Italy – starting at $799 until February 28 – Explore Sorrento’s ancient beauty with the Dooley Vacations Amalfi Coast Package.

Starwood Family Travel Deals – Book before 30 April 2010 and your kids can eat for free and you get 50% off the second room at participating hotels and resorts across Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

$327 & up — Royal Carribbean Cruises up to 80% Off exclusive deals on cruises to Mexico, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, Alaska, Europe, and beyond.

$189 & up — Carnival Cruises with free room upgrades on virtually any Fun Ship cruise departing through December 31, 2010

3 for 2 and 4 for 3 Hotel Deals! As previously mentioned in today’s blog post, there are hundreds of hotels offering free nights around the world when you book three or more nights.

$189 per night for Grand Caymans 4-Star Resort This Summer (Reg. $400) This Marriott Beach Resort is within walking distance of restaurants, shops, and night clubs.

$99 a night weekends at Indianapolis 4-Diamond Hotel (Reg. $219) This AAA 4-Diamond hotel is connected to the Indiana Convention Center, Circle Centre Mall and is also within a short walk of the Indianapolis Zoo and the NCAA Hall of Champions.

MSNBC Travel is highlighting this Canadian travel deal: 9 nights, from $995 – Tour Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick with transfers and all other transportation; the services of a professional tour director and local guides.

USA Today: Learn how to use your frequent-flier miles for more than plane tickets!

$119+: NYC Flights to Grenada & Grand Cayman, tickets must be purchased by February 9 for travel through August 28.

For more of the best travel deals as we discover them, follow @BesTravelDeals and subscribe to our blog’s RSS feed!

The Santa Barbara Car Free special is running now. Get 20% off the best available adult train fare on Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner, San Joaquin and associated buses going to and from the following Santa Barbara County stations: Carpinteria, Santa Barbara, Goleta, Guadalupe, Lompoc, Surf, Solvang, Santa Maria and Buellton. You must reserve at least three days in advance of travel to qualify for this discount.

Global Fare Sale on bmi from $161 (O/W)! U.K.-based bmi is slashing rates on airfare by as much as 50 percent! This impressive sale encompasses dozens of destinations worldwide including Europe from $161 each way, Africa from $374, Asia from $478, and more.

A New Package to Orlando Costs Only $449 for 5 nights at a three-star Disney-area resort. In addition to receiving round-trip air on this remarkable package to Orlando, you’ll be receiving continental breakfast each morning. You’ll be given an Orlando-area coupon booklet for dining and attraction discounts. And to top things off, you’ll receive a compact car for five days with unlimited mileage (but not including car rental tax, fuel, and optional insurance). Price is per-person based on two persons traveling together.

That’s not the only Orlando hotel deal out there though, how about $67-$100 a night at the Radisson Orlando Celebration Resort! With luxuries such as custom furniture imported from Italy and granite and marble bathrooms adding a special touch to the resort, this is truly a great place to unwind. The unparalleled pool facilities boast a huge free-formed pool with cascading waterfalls, two whirlpools, a children’s wading pool, heated mid-sized pool and a 40-foot waterslide that winds around a rocky hill. In addition, you will be close to all the sites that make Orlando, FL a vacation retreat.

$76-$109 a night for New Orleans’ Bourbon Orleans Hotel, which features a rich history and French styling reminiscent of the early 1800s. As it is just steps away from the famed St. Louis Cathedral, it means you’re never far from the best the city has to offer-from upscale shopping on Royal Street, to the performers of Jackson Square, to all of the restaurants, galleries and nightlife in between.

$42 a night for a 4-Star Hotel Near The Strip, in Las Vegas, where South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa has slashed rates to 40% off. This special is valid for travel Sunday-Thursday through April.

Jicaro Island Ecolodge is a brand-new ecolodge in the Granada Isletas bringing ecotourism to Nicaragua. As an opening special, the property is offering a third night free for stays through April 2010. A three-night stay is usually $1,311 (double occupancy, including tax); with this deal it’s just $874, averaging $291/night and all meals are included as well in the package price.

