, November 1999 — This is the monthly newsletter for the Expedia.com TM travel service, highlighting the latest site information as well as trends in online travel. Expedia.com includes many third-party offers (some restrictions apply). More information on these offers is available at http://expedia.com/ .
Hot Deals
Exclusive $99 Round-Trip Companion Fare Offer on Expedia.com
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Book a domestic round-trip ticket on US Airways through Expedia.com now through Nov. 22, 1999, and receive an award for a $99 companion fare for use with the next US Airways domestic flight booked through Expedia.com. Perfect for families traveling during the holidays, this exclusive Expedia.com offer also gives US Airways Dividend Miles members full frequent-flyer mileage credit when redeeming this award.
Receive a Free Night at Starwood Hotels & Resorts After Three Stays, Only on Expedia.com
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Book a room at any participating Westin, Sheraton, Four Points, St. Regis, The Luxury Collection or W Hotel using Expedia.com and earn 1,000 bonus
“Starpoints”
for each stay. Receive a bonus of 5,000 Starpoints if a third stay is booked before Nov. 19. Starwood guests booking on Expedia.com are automatically enrolled in the Starwood Preferred Guest program if they are not already members. Travel must be completed by Dec. 15, 1999.
Simplify Holiday Travel and Gift-Giving Using the Expedia.com Holiday Travel Center
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To help holiday travelers and shoppers alike, Expedia.com introduces the Holiday Travel Center, featuring tools, tips and gifts for the season. To help ease customers through holiday travel, it contains the Airport Survival Guide for more than 25 major U.S. destinations, a link to check flight arrival and departure status, special deals and holiday travel advice. For finding gifts for the traveler, the Expedia.com Holiday Travel Center will contain valuable gift certificates and special offers from Hyatt, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Cruise Outlet, Vacation Outlet, eBags Inc., cameraworld.com, Holland America Line, Atlantic Luggage, MSN TM eShop and Destinations.com.
Expedia.com Exclusive Car Rental Rates From Dollar for the Holidays
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After taking advantage of the exclusive Expedia.com deals on air and hotel stays for holiday travel, travelers can rent a full-size car from Dollar Rent A Car for only $39 per day or $199 per week. The full-size car must be reserved on Expedia.com now through Dec. 30, 1999. Travel must be completed by Jan. 31, 2000. This offer comes on the heels of other exclusive car rental deals featured on Expedia.com in the past two months, providing Expedia.com customers with continual values for car rentals.
Still Time to Take Advantage of the Expedia.com Great E-Mail Escape
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Through Jan. 16, 2000, one Fare Tracker subscriber per week will win a trip to one of their three chosen destinations. Expedia.com Fare Tracker is the complimentary weekly, low air-fare notification service. For a chance to win, customers need only subscribe to Expedia.com Fare Tracker, select their city pairs and check their e-mail once a week. The sweepstakes is open to residents of the 48 contiguous United States and the District of Columbia who are 18 years of age or older. Full rules are available on the Expedia.com home page at http://www.expedia.com/ .
What’s New on Expedia.com
New specialty travel areas and interactive multimedia features provide expert insight into different forms of travel and bring destinations to life, enabling customers to more confidently plan and book their next trip.
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The new Expedia.com Cruise Travel section contains tools and resources valuable to novices and seasoned cruisers alike. Travelers can use the Cruise Wizard to choose the right cruise from among thousands of options by selecting the price range, destination, cruise line and onboard amenities they want. People will gain insight from expert editorial content, including advice from noted cruise expert and author Douglas Ward. Additional resources within the Cruise Travel page include an Airport Survival Guide, links to cruise chat forums, and special deals.
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The Adventure Travel section, scheduled to debut in mid-November, provides adventure travelers with a one-stop resource for planning and booking their next trip. Whether looking for a
“hard adventure”
such as hiking or skiing or a
“soft adventure”
such as walking tours, the Adventure Travel section will guide users to top adventure travel destinations, help them hook up with gear specialists and find adventure-themed trips. The section will also feature links to adventure travel chat forums and relevant special deals. -
Slide Shows joins the popular 360-Degree Tours to provide customers with a rich interactive experience. The Slide Shows feature offers stunning images and practical travel information on a specific location each month. Helpful links to related articles and Web sites are also provided.
