A geeky tool, RSS, is entering the mainstream, and the travel industry is learning that it can be very useful for pushing out deals and bargains on specific cities and flights for travel.

Travel sites are, like many other Internet companies, stuck using the acronym RSS, which computer geeks have dubbed this process. The acronym stands for “Really Simple Syndication” - a term that is not particularly user friendly; “grabbing” is a more appropriate word.
Regardless, for now users must look for the little orange (usually) RSS box, as on the front page of Orbitz.com or Sidestep.com, or type in the Web address of the site’s RSS feature (for example, rss.travelocity.com) to which they want to subscribe.
From there, the process is often as simple as billed. On Orbitz’s RSS page, for instance, you click on the category of deals you want featured on your MyYahoo page, like flight deals or hotel and vacation deals to a specific destination. After signing into your personalized page once, those deals appear and are updated according to the schedule of the travel site. via New York Times.

If you are interested in  RSS, or using it already, do not forget  to click on the orange RSS logo on our sidebar to sign up for The Travel Bloggers Feed. We  put the whole feed into your RSS reader every day.

Travel is rebounding after the 911 attacks and the holiday season is showing the that even with higher prices for hotels and airline tickets, people are traveling in record numbers. Colorado is seeing the benefits in this article from the Denver Post:

record number of Coloradans will pack their suitcases this holiday weekend despite higher travel costs, according to a survey released Monday by AAA Colorado.

The auto club estimates that 31 percent more Coloradans will travel this weekend than did last year.

“The bottom line is people are finally rebounding from tragedies such as the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks,” said AAA Colorado spokeswoman Alexa Gromko. “Plus, we’re seeing some of the best early-season snow we’ve seen in years. The hype is up.” Nationally, 63.5 million Americans are expected to travel 50 miles or more from home this weekend, a 1.7 percent increase over last year.

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With the combination of storms throughout the northeast and rising demand for gasoline, prices at the pump have gone up about 20 cents per gallon in the past week. With millions planning on driving long distances this will add to the costs of travel to visit the relatives.

According to the American Automobile Association’s (AAA) daily fuel gauge report, a gallon of regular unleaded gas is about $2.05, but can be as high as $2.19 at some gas stations.

But why the increase? AAA blames the increase on an increase in home heating fuel costs.

“Generally you’ll find that there’s an increase in home heating fuel and an increase in crude oil price as well,” said Garrett Townsend of AAA. The increase comes in the middle of the busy holiday travel season. Add winter weather to that, and experts aren’t sure how high prices could go.

“This is winter time, so you’re going to expect that there are going to be periodic storms. You can expect that there’s going to be an increase there. And of course, it’s a driving season. We just came out of Thanksgiving, and we’re going into the Christmas driving season. Hopefully, there will be a leveling-out,” Townsend said.

Until then, motorists are best advised to brace themselves. It could be a long winter. Via WXIA Atlanta

With 63.5 million people expected to travel this  Christmas season, many are trying to get a head start on their plans.  Many school districts have ended their classes till the new years, and families are using the time to get out and visit relatives or take vacations.

Orlando and other winter hot spots are bracing for big crowds.

“We are expecting a very busy travel weekend,” said Carolyn Fennell, spokeswoman for Orlando International Airport.

Christmas Day and the start of Hanukkah both come next Sunday.

AAA South spokesman Randy Bly said Orlando is the nation’s No. 1 travel destination for the final two weeks of December this year, based on AAA.com hotel bookings. Las Vegas is next, followed by Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco.

“The highways and airports will be busy,” Bly said, as AAA predicts 63.5 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home during the Christmas-New Year’s travel period, up 1.7 percent from last year.

“More people are traveling, despite the spike in costs of gasoline and airline fares,” Bly said.

Travel expert Gary Sain said the holiday calendar this year is a definite plus for the industry. With Christmas and New Year’s Day falling on Sundays, travelers will be more likely to stretch out their travel plans and extend stays, Sain said, giving a boost to hotels, rental-car companies and the tourism industry overall.

“Orlando is such a strong market, a consistent market, that the calendar doesn’t make quite as much difference as it does for other markets, though,” said Sain, a partner at Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown and Russell in Orlando. “I think it will make more of a difference and have a positive impact on travel to places such as Chicago and other winter destinations.”

The Travel Industry Association of America predicted Friday that winter travel will increase 2 percent this year. With an estimated 251 million trips, people will head for ski slopes, scoot South for warm weather or scatter to visit family and friends.

The TIA projects that leisure travel will be up 2.4 percent this winter and business travel 1 percent.

Orlando International Airport also is expecting about 1 percent more passengers during this year’s holiday stretch, from Monday through Jan. 3. The two busiest days, Fennell said, based on airline reservations, will be Friday, Dec. 23, with 97,336 passengers booked and Monday, Jan. 2, with 96,031.

While in-state Florida travel will probably get a boost from the closing of most schools on Friday, some districts in other parts of the country are still in session next week, noted Justin McNaull, travel specialist with AAA in its Washington, D.C., office.

“It’s all over the map,” McNaull said of school calendars. “Here in the D.C. area, schools don’t get out until Thursday, making for a very short travel period.” AAA, the nation’s largest nonprofit travel association, has its national headquarters at Heathrow in Lake Mary.

Orlando’s big theme parks are looking for huge, festive crowds during the next two weeks. They each have special decorations and events.

“It’s always one of the busiest times for us. We’re certainly expecting a strong holiday season,” said Becca Bides, spokeswoman for SeaWorld Orlando, which is wrapping up a record profit year. Via The Orlando Sentinel

If you are planning on travel, remember that the roads will be crowded. So drive safely or be patient.

We all have heard of the  Expedia’s and Travelocities, but there are new search engines coming out that may transform this marketplace. Sites like Sidestep, Kayak, and Farechase are coming into their own as great alternatives for finding the  best fares.

These sites do not book travel, but they do let you find the cheapest prices for air fares, hotel, and car rentals. They have no vested interest in who you book with but allow you to book directly with the providers with the full information.

”These guys have become a credible threat and competitor to Orbitz, Travelocity, and Expedia,” said Al Lenza, vice president of distribution and e-Commerce at Northwest Airlines. ”It’s good for the consumer, because the search engines highlight the fees the travel agencies charge.”

Not everyone is convinced. Henry Harteveldt, vice president of travel research at Forrester Research, says travel search companies, sometimes called metasearch sites, are generating only about 1 percent of airline bookings. He said that’s not enough to survive.

”Metasearch 1.0 is dead,” he said. ”It’s time for Metasearch 2.0 to emerge and service a slightly different purpose.”

The travel search engines definitely face an uphill struggle. Expedia, Orbitz, and Travelocity handle the bulk of online travel sales in the United States. They are online travel agents that help customers find fares, rooms, or cars and then book them, usually charging a fee for the service they provide.

Travel search engines have a very different business model. Instead of selling travel, they assemble travel information. The searcher chooses the fare or hotel he prefers and clicks through to make a purchase directly from the airline or hotel chain. The travel search engines don’t charge their customers anything. Instead, they make money from small referral fees paid by travel suppliers and advertising on their websites. High volume is the key to their business.  via Boston Globe

 Another guide to inexpensive airline tickets is Cheapflights.com. They also have a blog. Another link for my favorites.