JGOOT Subscriber story: “Flights so cheap we got to bring the grandparents!”

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Nikki Sandschaper and her husband are both school teachers – which might seem great for vacations, but considering the only time teachers can travel is during peak seasons, that can get pricey quick.

In this interview we talked about one of their JGOOT-inspired trips where they not only went over the busiest week of the year, but they were able to take their parents too.

Don’t have 20 minutes to watch the interview? Skip to the parts that interest below.

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Want to share your JGOOT travel stories?  Email me & let’s talk about it!

Intro: Meet Nikki

0:55: “We like experiences over things”

1:35: First “adult” New Year’s eve in years thanks to grandparents watching kids.

2:10: How to just grab the cheap flight & use AirBnB to accommodate all 5 of us.

4:55: Recommendations on how to “get your feet wet” with international travel.

6:00: Using JGOOT as inspiration for finding your next vacation destination.

7:00: Nikki’s favorite feature of JGOOT – finding affordable trips when school is out (which is normally peak/expensive season)

9:00: Adjusting dates to find dates that work for you.

13:40: Discussion point: Rather than Planning to take a trip and hoping to get a good deal – Find a good deal, and plan around those dates.

14:00: Why you need to be watching for deals LONG before you plan on taking a trip.

15:00: How to get friends & family to visit you for $30 to $100 round-trip (Demonstration of reverse-search feature)

18:00-18:40 – Technical difficulties

18:45: Closing advice from Nikki: Why it’s great to subscribe even if you’re not planning a trip soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“It’s five minutes of dreaming and fun” – Robert Horvick

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Below is a recording of a conversation I had with JGOOT premium subscriber Robert Horvick after he left these kind words on our Facebook page.

Robert & his wife live in Raleigh, NC. Since joining my trip-alert service, they’ve only travelled domestically, but they’ve taken 3 trips and saved $600 to $800 so far.

They watch for trips every day but even when none of the trips interest them or work with their schedule, he describes opening his daily trip alerts as “Five minutes of dreaming and fun.”

Don’t have 30 minutes to watch the whole video? A list of highlights is below.

  • Intro: “We got married young and travel was limited to road trips. Now that kids are older…”
  • 1:05: $97 Delta direct afternoon flight Raleigh to Austin that we’ve paid $350 for multiple times in the past.
  • 3:30: $63 mid-day direct Raleigh flight to Minneapolis (not-last minute. Months ahead.)
  • 4:50: Plans for Paris next Summer
  • 5:30: Using points as a backup plan
  • 7:10: Orlando/Disney flight that added two days to their vacation for the same cost
  • 8:45: WAY cheaper to get a great deal on a flight and a bad deal on a cruise, than a great deal on a cruise and a bad deal on a flight.
  • 11:00: Opening JGOOT emails is like scratching a lottery ticket. Even when you don’t win, it’s five minutes of dreaming and fun.
  • 14:10: How we saved $600 to $800 in the 6 months since we subscribed.
  • 15:20: It’s as fun to dream while sitting at home as it is to be traveling when you are able to get out
  • 15:50: The benefits of building travel plans around deals vs Planning to travel, and hoping to find a deal
  • 17:45: Co-worker paying $3000 flights to Shanghai vs $600 including 7 nights.
  • 18:35: Getting your butt on the plane for cheap, and then getting a business class upgrade for less than the cost of lunch.
  • 22:20: How we get these trips at the price advertised.
  • 25:30: How we used to travel vs how we travel now.
  • 29:20: Recap of the two strategies behind “The JGOOT Way” of travel.
  • 31:30: Robert’s final suggestion to get the most out of your JGOOT trip-alerts

About Croatia (Video)

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JGOOT premium subscriber Andrea Warner was kind enough to share pictures, stories, and some other cool travel tips from her recent JGOOT-inspired trip to Croatia.

Have further questions? Add your comments below, or participate in the conversation going on here.

PS – Andrea is a single Mother of five, and makes a point of “Just getting out of town” at least quarterly. Although she finds some of the deals she takes via JGOOT, the REAL reason she has this freedom is by being really good at helping small business owners with their social media presence.  Feel free to contact her at Andrea@AndreaWarner.com if you’d like to boost exposure to your small business.

Want help finding travel deals that will help YOU travel more? Click here to try our premium trip alert service for as little as a dollar.