#WWIM12NY Contest Rules

A while back, I admitted in Budget Travel's “Ski Resort Survival Guide” (in our November/December 2013 issue) that I had never skied. I had no idea where my confession, tossed in to spice up a Trip Coach column, would lead. When the folks at a major Rocky Mountain ski resort read my story, they suggested that I pay them a visit and finally learn. I took about three minutes to consider their invitation. The potential drawbacks in learning to ski in the Rockies—I can’t see well enough to drive, I take an hour to learn dance steps that others master in seconds, I get migraines at altitude—seemed a little whiny. The potential benefit—that I would finally be one of those guys who gracefully glide down a mountain—was tantalizing. Of course I took them up on their offer. In February, my wife and two young daughters and I flew to Colorado for a week at Keystone Resort. A FAMILY-FRIENDLY RESORT “Do we have to go all the way to Colorado?” was my daughters’ surprising first question. My next step was to find out if a western ski vacation was something we’d enjoy. Budget Travel’s photo editor, Whitney Tressel, gave me an enthusiastic thumbs-up—her recent ski trips to Utah’s Snowbird, Deer Valley, and Park City, and Colorado’s Breckenridge had been unforgettable. Encouraged, my family and I found Keystone’s website an inspiring way to plan our visit. My daughters couldn’t get enough of the photos of snow-peaked mountains and pine forests. I, of course, eyeballed those slick families skiing together—that was gonna be us! My wife, Michele, a visual artist and native Californian, was drawn to the sheer beauty of the place—and to its menu of spa treatments involving hot stones, botanicals, and other delights. AN UNBEATABLE DEAL I needed to make sure the resort was a bargain, of course. Keystone partici­pates in the extraordinary EPIC ski pass program—a season pass gets you on the slopes at Park City, Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Canyons, Heavenly, Northstar, Kirkwood, Afton Alps, Mt. Brighton, and Arapahoe Basin. In addition, Keystone has a “kids ski free” policy, with no blackout dates or exceptions. We learned that you can rent a gorgeous townhouse (with frequent free shuttles to the ski areas) or book a traditional hotel room for well under $200 at the Inn at Keystone (a very short walk from the ski runs!), with plenty of options in between. ALTITUDE! We arrived at the airport in Denver late in the evening and boarded a shuttle for the two-hour ride up into the mountains. Considering that we were traveling with sleepy kids ages 6 and 11, the ride was smooth and scenic in a dark, we’re-not-in-New-York-anymore kind of way. The next morning, we hit River Run Village, the resort’s “downtown,” for breakfast, browsing for souvenirs, and getting used to the serious altitude. We giggled when we noticed that everybody seemed to be moving with a loping “moonwalk” stride thanks to their clunky ski boots. SUITING UP When it was time for our lesson, my daughters and I opted for a private teacher. Experts often recommend that adults and kids take separate lessons because the teaching methods for big and little ones can differ greatly—and the kids’ ski programs at Keystone are clearly first-rate—but I felt strongly that I wanted to see my girls learn to ski, and that they might enjoy watching me conquer my fear of, um, everything and become one of those skiers I’d always secretly wanted to be. We met our teacher, Stephen, and spent about a half-hour getting fitted with helmets, boots, and ski rentals. Rather than tell you how to choose the best ski gear, I’ll suggest that you rely on an excellent, enthusiastic teacher like Stephen, who made the process look easy. I should also note that “extra” gear such as hand warmers, gaiters, and ski socks are not “extras” at all but absolutely necessary. During last winter’s polar vortex, I got sort of hooked on super-warm ski socks—some are wool, others are microfiber. Suited up, we were soon doing that loping moonwalk we’d found so amusing. (You get used to it pretty fast.) LEARNING CURVES Our first lesson was halfway up Dercum Mountain, a short ride on the River Run gondola. A far cry from the creaky wooden chairlifts I’d been worried we’d find, the gondola was com­pletely enclosed and smooth, at least when the wind was mild. (In high winds, the gondola closes and the chairlift is the only way up—or down.) We hoppedoff at the mid-mountain bunny slope and Stephen showed us how to get in and out of our skis. My 11-year-old, Clara, a basketball and lacrosse player, got it in about two minutes. My 6-year-old, Rosalie, a dancer and gymnast, got it in about five minutes. Let’s just say I’m still obsessively reviewing in my 0mind how to master the fine art of stepping in and out of skis. This established a pattern for the remainder of our lessons. Stephen demonstrated how to glide down a gentle grade and stop by turning your skis inward, forming a triangle, or “pizza,” as