International travel a hot ticket in a down economy

As the economy continues its downward turn, we’ve all had to do a bit of trimming on everyday expenses. Sadly, the annual vacation is typically the first item cut from the budgets.

But as the travel industry struggles with fewer airline passengers and hotel guests — it’s actually our gain. The deals are out there and even better deals on vacations are forecast for the remainder of the year.

Some of the better opportunities will be on international travel. Already the airlines have extended their deep wintertime rates for trips started by the end of May. And big hotel names are already offering spot sales with half-off prices on hotels and resorts across Europe for summer.

What you can do today is to prepare to act when the deals arise. You could end up seeing more of the world at 25-50 percent less.

If you haven’t done so already this year, get yourselves and each of your family members a passport. Even infants need one. Also, starting June 1, U.S. citizens will need to present a passport for border crossing trips by air, land or sea to/from Canada, the Caribbean and Mexico.

So if you are forgoing a vacation this year, consider getting the passports in order and up-to-date. The average cost for a new passport is about $100 per adult and $85 for those under age 16. The cost to renew an expired passport is about $75 adults; $20 minors.

When your budget and your spirit say it’s time again to see the world, you’ll be ready.

Get it done. It’s much easier than you think. http://travel.state.gov

Meanwhile, a great tool to shop for airfare deals and to watch the up-and-down pricing patterns on certain flight routes, get to know FareCompare.com. The Web site actually monitors airfares and hotel prices for you and alerts you with email notices. http://www.farecompare.com/