Book a monastery for a cheap and peaceful retreat

By KATIE NAIL

The plane tickets are booked, vacation time is planned and now you’re ready for your big summer trip. Before you can say “extra towels,” you will be booking a couple of standard hotel rooms at inflated summer prices and wondering what part of the continent your breakfast is from.

Fear not, vacationers. Make your kids, your spouse and your wallet happy with these tips to better travel.

DON'T BUY, RENT

While hotels are lovely and wonderful for one-night stays, they don’t offer much comfort for longer vacations. If you know that you will be staying near Grandma for several days or weeks, why not rent a house?

Better yet, why not rent a house on a lake with fishing, swimming and canoeing, only 10 minutes from Grandma?

Home rentals are normally in desirable areas and are perfect for families and groups. You will be able to save money on food expenses by having a full kitchen and enjoy having multiple bathrooms. The cost is often comparable to or cheaper than a hotel. The best part is, many homes have been outfitted with a long list of toys (anything from board games to kayaks).
Web sites like www.homeaway.com allow you to click on the state or country you are planning to visit. A list will direct you to an area or city where you can begin searching. Check out www.vrbo.com or www.rentalo.com for more choices.

HOME SWEET HOME-SWAP

Before Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz swapped houses in last winter’s The Holiday, thousands of people from all over the world were discreetly swapping homes.

Normally reserved for individuals living outside North America, home swaps allow two families to trade homes for a set period of time. While that can creep some people out, it is wonderful for those wanting to travel cheaply or stay in one place for an extended stay.

Many home swaps welcome children and can accommodate groups. These normally work best for people living in desirable locations (like Florida!) and require a small registration fee. The benefit is that you can stay in a home for free and often have full use of a car. For sites check out www.homeexchange.com or www.intervacusa.com.

NOT JUST FOR HIPPIES

Perhaps as a youth touring Europe you stayed in a hostel, but now that you have kids — no way. Hostels, however, are no longer dirty backpack-ridden stops on the road. Over the past decade hostels in the United States have improved tremendously. Many of them now feature family sized rooms with private baths. Most have kitchens and laundry facilities as well. The best part is they’re cheap. Find and book hostels all over the world at www.hostels.com.

HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO STAY QUIET?

Are you looking for a nice quiet place to relax on your vacation? Try a monastery. Almost since they opened monasteries have welcomed travelers. Those seeking spiritual enlightenment or just a bed can stay at monasteries across the world for a minimal donation. Most stays come with meals and optional chapel services.

Unfortunately some require intermittent hours of silence and sometimes there is only one bathroom. Here is a list of monasteries in the United States:
Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, N.Y.; Mount Savior Monastery, Pine City, N.Y.; Society of Saint John the Evangelist, Cambridge, Mass., and West Newbury, Mass.; Abbey of Gethsemani, New Haven, Ken.; Mepkin Abbey, Moncks Corner, S.C.; St. Bernard Abbey, Cullman, Ala.; Monastery of the Holy Cross, Chicago, Ill.; Our Lady’s Monastery, Coleman, Mich.; St. Gregory’s Abbey, Shawnee, Okla.; St. John’s Abbey, Collegeville, Minn.; Assumption Abbey, Richardton, N.D.; Incarnation Monastery, Berkeley, Cal.

HOTEL, MOTEL, HOLIDAY INN

OK, hotels aren’t all bad. In fact, at the right price they can be pretty good. Sites like www.hotels.com display hotel deals all over the world. But just like airlines, the best deals are often found directly on the hotel’s Web site.

However, if you are booking close to the date of arrival there are several tricks that can save you money. Sites like www.priceline.com will let you bid on a hotel. To ensure that people don’t bid fraudulently, bidders have to wait a certain number of days before placing their next bid. Sites like www.biddingfortravel.com are a space for bidders to enter how much they bid and if that bid was taken. If Jane from New York bid $11 to stay at the W Hotel, you can, too.

Next time … what to see, what to do.