Would you pay extra to sit in a seat in the front of the airplane?

Finding an affordable rental car is a common problem faced by travelers today. Here's one uncommon solution. Typical rental car prices have more than doubled in recent years. When you add in one-way rental rates, drop-off fees, and airport taxes and surcharges, it can sometimes seem more cost-effective to buy a car instead of renting, then resell the thing once the trip is over. That's exactly what St. Petersburg Times writer Michael Kruse considered while planning a recent vacation in the Northwest. Krause simply wanted to pick up a car in Jackson, Wyo., tour the Tetons and eastern Washington, and then drop the vehicle off in Seattle five days later. The absolute cheapest rate he could find was nearly $1,300, for a dinky Chevy Aveo no less. That'd work out to a per-day cost of $260, without even adding in insurance or gas. Instead of going with a typical rental car (or buying one), Krause's wife Lauren made an offhand comment about U-Haul, which led Krause eventually to discover that taking a 16-foot Budget moving truck on their adventure would cost under $400 ($372.79, to be exact). They went with the truck, and even after factoring in added costs for gas -- moving trucks aren't known for fuel efficiency -- Krause estimates that they saved $800 to $900. The truck wasn't exactly the ideal vehicle for navigating mountain roads. (For that matter, a Chevy Aveo wouldn't be the first pick of many drivers, either.) But the truck did the trick, and wound up saving Krause and his family a large chunk of change. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: Wheel Deals: Alternatives to Airport Car Rentals Is it cheaper to fly or drive? How to spruce up a rental

New rules issued today by the federal government require that fliers who get "bumped" against their will from their flights receive much fatter payouts than before. The new rules also extend the "passengers bill of rights" protections against tarmac delays to international flights. So, what do you need to know about the new Department of Transportation rules? First, a weather delay gets you nothing, ever. Second, you're owed higher pay-out rates by your airline if it bumps you involuntarily to a later flight. This regulation comes amid soaring bump rates, with more than 700,00 passengers expected to be pushed back this year, a big jump from last year. The reason for the spike? Most airlines oversell flights. (JetBlue is the main exception.) Once upon a time, if you were bumped from your flight, and the airline was able to get you to your destination within two hours of your planned arrival, you were paid the value of your one-way ticket, with a maximum of $400. If they couldn't get you there within 2 hours, you were paid double the amount, up to $800. Not bad. As of today, if the airline boots your from your flight (and you didn't volunteer to be booted) and the airline gets you where you need to go within two hours, you can look forward to getting double the value of that ticket (with a cap of $650). Beyond that, the payout is four times the ticket's one-way value, for a max of $1,300. That's big money, paid in vouchers. But, as we've said before, you should insist on cash—as in green hundred dollar bills—because the alternative, vouchers, can have expiration dates, and the airline may not offer the best ticket for you for routes you're flying before the expiration date. The other big news is that the federal government threatens to fine foreign airlines, not just domestic airlines, up to $27,500 per passenger if they leave an INTERNATIONAL flight on a tarmac for more than FOUR hours without taking off. That said, it's worth saying that this rule already applies to US airlines (with a shorter time window for domestic flights) and the federal government has yet to act on it. So it may be toothless legislation. (Fun fact: Federal agencies aren't required to enforce their regulations. It's true! Congress gives them discretion to decide when to invoke their regulations. This is probably why lawyers make so much money—parsing this stuff.) One other thing to know: Airlines are now required by law to reveal "all ancillary fees on their websites, including fees for checking bags, providing meals and canceling reservations," in the words of USA Today, whose reporting on this topic has been first-rate. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: A new way to get cash back when fares drop Would you book a flight with Spirit Airlines? Top sites Yapta and TripIt team up

if (WIDGETBOX) WIDGETBOX.renderWidget('6db3c226-744c-4cf8-9ecc-c3bb19426d5d');Get the Poll Creator Pro widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox! Not seeing a widget? (More info)Always ones to keep our eyes out for a good deal, we've found some short vacation packages lately that have us rethinking our travel patterns. We've been seeing air-and-hotel deals for non-U.S. destinations that only last 4 nights or less. Generally, we assume if travelers are going to fly 6 or more hours somewhere, they'll want to stay the better part of a week—but maybe that's not the case. As one BT staffer mused: "I'd spend 16 hours on a plane for four days in Venice." What do you think? Do you have little vacation time but big aspirations and find quick getaways appealing? Or does the thought of a three-day stay at the end of hours of air-travel navigation not seem worth it? Tell us below or take our poll! MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 8 Common Air-Travel Snafus (and How to Beat Them) The Ultimate Guide to Travel Apps 6 Essential Items for a Successful Vacation 10 Scenic Airport Landings

The economic news over the past few weeks has been worrying to say the least — between the debt ceiling debate, stocks tumbling, economic analysts warning of a possible double-dip recession, and consumer confidence taking a hit as well. So, how does all this negative economic news impact your travel plans? Several travel companies reported that bookings have been steady over the past couple weeks, despite the headlines. But others noted that the phones have been a bit quieter. "We haven't seen it hit yet. Right now we continue to see solid numbers week over week," said John Galvin, CFO at Collette Vacations. But, he cautioned, "We have that concern that if we go into a second recession we're going to see some difficult times ahead." if (WIDGETBOX) WIDGETBOX.renderWidget('423457ad-5019-4291-9e7e-876fadc2b1bd');Get the Poll Creator Pro widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox! Not seeing a widget? (More info)It's hard for people to think about travel when all they're seeing and reading about in the press is stocks devaluing or lackluster job growth, according to some travel industry insiders. "Consumers stop spending based upon the unknown, fear and anxiety about the worsening economic conditions," said Jack Richards, president and CEO of Pleasant Holidays. He noted that prior to the debt crisis and stock market decline, business to all of Pleasant's destinations had been very strong, including improved bookings to Mexico. But one way in which travelers will be directly impacted by the economic news both here and abroad is in prices, which are likely to increase regardless of which way the economic pendulum swings. With the euro currently at about 1.43 to the dollar, "the reality is prices are simply going up. From an inflation standpoint, the underlying inflation in the U.S. economy is nowhere near where it is if you're trying to sell outbound travel," said Galvin, who estimated that Collette's 2012 prices to Europe could end up being close to 10 percent above 2011 prices, and "people's incomes are not going up 8, 9, 10 percent," he added. So, what about you? How has all this economic news impacted your travel plans? Are you scaling back, taking a wait-and-see approach, or going full speed ahead regardless of what the stock market does? Let us know by voting in our poll or commenting below. More from Budget Travel: Would you pay about $80 for an upgrade? Would you fly more frequently if airplane seats were more comfortable? 7 Most Common Gas-guzzling Mistakes