they say in kids’ ski school. Clara? Got this. Rosalie? Got this. Me? Instead of stopping, I popped out of my skis and fell on my face in the snow. “Double ejec­tion!” exclaimed Stephen, delighted. “I’ve never seen that before!” After a few hours, we took a lunch break with Michele in River Run Village and swapped stories: Her morning at Keystone’s spa was pretty much paradise. She also shared her drawings of the mountains—there’s nothing like the Rockies to inspire an artist to break out her sketch pad. (Lunch and all our other dining experiences at Keystone—from burgers to a fondue feast at the summit to a sleigh-ride dinner that took us up to an old home­stead in the woods—were truly exceptional.) Because the girls had mastered gliding and stopping, post-lunch we hopped back on the gondola for the ride to the summit, where a more challenging learners’ slope awaited. Up there, with 360 views of the surrounding mountains, the kids got better and better, practicing run after run. I was content simply to remain vertical, mostly, and to practice easy turns and stops. I started snapping photos and enjoying watching my girls laughing and swooshing around, asking smart questions, and having a blast. After that first day, our week of lessons flew past—and just got better and better. Finally, it hit me: This trip was never about me. This was about giving my children the opportunity to become those girls—the ones who fearlessly glide down a mountain. Am I ever going to move beyond “beginner”? I still hope so. But I’ll tell you what: Clara and Rosalie are already asking on a regular basis, “When are we going back to Colorado?” A KID’S VIEW OF THE MOUNTAIN My daughter Clara loves to read (including Budget Travel) and write. On our visit to Keystone Resort, Clara, who was 11 at the time, took notes, and I suggested that if she took the “assignment” seriously, I would consider sharing her thoughts with BT readers. Here, Clara’s “kid’s-eye view” of Dercum Mountain and our skiing lessons: What I remember most about Keystone and learning to ski is the gondola rides up and down the mountain. I felt like I was flying up higher and higher in a magic cube. When we got out halfway up the mountain, I gazed at the gondolas, like little boxes, moving up, faster than I had felt in the actual vehicle. On the way down, I watched the antlike people and the toy-size buildings grow bigger and bigger as we made our way down. The gondolas were not only handy but magical, especially to me, a newbie. I will say that learning to ski was both fun and scary. Getting in and out of the skis was always tiresome, but the fun and exhilarating ride that came after made up for it! On my first try, I fell over twice, but after learning more, I was more confident and comfortable going downhill. At one point I questioned myself for trying to glide down a mountain on two thin slabs attached to my feet, but eventually I decided I was safe enough and not to question myself or my trainer any longer. At first I was scared to go flying down a hill very fast, but after learning simple tricks, like turning your head in the direction you want to go, I didn’t doubt my skill again. I certainly do appreciate the hard work that our teacher Stephen, my sister Rosie, Papa, and I had to go through so we could learn to ski, because it was really a fun, exciting, and lovely experience!

The name sounds vaguely naughty: “hacker fare.” But trust me, scoring one of these bargain airfares doesn’t mean you have to be a tech whiz or an aspiring thief: Hacker fares are simply airfares that combine a one-way ticket on one airline with a return ticket on a different airline, potentially saving you a bundle. But finding those kinds of ticket combos on your own takes a lot of poking around booking sites (seriously, hours of trial and error!), and finding one with meaningful savings can be even more difficult (and two hours' research to save ten bucks can be a little soul-sapping). That’s where a nifty online tool can swoop in to make things easier. I’ve always been a big fan of Kayak as a tool for researching fares, and Kayak has been offering a filter for hacker fares for a few years now (in fact, Kayak appears to have coined the phrase "hacker fare," or at least brought the phrase into common travel lingo). Flying from JFK to SFO this fall, or instance? At press time, Kayak’s best rate was an automatically filtered hacker fare combining JetBlue to SFO with Sun Country Air back to JFK for $430. But you can do better than that. A new name in airline fare research, including hacker fares, is Skypicker, and for that very same trip from JFK to SFO, it delivered a better deal than Kayak: $347 on a combo flight on Alaska and American (and, for the record, the same fare on a round-trip flight on American). To be fair, Skypicker is a start-up with far less reach than Kayak, but one we’ll definitely keep our eye on. TALK TO US! Have you used the “hacker fare” technique to save yourself on a round-trip flight?

