US Vacations unltd: United States Travel Destinations & Vacation Planning
This vector graphic is representative of all the options available to someone planning a vacation in the United States ... the ocean, the mountains ... and palm trees ... something for everyone. Graphic by Michael Lorenzo of Pasig, the Philippines.
Showcasing Vacationing in the United States ... US Destinations and Vacation Planning and US Vacation and Travel Packages.
Find US Vacation-related Products and Services. Connect and Interact with those who share your interest in and who are also planning their own United States Vacation.
Below you'll find Merchants and Products which speak to the topic of this site and which, in keeping with our mission as The Web's Concierge, have been carefully chosen and individually screened for your shopping ease and pleasure. They are not paid ads, but rather companies with whom we have selectively chosen to partner. We do earn a referral fee if you find something you like or need and purchase it. We have striven to bring you the "best in breed" companies ... those that: we like, our friends like, have great sites and service, have good online reviews, positive consumer reports, and are family friendly. Keep us posted with regards to your own personal experiences with them.
You may be surprised at companies that have not been included. The "noisiest" in the marketplace are not always the best. We have chosen 1) newer innovative companies that are performing well and garnering respect in their respective niches as well as 2) "Main Street" companies that have been reliably getting the job done for decades ... in some cases centuries. Our oldest partner, thus far, has been in business since 1819! That's staying power.
Rest assured, if we've included a certain vendor in a site's line-up, there's a very specific reason for it. You may have to hunt and poke a bit, but it'll be well worth the effort. Enjoy the adventure!
Merchants
The Leader of the Pack
Vacations: The practical travel magazine full of helpful advice for the average American traveler. You'll find ways to save money on hotels, restaurants, and popular tourist destinations. The focus is on travel in the United States, but international travel destinations and travel tips are included as well. For those who like to get the biggest bang out of their vacation bucks.
Customer Favorites:
Amazon: One of the planet's most mind-boggling arrays of goods. First came the books. Now they've added every other product on the planet. The ultimate in selection and convenience across multiple categories.
Best of Orlando: A great place to find everything Orlando at reduced rates and get help planning your itinerary for your Orlando vacation ... great hotel deals and tickets for Disney theme parks and all the other local attractions and events.
CityPass: Beat the lines, save money, and get your tickets to tourist attractions in the following cities from CityPASS ... Atlanta, Boston, Houston, Tampa-St Pete, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Toronto, & All of Southern California.
Expedia: One of the leading "online travel agencies" providing independent travel booking for flights, hotels, car rentals, cruises, and vacation packages ... a 2019 best in show for car rentals.
Go Card USA: One of America's best multi-attraction pass products ... saving you time, money, and hassles when you travel. Offering admission to over 400 top attractions, activities, tours, and museums for one low price! Customers can save up to 55% compared to buying separate tickets at the attractions and receive a free full-color guide book with purchase. Great for Families who Travel and for Travelers who don't let a lot of grass grow under their feet.
Grand Canyon Tour Company: Serving Las Vegas visitors since 1982, these guys get tourists where they want to go on first class tours at discount prices ... Over one hundred Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, and other Las Vegas area tours are available by bus, helicopter, train, airplane, rafting, and more. Even better, the prices you see on their site are the prices you pay making online reservations easy ... no hidden charges.
HomeAway: A leading vacation property rental marketplace that connects homeowners and property managers with travelers who desire to rent homes when they travel, rather than stay in hotels.
Hotels.com: Offering more than 140,000 properties in 60 countries - from hotels and B&B's to condos and all-inclusive resorts ... they also specialize in providing travelers with accommodations during sold-out periods. We absolutely love these guys.
One Travel: Offering air, hotel, car, cruise, and travel package deal booking ... considered one of "the top 10" best online travel sites (ranking pretty high on that list ... ahead of others you might hear more about) ... they do have an easy to use site which has lots of info on it which you should read (esp the FAQs) ... also providing good customer support.
Priceline: The travel "price comparison and let's make a deal site" ... you'll find travel discounts on hotels, airline tickets, car rentals, vacation packages, cruises. and more ... offering regular promotional discounts.
Southwest Airline Vacations: Offering affordable vacation packages including air, hotel, rental car, and attraction tickets to popular destinations including Las Vegas, Orlando, and California, the Caribbean, and more.
New York Pass: The best way for you to get around New York City and see the city ... one price gains you entry to over 80 attractions and can include public transport (if you choose to include it in your pass). The only choice you have to make is the duration of your pass ... 4 options available. Save money, time, and headaches and See the Sights!
