Fare sale: Save $200 L.A./N.Y.C. to Israel! Book by Thursday

An upstart carrier we've profiled in the past—Direct Air—just announced a half-off special for flights this summer and fall. Since most Direct Air flights cost $79 or $99 each way to begin with, this is really a chance for a bargain. Direct Air flies primarily from South Carolina (Myrtle Beach) and Florida (Orlando-Sanford and Punta Gorda) to gateways in the Northeast and Midwest. Within minutes, we were able to find flights such as Worcester, Mass. to Myrtle Beach and Kalamazoo to Orlando for under $130—round trip, with taxes and fees included. This is one of those promos that requires a booking code, so remember to type in FALSAL in the promotion box at the airline's website. The code is valid for bookings made by midnight on June 12, good on flights through October 31. The beach awaits. And if 50 percent off isn't good enough for you, maybe a $9 flight will do the trick.

Some links that caught our eye around the 'Net this week: Dreams of Down Under? Australia is a steal for U.S. travelers this summer—and here's why. [The New York Times] A travel blogger picks the top three best and worst airline websites. [The Expeditioner] Brit aquarium Sea Life is training sharks, Pavlov-dog style. (There's even a gong involved). [Jaunted] The world's airlines will lose $9 billion this year—nearly double the previous projections. [AP via Yahoo! News] N.Y.C.: See Top Gun aboard an aircraft carrier at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. Now that's an authentic experience. [NewYorkology] One blogger has a love of all things kitsch—check out her picks for U.S. cities with this endearing quality. [World Hum] For more travel blogs, go to Alltop.

Renting an RV has long been a cost-effective way to travel, especially for families. But for mysterious reasons, one-way rentals are booming. Leading supplier El Monte told Budget Travel that in May it saw bookings of one-way RV rentals jumped 94 percent among U.S. citizens and up 74 percent among foreign visitors to our country. (El Monte RV doesn't release actual numbers of one-way rentals, but the combined monthly figures are in the triple-digits.) On the one hand, it's not surprising that some travelers want to rent an RV only in one-direction (flying or training back home). Really, does anyone want to drive an RV on a round trip? But what is surprising is the sudden jump in numbers. In the meantime, it's worth pointing out that El Monte has a special offer on one-way rentals for selected routes. If you go to its home page and look for the one-way specials on the bottom-right hand side of the page, you'll find some nifty deals. The best of these one-way specials are called Fleet Manager Super Special One-Ways. El Monte is currently offering one such special, between Atlanta, GA and New York City or Boston, Mass. You can save 70 percent off its standard rates. On a small (23-foot) motorhome rental for, say, 11 nights, you'd ordinarily pay $1,804, or $164 a night. But at 70 percent off, you're only paying $49 a night. Bonus perk: El Monte will also waive its one-way drop off fee, which ordinarily somewhere between $250 and $750. Details, here. EARLIER New airfare search site Trax.com not ready for prime time