Last Minute Club and Saving Money While Seeing the World

So maybe you are looking to travel this year, really keen to get away from all of this dreadful snow we are having. But the budget is tight and the economy still doesn't feel that great. Well, I have a couple of thoughts on that. There are a few ways to save money while seeing the world and one of those is http://www.lastminuteclub.com/ Last year for the first year ever I signed up for Last Minute Club. The club is a travel clearinghouse of sorts. You may have seen those old newspaper ads for Last Minute Club in the Toronto newspapers. The club has been around since 1977 ad is a well known company, especially in Canada. Well, these days the deals are faster than ever and sometimes deeper than ever when you book them on line right from the source. So what is required? Visit the site and sign up. For a fee of $29.99 you get an annual classic membership and can book your trip after selecting one of the various deals available on line. You just need that membership number. There are other premium memberships too. But really I think the basic level classic membership is all that is needed and $30 plus tax is not much if you offset that by the crazy savings you can get. Think about it. If you are two people travelling and you save $500 (modest in terms of the deals here) then the $30 fee is a really great deal. Right now if you book a package vacation by Jan. 25th and sign up for the club you get a free DVD player. (Worth about $129 US) That caught my eye. It's a nice little freebie incentive. Now truth be told, I have used the club as a comparison shopping tool. The Last Minute club posts amazing deals and there are telephone representatives available to help. But when it came right down to booking the travel deal I went in to my agent that I occasionally use at Sears Travel and I told her the property I wanted and the time frame so she could get me the same deal posted on line. I also got $60 in Sears points by booking our travel arrangements that way. There are now some incentives to booking on line and placing your package costs on the MBNA master card. I would have no qualms about booking through Last Minute Club after using them once. But I like lots of options and I love to save. Just remember if you are going to place the total on any credit card for points or rebates, make sure you can pay it off almost immediately, otherwise the interest rates will make that vacation skyrocket.

Mickey Moms Club: Giveaway

Planning a trip to Disney? Never before have their been so many great tools to help you map out all of the details. When is the best time to go? Where should I stay? How long is the lineup for Soarin' at Epcot? Are there any special character meals I should plan for, and how far in advance do I need to book them? My child has a peanut allergy, where can we eat safely? How far am I from the nearest hospital should anything go wrong? Disney is one of my favourite destinations and companies. They do a lot of things really well. Their service is the best, top notch, the standard by which all other companies should measure themselves. One other thing they do amazingly well is social media. Disney has an on line team of Moms, a panel, always at the ready to respond to your questions. Their job as bloggers and team Mickey is to answer your questions. Visit Disney.ca  and click on Moms Panel. Many of these Moms are Disney experts, who travel there routinely and know all the ins and outs. Once a year Disney puts the call out for a Moms panel and they typically receive thousands of responses. This year Kelli from The Yummy Mummy Club reminded me it was time for Disney to put out the call for applications and so I applied. Last month I found out I hadn't made the cut. But that won't stop me from applying again in the future. I adore Disney for all that they do well. The new Disney Moms Panel is to be unveiled soon and in the mean time anyone who applied is a member of the MickeyMomsClub with special access to more tips, maps and other kid's activities on line. Next year, if you are a tried and true Mouseketeer apply to join the panel and add your expertise to the formidable group. (Tip: I think they run this contest every fall and they quiz you on Disney trivia, so be prepared. Also you need to have been to Disney within the past 12 months. The Disney company is very good to their panel and flies them at least once a year to the resort for a Moms media event.) In the mean time I am now a MickeyMomsClub member. I have a giveaway to share that I picked up at Type A Mom conference. (See the pink bag full of Mickey Mouse Mom's goodies above.) Included is a photo album brag book, some travel candles, and handy purse-sized hand gels and other goodies. It's a nice little travel bag kit.)

Open to Canada and U.S. I will draw for the winner Nov. 20th with random.org. Good luck!

To enter:
1. Follow me on twitter. @inkscrblr
2. Follow thriftymommagogo (see GFC on side here.)
3. Leave me your email so I can contact you when you win.

Good Luck!

Ontario Science Centre - review

This summer my daughter, now eight, repeatedly asked to do science  experiments and she would often tell anyone who inquired that her favourite subject was science, so we thought it would be the ideal time to plan a trip to Ontario Science Centre. We visited the centre on Labour Day weekend. Admission was free with our membership to London Regional Children's Museum. A very big bonus incentive for us to visit. And visiting on Sunday meant we could park on a side street nearby for free as well. We stayed at a motel for the night so we could also visit family nearby. This was the only cost incurred other than the price of gas and the meals while we stayed in Toronto. I have not been to the science centre since I was about 12 or so and was anxious to see if it was the same trip I recalled or if things had improved, changed, etc. A highlight for my nephew Taiga, now one, and my daughter Ainsley, 5, was Kidspark, an interactive children's section with toys, a rock star stage, musical instruments and even a toddler area. Less exciting was the space section and we didn't spring for the Imax movie this year, but perhaps another time. The Ontario Science Centre currently has a Lizards and Snakes Alive exhibit that is interesting for all ages and a short film on the topic is quite informative. The Sports exhibits and the Spy area are wonderful interactive ways for children of all ages to enjoy and discover science in the every day. The Spy area is different than I had pictured it but a great opportunity to role play for younger children and there are some stations that my eight-year-old explored and were equally engagaiung for myself, my husband and my brother as well. There are chances to crack codes, discover beginner cryptography, create secret identities and examine spy gadgets. But the highlight for both my children was the Human Body exhibit. Many stood in line for hours to undergo photoaging, a glimpse into how they might look decades from now. And almost every child who visited the Human Body had to be hauled away from the sneezing girl who taught them about germs and zits. The iconic electricity exhibit in the Science Arcade hasn't changed much in 25 years and is still fun for everyone. If I had one criticism it would be simply that I would hesitate to recommend this as a trip for anyone not yet school aged. It is simply too overwhelming and over the heads of most younger children.

Visit the Ontario Science Centre open 7 days a week, from 10 am to 5 pm. Closed December 25. Located at 770 Don Mills Road on the corner of Eglinton Avenue East in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Regular admission for adults is $18. Seniors are $13.50. Youth aged 13 to 17 are $13.50. Children aged four to 12 are $11. Imax movies are over and above the admission rate.

Otherwise thriftymommagogo gives this $$$$$ out of $$$$$ as it is good fun, inexpensive and educational for all family members.