Travel like it’s 1999.
Travel prices may seem like they are skyrocketing — and that may be true — but digging for deals may be just one magazine away.
AAA may be best known for coming to the rescue when drivers get a flat tire through its roadside-assistance services. But AAA Travel is the travel-agency and travel-planning arm of AAA helping members research, plan and book vacations.
Lifestyle influencer, who goes by Keith on TikTok, broke down a bunch of deals he spotted in the monthly AAA Travel magazine. While zines may be a novelty, the social media influencer said it may be the key to an affordable getaway.
“My friend was making fun of me and said AAA Travel is for like retired people so maybe all these vacations are for like fixed incomes, but maybe that is the key,” Keith said on TikTok.
In the TikTok, the social media star broke down a deal on a holiday where travelers would galavant across Italy for seven days and six nights. Folks would be able to see Rome, Venice, Verona, Florence, and more.
Travelers can try glassblowing, they can dine on a Tuscan estate, get fast track entry to the Vatican Museums and other history tours — all for only $2,050.
“Do those not seem like 1990s prices or at least 2009 prices?” The TikToker said.
And he’s right. The Post compared prices from the 1990s and found for a one-week Italian vacation all in — including flights, hotels, food, attractions and more — the cost for two Americans would be around $2,700.
Not far off from the AAA deal.
Keith had his followers try and guess the price of another package — this time a cruise through the Panama Canal with Princess Cruise, an upper-premium class line. For 16 days and 15 nights, passengers will start in Los Angeles and end in Fort Lauderdale.
Customers will visit Puerto Vallarta, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Puntarenas and more, where folks can sip tequila, explore the ruins in Huatulco and travel through the Panama Canal. The influencer revealed that for a balcony stateroom — which comes with private outdoor space — it comes out to $2,739.
The Post ran the numbers and found that for a similar cruise back in 1992, the price would be roughly $1,895-$3,895 per person.
Followers flooded the comment sections offering their opinions on how the vacations were so cheap. One credited the international factor.
“People think an international trip is automatically $5,000 or more but you can easily do it for less and also cheaper than a week in a major US city,” the TikToker wrote.
Travel agents got into the comments claiming prices aren’t always as high as folks think.
“I’m a travel agent and these are similar prices to what I see on our system. It’s probably a similar thing. Sometimes the deals just are that good,” they said.
Another TikTok user who claims to be a former AAA travel agent wrote, “I was a AAA travel agent; not gonna lie… they had really great vacation packages!! Like I plan a lot of my current itineraries based on places and routes I learned from the job.”
“If you have a membership, you can go in and ask for brochures or check out their website for ideas. They have a lot of free stuff if you have a membership,” the former agent said.
Read the full article here
