Stephanie Serino's Travel Blog

Readers Beware. Here is a list of the 13 creepiest places in the world.

We all want to do the right thing when traveling, and tipping can be confusing. Travel & Leisure has just published a worldwide Tipping Guide which you may find useful.

On Saturday, I toured Princess Cruises small ship "Royal Princess" at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal. I'll post a review soon, but here's the Slideshow .

On Friday, I toured the "Celebrity Constellation" in Cape Liberty, New Jersey before she headed North on a Fall Foliage cruise. A detailed review will be posted soon but meanwhile, here's my Slideshow .

October is National Cruise Vacation Month according to CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association). Every cruise line has heaps of specials this month: reduced deposits, reduced fares, free upgrades, on-board credit, etc. A few companies are offering the best values for bookings made October 16-18, but most go through the end of this month. All sail dates and all destinations are included, although Fall 2008, and Europe and Alaska 2009 are especially promoted. The specials can be combined with past passenger and Virtuoso offers. Call me for more details! My husband Michael and I just attended a seminar in Toronto on hosting Virtuoso Voyager and Explorer Club sailings. Perhaps you'll receive an invitation to join us on a future cruise. Later this month, I will be touring two ships in New York (stay tuned for more details). Here's a link to my website for these October cruise deals.

Now that summer’s over, you might consider thinking about your winter travel plans sooner rather than later. Although the media has been gloom-and-dooming about gas prices, airline crisis and economic downturn for months, the truth is there are some fabulous deals out there. -The airlines have cut back their schedules, so booking early is more important than ever. -Resorts are nervous about the economy so they have released great Early Booking incentives with discounted rates and free-night promotions (many require booking by October 15 for 2009 travel). -Cruise rates are lower than last year according to trade publication Travel Weekly . -Continental Airlines’ new service has decreased fares from Ithaca across the board. -Fares to the Caribbean and Mexico are the same as last year. -Fall travel deals are the best I’ve seen in years, so consider a getaway during Fall Break or Thanksgiving. On a personal note, it’s been one year since my association with Linden Travel and it’s been a ve...

The Elmira-Corning Airport is getting non-stop service to Orlando’s Sanford Airport starting this November. Allegiant Airlines (no, I’ve never heard of them before either) is flying Thursdays and Sundays and the schedule is offered through February 2009 as of this posting. The flight times aren’t ideal: Elmira-Sanford 10:20am- 1:00 pm; Sanford-Elmira 7:00am-9:40am. No way will I recommend them until service actually starts, and with such a limited schedule, I would never trust them for a cruise departure. I vividly remember Transmeridian flying to Sanford from Syracuse until they went belly-up stranding thousands (not my clients though). It is a decent option for folks visiting family and Thanksgiving flights are available for $89 each way plus tax (round-trip ticket is $196.50 with taxes included) if purchased before October 15. February Break prices are considerably higher already. Allegiant Airlines is based in Las Vegas , so let’s hope that if this Florida service is successful th...