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Travel Videos bring destinations to life by providing visual overviews of popular leisure travel destinations, from shimmering coastlines to exotic skylines. Visitors to Expedia.com will now be able to take a virtual tour of many appealing vacation spots.
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The Tourism Board List enables visitors to access information directly from the official tourism Web sites for all 50 states and Puerto Rico. By using this directory, customers can view a wealth of official information and travel guides from the states themselves.
Places to Go
360-Degree Tour: Budapest
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Take in the panoramic view of Budapest beginning Nov. 5 from atop Fishermen’s Bastion, a medieval fortress adorned with spires, curved stairways and turrets. Budapest, with its beautiful architecture, hip coffeehouses, newly renovated hotels and world-famous baths, has become a very popular European travel destination. The accompanying Plan This Trip feature provides a step-by-step guide for making plans to travel to Budapest and experience its restaurants, night life and distinctive attractions.
Best Places: Vegas Dining
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While the gaming and stage shows attract most of the attention, Las Vegas has quietly become home to world-class dining. Beginning Nov. 8, learn the best restaurants to visit by clicking on the Las Vegas Plan This Trip link to book the trip, learn more about activities in Vegas, and link to local tourism Web sites.
Insider’s Advice
Family Travel Advice —
http://www.expedia.com/daily/family/
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In time for the holiday season, Eileen Ogintz, nationally syndicated family travel columnist, shares her family’s ski trip experiences and the joy of vacationing with grandparents. A new column appears each Thursday, with topics ranging from a Hawaiian dude ranch getaway to ideas on adding to children’s sports tournaments.
Expert Advice —
http://www.expedia.com/daily/experts/
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Cruise expert and author Douglas Ward highlights exotic destinations and special-interest cruises when exploring the Caribbean beginning Nov. 15.
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Travel doctor Alan Spira advises people with medical conditions on ways they can prepare for travel and what items to bring along in a column starting Nov. 23.
Travel Chat Highlights for November —
http://expedia.com/daily/community/
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Climb against the odds. Chat with breast cancer survivor Iris Lancaster about her inspirational quest to climb Mount McKinley with four other survivors in 1998. Nov. 18, 6-7 p.m. PST
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Survive the drive.
Join family travel expert Liz Walsh, founder of Survive the Drive, to share and compare tips on keeping the kids happy and lessening stress during long car rides. Nov. 16, 7-8 p.m. PST -
The rewards of ecotourism. Learn how to be an environmentally responsible traveler and help keep the ecosystem intact while traveling. Nov. 9, 6-7 p.m. PST
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Holiday splendor in the parks. Join this chat for a preview of how the major theme parks are planning to celebrate the holidays. Nov. 15, 6-7 p.m. PST
These and other chats can be found at http://expedia.MSN.com/daily/community/chat.asp .
Top 10 Destinations Booked Online With Expedia.com
Where are travelers on the Internet going? The following is a list of the hottest destinations booked on Expedia.com from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, 1999:
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New York City
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San Francisco
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Washington, D.C.
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Chicago
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Los Angeles
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Orlando
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Las Vegas
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Atlanta
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Boston
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Phoenix
About Expedia.com.
Expedia.com online travel service ( http://expedia.com/ ) is a leading place to go on the Web to find the right trip at the right price. People can book air, car and hotel reservations as well as find vacations, cruises, and other travel options. Along with booking travel, Expedia.com helps people plan their trips with in-depth destination information, travel news, and mapping services.
A credit card guarantee is offered on Expedia.com (U.S. version only) to protect credit cards used on the Internet from fraud. Expedia.com also offers exceptional customer support, with more than 200 travel representatives and travel agents available via a toll-free number and e-mail 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Expedia.com is also available under Travel on the MSN network of Internet services.
Microsoft, Expedia.com and MSN are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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