anything in Oregon and while at the airport for a meeting last week I rushed through the shops just looking and somehow came away with a whole new wardrobe.
Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport says it is the first European airport to install Bitcoin ATMS that allow passengers to exchange leftover euros for Bitcoin or Ethereum.
The kiosks – located in Arrival Hall 2 and in the corridor to Departure Halls 1 and 2 – are on site for a six month trial and are part of the airport’s efforts to always be looking for ways to innovate and provide “optium” service to passengers, Tanja Dik, Schiphol’s director of Consumer Products & Services said in a statement, “With the Bitcoin ATM, we hope to provide a useful service to passengers by allowing them to easily exchange ‘local’ euros for the ‘global’ cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ethereum. That can be beneficial if, for instance, it’s not possible to spend euros in their home country.”
Would you use this machine to get rid of euros or use them instead to buy something fun in Schiphol shops selling cheese, tulip bulbs and other fun souvenirs of your visit?