Trusted Tours & Attractions: A division of Historic Tours of America ... providing easy and secure online ticketing for sightseeing tours, attractions, and museums (over 500 choices) in 29 US cities ... Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charleston, Chicago, Fort Myers, Gettysburg, Honolulu, Key West, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Memphis, Miami, Naples, New Orleans, NYC, Niagra Falls, Orlando, Palm Springs, Philadelphia, Plymouth, Salem, San Diego, San Francisco, Savannah, Sedona, St. Augustine, Tampa, and Washington, DC.
Vegas Tickets: A long-established ticket broker specializing in Las Vegas events ... headliner shows, concerts, sporting events, and theatre performances. Office is right off the strip.
More Resources:
About Airport Parking: A well-favored independent airport parking directory and price comparison service where, after you've reviewed the available parking options, you can book your parking reservation right online and often for less than the "drive in" price.
Airport Parking Reservations: A leading airport parking "aggregator", offering travelers the chance to compare and save on airport parking at every major airport in the US.
Allianz Travel Insurance: A long established provider of travel insurance and also a provider of insurance for many of the world's favorite travel and destination brands ... covers almost any travel hiccup or eventuality ... good site and overall good service ... the contracts themselves can be a bit confusing.
American Road: The magazine that takes you on the ultimate road trip along America's backroads. You'll "visit" the old motor lodges, mom-and-pop cafes, and the most outrageous tourist attractions ever built by human hands. Whether you burn rubber, or prefer to stop and smell the coffee, American Road will show you the possibilities when it comes to planning your next adventure!
Art.com: If you love Art ... any kind of art, any subject ... you're gonna love this site. It's a feast for the senses. You can browse by subject, genre, artist, room to be decorated, and even color palate. Once you've found the image you've been looking for and/or can't live without, then you have multiple product types to choose from ... there's even a great selection of wall tapestries. You'll have fun here ... no matter your special interests or current decorating mission. Their tag line says it all: "Find Your Art, Love Your Space."
BedandBreakfast.com: A leading specialty travel website (since 1995) that offers detailed information on almost 15,000 Bed and Breakfast destinations worldwide and allows you to book your B&B reservations online. They even have a great travel eGift card program.
Booking.com: Always a good place to check if you're looking for a place to stay ... whether you're looking for a campsite or a 5-star hotel (and everything in between) ... The overall favorite travel site for 2019 ... especially when it comes to airfares!
Brookstone: A specialty retailer offering an assortment of consumer products that are functional in purpose, distinctive in quality and design, and not widely available from other retailers ... just the coolest place to find the neat, the unusual, the pragmatic, and most importantly, the innovative! (They have long been "the" leader in the "travel comfort and preparedness" column ... it sure helped sell their wares in all those airport stores.) Always a satisfying shopping experience.
CarRentals.com: Provides a one-stop shop for rental cars from all the favorite car rental companies.
Conde Nast Traveler - Digital: A magazine for those who embrace a globe trotting lifestyle and who can afford to go anywhere they want on a first class ticket, but who also want to avoid the tourist scene. To that end, readers of that ilk will find top vacation destination reviews, hotels, shopping and dining spots, and transportation tips.
Contiki: One very special niche ... a tour operator for the 18-35 year olds that want to see the world and experience different cultures, but who want to travel safely (especially if traveling solo) and make sure they "see the sights". Average age is about 25. Make new friends, travel, and do a bit of partying while you're at it.
Country Inns & Suites: A mid-scale hotel brand ... designed with a residential feel to give you a sense of home.
Florida Travel & Lifestyle: Bringing the Florida sunshine to visitors located throughout the world. A magazine filled with informative articles about the sunshine state, insider theme park tips, luxurious getaway destinations, and fun family activities...
Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG): The largest, by room count hotel company in the world ... 687,000 as of February, 2014. The company's brands included: Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, InterContinental, Staybridge Suites, Even, and Candlewood Suites. This is their official site. (BTW: Kids stay and eat for free at the Holiday Inn.)
Intrepid Travel: A small group tour company with an ethos and modus operandi that might not work for all, but certainly does for some. Intrepid specializes in "soft" adventure" travel (which might be a relative term for some folks) and small groups (as few as four and usually not more than 12). It is no frills ... local food, local transport, and modest accommodations ... grassroots travel I guess one would call it. Just without all the pre-planning hassles. They've been doing it since 1989 and have 800 different tour variations. Some folks love 'em (including some of the National Geo folks), some not so much. You just need to know what you're looking for out of your travel experience.