Colorado River White-Water Rafting Trip from $965, which is $285 off the standard rack rate for Wilderness River Adventures’ Be a Kid Again package for select dates from April 16 through August 20. In addition to the 88-mile trek down the mighty Colorado River, the deal includes all meals (primarily home-style and barbeque), drinks, and all the essential camping equipment (sleeping bags, a foam pad, ground tarp, tent, etc.). Adrenaline junkies will also have ample opportunities to explore hidden cascading waterfalls and crevices during their trip.

Mardi Gras season began Wednesday with the Feast of Epiphany and continues through Mardi Gras itself, or Fat Tuesday (Feb. 16). Celebrations of the festive season, previously occurring mainly in and near New Orleans, have spread widely in Louisiana, Texas and other states. We’ll cover more Mardi Gras deals as members vote them up over the coming weeks.

New and luxury hotels are opening in London, Tokyo and other major destinations this year and 2010 promises to be a huge year for these new hotels. The New York Times has a handy guide to all of them, and you’ll want to visit each one!  Speaking of new hotels, be sure to add any new deals you may come across, and if you aren’t yet a member, it’s easy to sign up and start voting on the best travel deals!

Just as fun as Ebay, $1 Mystery Hotel Auction from Luxury Link’s Mystery Auctions create amazing deals for the lucky auction winners. Two mystery properties are featured each week, and each auction begins with a $1 Starting Bid and a $1 bid increment.

Deals on BestTravelDeals.net from Luxury Link hotel deals has been consistently delivering top destinations and unbeatable prices. Now they’ve created a lot of buzz with this unbelievable promotion.

While they will only reveal the name of the property to the auction winner, hints to the location of this luxury property are being dropped frequently in their forums. Currently the two mystery auctions are for hotels in Italy and the Caribbean, where you can explore coral reefs, sail in perfect waters and take part in the flavor of each island’s own unique paradise.

They both end soon, just over three days from the time of this posting, and the Caribbean trip promises welcome cocktails, breakfasts, and $300 resort credit… while the Italy mystery auction includes welcome amenities, dinner, and even spa treatments!

Visit Italy! Holiday vacation package from 215.00 EUR for the Romeo Hotel, located in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius. This often breezed-through metropolis offers travelers a slice of raw Italian living alongside abundant culture, art and gastronomy. This vacation package is valid to December 29, 2009.

Lake Arrowhead Ski Package: For prices starting at $195 per night, including taxes, you can get a room, two lift tickets for the nearby Snow Valley Mountain Resort, two $25 certificates for spa services and free parking.

Book by midnight, Dec. 2 to take of advantage of $18 & up sale fares to the U.S., Caribbean and the Americas from Spirit Airlines. Nearly every route is on sale for $18-$127 each way between Jan. 20-Feb. 9.

Save Up To 50% at Scottsdale’s InterContinental Montelucia Resort and Spa. Book by December 4, 2009 for stays from now through January 14, 2010. Blackout date is December 31, 2009.

$99 per night at the Landmark New Orleans French Quarter Hotel. This deal saves over 35% OFF regular prices and includes two FREE welcome cocktails at the popular, on-site Carousel Piano Bar & Lounge ($20 value).

3 Night Bahamas cruise starts at $369 per person. Embarking December 14 or December 17, these sailings will let first-time cruise-goers get their feet wet while checking out Princess Cruises’ latest addition to its fleet, the 3,080-passenger Ruby Princess.

The holiday season is a good time to catch fall art exhibits before they close in January. Treat yourself to the gift of art at a museum this holiday season with USA Today’s guide to museums across the United States.

