GO ASK JOAN:From the best way to get to New Orleans to booking websites you can trust, JOAN SCALESanswers your travel questions
Best way to get to New Orleans
I would like to travel to New Orleans and San Antonio on April 22nd for seven or eight days, splitting time more or less evenly between both places. I would like to take as direct a route as possible and return from San Antonio.
I know Aer Lingus fly Dublin to New Orleans via New York, but there is a long stopover and arrival time is quite late at night. Would I be better booking separate flights from Ireland to New York and then internal flight to New Orleans and San Antonio? Shannon is my nearest airport.
Also would you have any recommendations on hotels with a fairly central location in both places? My accommodation budget is up to $200 (€146) a night.
ST, Kerry
The best value I have found for your flights would be with Delta (delta.com) which flies from Shannon and the cost would be about €815 (€596) including taxes. On the way back, there is a layover of eight hours in New York which would allow you to spend a little time in the city. Using separate tickets the journey costs a lot more as you are travelling right in the middle of Easter traffic. A travel agent may be able to find a tighter routing.
You should give both cities four days each, as you will arrive in New Orleans late and leave San Antonio early, so you lose the day each end. New Orleans is a very interesting city and you will only scratch the surface on such a short visit. Base yourself in or near the French Quarter and you will be able to walk to most places.
Hotels to consider are the following, the Frenchmen Hotel (frenchmenhotel.com) is an atmospheric property on the edge of the French Quarter. It is authentic and has a tiny swimming pool in the courtyard. It is older than the impression given by the pictures on the website, but the location is great and the rates are from $89 (€65).
The Hotel Monteleone (hotelmonteleone.com) is a grand dame on Royal Street, just a block from Bourbon Street, where the French Quarter begins, and well located for restaurants. Rooms from $169 (€124).
Near the French Quarter and in the historic central business district, the International House Hotel (ihhotel.com) is a mixture of old and new in a boutique style. The rates are good, from $99 (€72) per night. The official tourism website for New Orleans is neworleansinfo.com.
San Antonio is famous for its River Walk, and life in the city is based along the waterway. The Menger Hotel (mengerhotel.com), one of the oldest in the city, is just 90m from the site of the Alamo. Rooms from $130 (€95).
The River Walk Vista Hotel (riverwalkvista.com) is close to downtown and, as the name implies, has great views. It is in an historic building converted to a small hotel/guesthouse. Rates from $120 (€88).
The Drury Plaza Riverwalk Hotel (druryhotels.com) has a big plus in that breakfast is free, so you can save a tidy sum during a stay. It is in a restored former bank and has an outdoor pool, and a restaurant which overlooks the river. Rooms from $130 (€95).
Are booking websites safe?
We are travelling to Florida this summer and we want to book our hotels online as this seems the best option. All the sites selling hotel rooms vary in price and in the amount of money which has to be paid up front.
How safe and reputable are these sites? Have I any way of knowing if they are legitimate? Is my booking worthless if they go out of business? Do I lose my money in that case? Can I check if the hotel has my booking and is being paid for same?
AOD, Dublin
With what happened in the past year when a number of hotel booking companies went out of business, you are right to be careful about parting with money for accommodation.
Hotel prices vary from site to site, but your first inquiries should be directly to the hotels you want to stay in. Most hotels do not charge up front, some charge a small reservation fee and the cancellation terms can be quite generous, in some cases up to the day before arrival without any loss. At this time of the year, many of the major hotel groups have good discounts, so take advantage of that.
Websites that I can recommend are hotels.com, a major company and an affiliate of the Expedia group which also owns Tripadvisor, Venere, CruiseCritic and other travel sites.
The website booking.com does not take the full amount of the cost of your accommodation. Mostly you pay on arrival at your destination. It may charge a small booking fee, but not always – it depends on the property involved.
Just because you have booked your own flights does not mean you cannot use a travel agent or tour operator. Companies such as touramerica.ie, sunway.ie, americanholidays.ie and americansky.ie all have great contracted rates with hotels in Florida. You can book with them and your money is covered, as they are licensed and bonded. Don’t forget to buy travel insurance well in advance of your planned date of travel.
Off to Canada for a wedding
We are a family of five, looking at going to Edmonton in Canada in July for a friends wedding. What options do we have for flying there and staying for a few days?
PM, Dublin
There are two flight options from Ireland to Canada during the summer, Air Canada (aircanada.com) and Air Transat (airtransat.com). The cost of flights from Ireland to Toronto and onwards to Edmonton would be in the region of €800-900 each.
If it is possible for you to fly from the UK, there is the option of saving money by combining flights and hotels. The cost for a week in Edmonton would be about €880 each, plus the flight to London, see thomascook.com.
* E-mail questions, with your name and address, to jscales@irishtimes.com