JETSETTER: A community (now a TripAdvisor company) of travelers that provides members with insider access, expert knowledge, and exclusive deals on the world's best vacations ... also a flash sales site for high-end travel deals, Very cool, very popular.
Marriott International: A leader in the hospitality industry worldwide, they've got many hotel brands that you know and love and maybe even some you don't know about or know were theirs ... everything from the Courtyard by Marriott, Fairfield Inn, and Residence Inn to the Ritz Carleton, Marriott Marquis, and Bulgari hotels. The company just opened its 4,000 hotel, the Marriott Marquis in Washington, DC. They have a great company-wide Rewards Program as well. And if you loved your pillow ... you can buy one and take it home. Great properties and hotel experiences ... not, however, our favorite site to navigate.
Marriott International: A leader in the hospitality industry worldwide, they've got many hotel brands that you know and love and maybe even some you don't know about or know were theirs ... everything from the Courtyard by Marriott, Fairfield Inn, and Residence Inn to the Ritz Carleton, Marriott Marquis, and Bulgari hotels. The company just opened its 4,000 hotel, the Marriott Marquis in Washington, DC. They have a great company-wide Rewards Program as well. And if you loved your pillow ... you can buy one and take it home. Great properties and hotel experiences ... not, however, our favorite site to navigate.
National Geographic Traveler: Nat Geo's spinoff publication that tells you all about the amazing travel destinations National Geographic Society reporters and photographers have visited, while giving you the advice and tips you need to get there. You'll find recommendations for hotels and other lodgings, detailed maps, feature articles about vacation destinations in the US and abroad, and other helpful travel advice.
Preferred Hotel Group: Offering access to a collection of luxury hotels and resorts ... over 800 properties in 70 countries worldwide ... since 1968. You'll find unique travel opportunities ranging from luxurious game preserves to 5 star city-center hotels to tree-house style jungle retreats. The properties are all independently owned. Several of them have been included in the Forbes Travel Guide of 4-star and 5-star lists.
Radisson: A hotel and hospitality brand that is definitely making its presence known worldwide ... especially in the business and group travel and conference niche.
Select-A-Ticket: Brokering tickets since 1978, these guys have been online since 1996 ... specializing in finding and selling hard-to-find tickets for Broadway, concert, sports, and family (eg. circus) events. Covering 1,000s of events across the US, but with a strong focus on the New York/New Jersey area which is where they're located. An easy to navigate site. They buy tickets from the public and they also have a "last minute offers text service" to which customers can subscribe. There's even a "bucket list" category that features tickets to those "once in a lifetime and I've been waiting in line for 20 years" events.
SkyTours: A leading travel portal that compares over 600 scheduled airlines and more than 100 low-cost, no-frills airlines worldwide ... Book your own one-way, round-trip, open-jaw, and even multi-stop flights. Headquartered in Freiburg, Germany.
SmartFares: An online travel reservations service specializing in cheap flights and discounted airline tickets to top travel destinations within the United States and around the World. Great fares for seniors.
Southern Travel & Lifestyle: The magazine for those who love the South - Period. Whether you're looking for a "best" southern recipe for sweet potato pie or sweet tea or wanting to visit any one of a number of the South's fabulous travel destinations, they've got you covered!
Philadelphia Pass: The best way for you to get around Philadelphia and see the city ... one price gains you entry to over 40 attractions and can include public transport (if you choose to include it in your pass). The only choice you have to make is the duration of your pass. Save money, time, and headaches and See the Sights!
Travel 50 & Beyond: The only travel magazine written and designed specifically for people who are 50 and older. Serving a more thoughtful travel audience which demands quality, value, and an enriching travel experience.
TripAdvisor: The company that built its reputation on travelers' reviews is now in the independent travel comparison and booking business via its own travel aggregator platform.
The Wyndham Hotel Group: The Group's official site. Definitely one of the world's largest (over 7,000 properties and 600,00 rooms worldwide) and most diverse (by way of property type) hotel companies ... many of the Group's hotel brands are familiar names ... Day's Inn, Howard Johnson, Knight's Inn, Microtel, TraveLodge, Wingate, Super 8, Ramada, and more. There's also a division of timeshare resorts.
