Archive for the 'Cabo San Lucas' Category
4-day Mexico cruise for $154, and other Carnival deals
June 26, 2009 11:20am
Thinking about cruising this fall or winter? If you want to get your feet wet with a short excursion to Baja, now’s a good time to secure an advanced-bookers’ discount. Some of Carnival’s “Early Saver” rates for its three- to five-day Mexico excursions from Long Beach and San Diego are incredible deals.
Deals: Various itineraries are available, some midweek and others weekend, some from Long Beach on the Carnival Paradise and others from San Diego on the Carnival Elation. The starting rates listed below are for the cheapest of the bunch, the interiors, though if your tastes run fancier, or at least less claustrophobia-inducing, rest assured that discounts are offered across all types of staterooms. Prices are pre-tax, per person and based on double occupancy.
From Long Beach:
> Three-day cruises departing on Fridays hit Ensenada. Early Saver rates begin at $229 per person on the Dec. 4 and Dec. 11 sailings. Read the rest of this entry »
Two-day sale on Mexico flights by Alaska and Horizon
June 15, 2009 10:31am
Now is the time to book, if you’re seriously contemplating a Mexico beach vacation sometime this summer or fall. Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air have announced a two-day sale, which began this morning, on the eight destinations that they serve in Mexico: Cancun, Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, La Paz, Loreto, Los Cabos, Manzanillo, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta.
Deal: Book a flight online to one of these spots, and you’ll get 25% off.
Tested: Starting via the sale page, I found round-trip flights from Los Angeles (LAX) to Puerto Vallarta (PVR) in late June, traveling both ways on Tuesdays, for $264, including taxes and fees. This represents a $53 discount on the base airfare. Read the rest of this entry »
Mexico: Los Cabos hotel deals ‘a la carte,’ or all-inclusive
June 3, 2009 2:56pm
No, this isn’t a post about a restaurant week. Rather, the Los Cabos Convention & Visitors Bureau’s new campaign is more set to whet your appetite for a relaxing, pampering resort getaway.
Under the “Los Cabos a la Carte” promotion, a number of hotels in Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo and the corridor in between are offering some attractive packages, a few examples of which are below:
Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort
Its “Fun in the Sun” package is offering rates starting at $179 per night (pre-tax) for a room; with that you get a $100 daily resort credit. A three-night minimum stay is required. You can book through the hotel’s website or over the phone.
When: Valid for stays through Dec. 17, 2009.
Note: This hotel has a number of online specials going, so check them all out before booking. For instance, if you’re not one to fully utilize a resort credit, you might opt for the “limited time only” deal of $99 per night (pre-tax) for a room and breakfast buffet for two. Read the rest of this entry »
Get ready for new border rules on Monday
May 30, 2009 7:39am
Starting Monday, June 1, most Americans will need a passport, passport card or other high-security document to drive back into the U.S. from Mexico or Canada. Don’t have the right stuff? You may face a secondary inspection and delays.
Actually, you may be delayed anyway because no one can say for sure what will happen Monday.
“We are expecting a smooth implementation,” Kelly Ivahnenko, spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, told me this month. She explained that about 80% of travelers were already showing the right documents at checkpoints. Those who don’t, she added, won’t be denied entry.
But because about 800,000 people cross into the U.S. by land every day, even 20% arriving unprepared could cause delays. And two years ago, when new rules required fliers to show passports when returning from these countries, and also the Caribbean and Bermuda — a change that affected fewer travelers — backups and confusion resulted.
Checkpoint procedures will change for everyone Monday. To help you figure it out, CBP has posted videos that show the process, from start to finish.
For details on the new documents and rules, visit the government’s GetYouHome website. For information on passports and passport cards, go to the U.S. State Department’s website for travelers.
— Jane Engle, assistant Los Angeles Times Travel editor
[Image: The San Ysidro port of entry in San Diego. Credit: Denis Poroy / Associated Press]
Countdown to June 1: New rules for Mexico, Canada travel
May 21, 2009 2:00pm
Procrastinators’ alert: In less than two weeks, tougher border rules take effect for Canada and Mexico. Starting June 1, most Americans will need a passport or other high-security ID to drive back into the U.S. from these countries.