We’ve always loved E.M. Forster’s great “travel romance” A Room With a View (not to mention the beautiful film adaptation), in which a young Englishwoman’s life is forever changed when she agrees to swap hotel rooms with a fascinating young Englishman in Florence in order to have, yes, a room with a view. We love the way that expression can mean, quite literally, a window that affords gorgeous scenery, but also the way those words can sum up a transformative travel experience. Speaking of transformative travel: River cruises have been very much on our radar lately because of the way they can broaden your cruise experience, taking you down iconic rivers such as the Rhine, the Danube, and the Mekong, and getting you up close and personal with the cultures and cuisines of the historic, beautiful cruise ports along the way. We’ve also noticed that Avalon Waterways’s unique staterooms offer, you guessed it, “a room with a view” like no other: Avalon’s Panorama Suites are 200 square feet, with 11-foot-wide and 7-foot-tall wall-to-wall windows and a bed angled so that you can get a perfect view out the window. (You can also open up your window to create an Open-Air Bbalcony, but they’re designed to work all year long, regardless of the weather outside.) Some of the Avalon river cruises we’re yearning to see from a Panorama Suite include: Essential Holland & Belgium, an unforgettable eight-day odyssey from Brussels to Amsterdam, with guided sightseeing in Antwerp, Ghent, the Keukenhof Gardens, and other must-sees; The Legendary Danube, from Prague to Budapest, with guided sightseeing in Prague, Vienna, Budapest, and other cities; and Fascinating Vietnam, Cambodia, and the Mekong River, from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to Siem Reap, Cambodia, gateway to the stunning temple complex at Angkor Wat. TALK TO US! We’d love to hear about your river cruise experiences, especially those that have included “a room with a view”!

Switzerland is one of those once-in-a-lifetime, bucket-list-worthy types of trips so of course you want to make the most of it. That said, it’s not the most affordable destination out there. While the country may have a reputation for breaking the bank [Editor's Note: Switzerland uses Swiss Francs for their main currency, not euros], you'd be surprised by how many budget alternatives are available. Here are six of my best tips for sticking to your budget and still having the best trip ever. Visit during the off-season Like any destination, traveling off-season will likely save you money. Not only are flights less expensive but hotel rates are lower, too. In Switzerland, high season is from July through mid-September and since Switzerland is also a top ski destination, December and January are popular months, too. If you’re not a fan of cold weather, shoot for either late spring or early summer. You’ll still be able to experience nice weather without the crazy crowds. For skiers, book your trip after New Years. Buy a Swiss Pass If you’re planning a multi-city trip (and even if you’re not), the Swiss Pass will likely save you a good chunk of change. In a nutshell, the pass offers unlimited travel on trains, busses, and boats. There are a few options depending on how long you plan to be in Switzerland including 3, 4, 8, or 15 consecutive day passes. Another major perk of investing in the Swiss Pass is that it grants you free access to 480 museums plus discounts to other touristic attractions. All in all, it’s a major money saver. Shop at local markets There’s no way around it; Swiss dining is pricey. Instead of splurging on three decadent meals a day, take advantage of local markets. There are open-air markets in just about every major city, each selling local produce like fruits, vegetables, cheese, meats, and bread among other treats. In some cases, you can even sample wine or buy a glass for about $6. Grocery stores in Switzerland are top-tier and affordable, especially Coop and Migros. When you do eat out, opt for bars and cafés. Find free activities Depending on when you visit, there are plenty of outdoor activities that don’t cost a thing. In Bern, for example, it’s free to swim in the River Aare. The water is chilly and the current strong, but on a hot summer day, it’s instantly refreshing. Picnics are another great way to enjoy the Swiss landscapes. Look for gardens with a city view, like the Rosengarten (rose garden) in Bern. For something a little more adventures, take a hike, literally! There is no shortage of trails in Switzerland. Know your options While spur-of-the-moment trips are certainly thrilling, they might result in unexpected costs. Researching ahead of time ensures that you know all of your options and can make the smartest decisions. When searching for hostels, hotels, or homestays, find out if breakfast and Wi-Fi are included. These perks can help cut daily costs. Similarly, it never hurts to ask your hotel for a ride. Some hotels offer complimentary shuttles to and from the airport or the train station. Pack smart Packing can be a pain but don’t just throw random items into your suitcase and hope for the best. Shopping in Switzerland isn’t cheap and you’ll want to avoid that at all costs (pun intended)! For winter trips, bring along your own sports gear. That way, when you hit the slopes, you’ll only need ski rentals. For summer stays, pack sunscreen and any medications you might need while on the road. Pharmacies are everywhere but prices are higher than what you are probably used to back home. This article was written by Megan Eileen McDonough, Founder of Bohemian Trails.