Daily deal sites such as Groupon, Eversave, Living Social, etc. frequently offer travel deals, but you have to read the fine print. I recently examined two Orlando area deals to see how much money I could save if I purchased one of them.
The first was an offer from Eversave for a two night stay (2 adults, 2 kids, king room) in a resort in the theme park area.
The Eversave price was $199. The regular room price was $202, and even cheaper if you could travel between 6/20 and 12/22. If you sat through a time share presentation, you could purchase this deal for $79. However, each Eversave purchase came with a $100 Universal Studios gift card. So is this a good deal? Only if Universal Studios is on your itinerary or you’re willing to go through the hell that is a time share presentation.
The second was a Groupon for a condominium resort in the theme park area (2 bedroom, sleeping 6). I calculated for a 7 night stay. The Groupon rate for the week was $529, while the regular rate was $623. However, you had to book by 9/15 and travel by 10/20. So the Groupon could save you $100 only if these dates match your travel dates.
Further searching on Craigslist led me to another theme park area resort where you could get a 3 bedroom for $623 (the same price as for the 2 bedroom above) for the same dates.
So while those daily deals may not necessarily be big bargains, it’s still worthwhile to check them out. Just be sure to read the fine print and do your research before purchasing!
Orlando’s Islands of Adventure at Universal Studios