Don’ t have the right documents? Basically, you’ve run out of time to get them before June 1, unless your trip is an emergency. The good news: You’ll probably be allowed across the border anyway, although you may face delays.
The 411:
What docs you’ll need: If you’re arriving by land or sea from Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean or Bermuda on June 1 or later, you’ll generally need to show a passport or passport card, which is a new type of document that the U.S. began issuing last year. You can also use a so-called enhanced driver’s license, or EDL, a new high-tech version issued by only four states (not California) ; or a Trusted Traveler card, issued to frequent border crossers.
Mexico’s astounding post-flu-crisis vacation deals
May 21, 2009 11:48am
Now that the swine flu-related travel advisories for Mexico have been lifted, let’s take a good look at some of the numerous deals available throughout the country.
What with the H1N1 virus in recent headlines, and the drug cartel-related violence before that (and still ongoing), heading south of the border still may not be for everyone. But if you’re game for Mexico, get ready to travel on the cheap like never before. Travel operators, hotels and airlines have slashed rates, and vacation prices right now are at a jaw-dropping low.
Deals: What do you think of a beach resort stay of seven nights with food and flights included for under $600 per person? “Impossible!,” you say? Well, keep reading.
Apple Vacations is running what it has deemed its “Biggest-ever Mexico sale,” offering deep discounts on all-inclusive packages to Cancun, Riviera Maya, Puerto Vallarta, Cozumel and Los Cabos. Read the rest of this entry »
Swine flu travel warning lifted for Mexico
May 15, 2009 5:13pm
The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, Friday lifted its recommendation that U.S. citizens avoid nonessential travel to Mexico because of the swine flu outbreak there, and the U.S. State Department followed suit. Cruise and tour operators wasted no time trumpeting the news, although port calls may not resume immediately.
In lifting its warning, the CDC said, “There is evidence that the Mexican outbreak is slowing down in many cities though not all.” It also said that the “risk of severe disease” from the H1N1 virus “now appears to be less than originally thought.”
Carnival Cruise Lines said it would resume Mexico port calls for ships departing May 28 and later from Mobile, Alabama, and June 19 and later from Los Angeles. Read the rest of this entry »
Rerouted Mexican cruises frustrate some passengers
May 2, 2009 12:42pm
Is Santa Barbara the new Cancun? The city and other destinations have become stand-ins for several more weeks as the cruise industry reroutes its ships to avoid stopping at ports in Mexico because of the H1N1 (swine flu) outbreak.
L.A. Times staff writer Hugo Martin writes that stops such as Mazatlan, Cancun and Puerto Vallarta are being replaced with U.S. ports such as San Diego, Santa Catalina, Santa Barbara and San Francisco. (To read the whole story, go to “Cruise Lines Rile Passengers and Tourism Officials by Avoiding Mexican Ports.”)
The cost of flying to Mexico right now; Continental reduces flights
May 1, 2009 10:24am
Airline news | Continental Airlines announced that it will reduce its “capacity” to Mexico by half, effective May 4. This means it will lower available seat miles to Mexico by 50% and departures to Mexico by 40%. Continental will continue to serve 29 destinations in Mexico but will use smaller aircraft and/or reduce the number of flights to one destination. So far this change applies only to May. Continental customers can change their Mexico intineraries without fees through May 31, 2009.
Perceptions changing on Mexico travel?
April 15, 2009 12:59pm
Has the tide been turning for the positive for Mexico tourism? A substantial decline in drug-cartel-related murders was reported in the first quarter of this year in Baja California, as mentioned in the L.A. Times Outposts blog. And the sentiment lately among visitors to Mexico is that resort towns feel as safe as ever as long as common sense is used (check out the post “Readers Weigh In on Mexico Travel,” if you missed it).
For those still needing some convincing that a trip south of the border isn’t a reckless idea, the Mexico Tourism Board recently launched a website hoping to address misconceptions.
The public relations effort, www.mexico-update.com, includes video testimonials from smiling, sun-tanned vacationers; travel tips; and positive articles related to Mexico tourism. Read the rest of this entry »