Yosemite National Park may be considered more of a summer destination, but a lack of crowds, along with this great package deal, makes this the perfect time to go. Rates are as low as $192 for select travel dates into December and include breakfast, lunch and dinner for each night stayed ($45 value), half off of the two hour Valley Floor Tour (Reg. $25), and half off two hour bike rentals (Reg. $19)

$275 & up on one-way flights to Europe from Detroit, plus $100 OFF Coupon, but you should hurry, you need to book your tickets by Dec. 3, 2009.

$215 Las Vegas vacation package for 3 Nights at Planet Hollywood includes round-trip airfare, 3 nights Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino & hotel transfers. Plus a bonus complimentary bottle of liquor.

$109-$159 a night for a 4-Star Vegas Hotel, even on weekend stays. The Westin Casuarina is just a block from from the center of The Strip. Every room has a view of The Strip and features the famous Westin Heavenly Bed and Heavenly Bath.

In Europe the favored method of transportation among those who have the time to spare is train travel. Nowhere is this more true than in Italy where the landscape is constantly morphing and evolving from top to bottom. One of the reasons why people keep going back to Italy (myself included) is in part due to the evocative landscape; from the jaw-dropping dolomites in the north, the rolling hills carved by lines of cypresses and vineyards in Tuscany, Perugia and Abruzzo to the scorched, and devastatingly beautiful land of Sicily.

The best way to experience it all is to see it all, and there’s no better method for doing so than with the train. From the slow-moving InterCity to the high speed EuroStar it’s possible to reach every corner and hidden ‘paese belle’ the country has to offer. But be forewarned- personal schedules are not held in high regard, nor are official ones for that matter.

You may have heard the rumors already but the Italian train system is notoriously bad about adhering to a schedule. It’s not uncommon to be marooned on a train in the middle of nowhere from anywhere between 30 to 90 minutes; so always pack a book and never depend on keeping to a tight itinerary.

Even though the trains may be able to ruin your day, you’re never totally at the mercy of their inefficiency because anyone, regardless of nationality, is entitled to a 50% rebate on every InterCity and EuroStar train that runs 90 minutes or more behind schedule. Unfortunately this offer doesn’t extend to the regional and local lines because the company probably quite rightly realizes they’d be playing a losing game. However most foreigners can’t take advantage of the rebate system because of language barriers and the fact that it’s not exactly a well-publicized rule. So here are some tips and phrases that will help you retrieve half of your ticket price the next time you find yourself running an hour and a half late (or more) for the day’s activities.

1. First, make sure that you are indeed late. The EuroStar can reach speeds up to 300 kmh (186 mph) and will at times go that fast to make up some time. To paraphrase a disgruntled passenger with a fidgety baby on his lap after sitting immobile on the tracks for two and a half hours: “Porco Dio! Now they’re moving, the misers are going to speed up and get us into the station 89 minutes late to avoid a payout!” So check the clock just to make sure.

2. Once you’ve ascertained that you are indeed at least 90 minutes late, head to the help desk quickly because I guarantee you that the majority of the train will be trying to beat you there, and Italians aren’t exactly famous for their ability to form a neat and orderly line. If you’re not sure where to go simply follow the crowd of fast moving people gesticulating wildly in anger. If you’re still not sure find a train station official in uniform and ask “Dov’e la officina d’assistenza?” (Where is the help office?”).

3. At the help desk ask for a rebate form, in Italian you’d say “Vorrei un modulo di rimborso.” If the person asks why, just shrug your shoulders and look as blasé as possible. This communicates to the receiver ‘Hey man, quit breaking my balls’ and is universally accepted as a valid response to the majority of inquisitive statements.

4. Once you’ve got the form you can fill it out immediately and hand it back to the help desk or you can do it later and send it to the address indicated on the form from your home country.

Because TrenItalia has been very much bureaucratized don’t hold your breath while you wait for the rebate to reach you. A friend sent his form out from the U.S. in August of 2006 and didn’t receive a check (in US dollars) until June 2007. No points for efficiency but all you need is a little patience (as in most other areas of life in Italy) and you will eventually get your rebate.

Hope you find this helpful for your future TrenItalia trips!

~Alexandra