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Special Feature: Get out of Dodge
Online travel for college students
As college students, you’ve got a step
up on every other would-be traveler
out there—airlines and travel agencies
are falling all over themselves to offer you
special deals. The travel industry realizes
that between spring break
and semesters abroad, col
lege students comprise a
major sector of their busi
ness, and they want to
entice you with discounts
and packages.
Spring break is an
industry in itself. There are
tons of companies that
specialize in getting you and your bud
dies to the heart of the week-long ritual
of drinking, tanning and clubbing. But
beware: If you haven’t
booked your trip for this
year already, you’re too
late. You’d be better off
checking out sites like
springbreaktravel.com for
planning Spring Break
2002. This site specializes
in the top four destinations
tor students: Jamaica, Lancun, Honda
and the Bahamas. Their package trips
include just about everything you’ll need,
including, in some cases,
wrist bands for easy access
to popular clubs.
The best part of the
site is “Spring Break
Exposed,” a section with
reviews and tips from stu
dents who have actually
taken their trips. They'll tell
you things like how much
spending money you’ll need, and that
you’re better off leaving your shoes
behind for the midnight Foam Party in
Cancun.
Students heading for Europe or any
of the other continents for study or
travel should investigate mainstays like
counciltravel.com, studentuniverse.com
and studenttravelnet.com.
Counciltravel.com is one of the biggest
and oldest out there: this is your source
for quick searches on airfares, buying ID
cards (which you should have, especially
if you’re going to Europe), rail passes,
info about hotels and hostels, student
travel insurance, gear, and tips for living
and working abroad.
Studenttravelnet.com is one-stop
shopping for travelers, espe
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dally those bound for
Europe. The site offers a
voucher system for travel that
allows you to choose a level
of comfort ranging from basic
to top price, and they’ll give
you vouchers that you can
use at Ibis hotels, which are
sprinkled throughout Eurooe.
The site also has informative message
boards where you can ask experienced
travelers about the best play to stay in
Prague or where the hottest
nightspot is in Madrid.
The best thing about
traveling as a student is the
discounted rates. Many air
lines offer incredible dis
counts for students up to
their 26th birthday, provided
they have a valid ID.
As tor places to stay, the best option
for students is often hostels: They’re
cheap, clean and a great place to meet
people. Go to hiayh.org for
lists of hostels around the
world and specific informa
tion on each location.
Another site to check out
before you buy tickets is
Jsecard.com/studentflights,
the headquarters of the
International Student Card.
They offer travel rebates for
people who purchase the card, which
costs less than $30. The ISE card is not
just for identification; it also gets you
discounts at hotels, museums, rail sys
tems and more. The ISE site also has spe
cial airfare deals and student flights.
Remember to always check your ticket
price in several places to make sure you’re
getting the best deal. Once you find a
package, try out regular travel sites like
travelocity.com and lowestfare.com to
see what kind of a student discount
you're really getting. •
Literary History Online
literaryhistory.com
English majors wanting to do research on the
web will love this directory of online literary arti
cles, journals and resources. The focus is mainly
19th century British lit., but there are several
other areas, like Postmodernism, that are also
covered, and there are links to other literary
research sites.
Content: A- Usability: A
Travlang's Translating Dictionaries
dictionaries.travlang.com
If you’ve come across a strange word in your i
modern languages course, try this vast diction- *
ary site that can translate between English and
all major and minor European languages, includ- <■
ing Latin. It also works between other languages,
so if you’re dying to convert some Portuguese
into Dutch, today’s your lucky day.
Content: A Usability: B+
The Yahoo Directory of Engineering
dir.yahoo.com/Science/Engineering
This comprehensive list of engineering and engi
neering-related sites and links offers an excellent
resource for all your engineering needs. From
aerospace and geography to a Usenet listing of
science message boards, even a non-techie could
find something of interest.
Content: A- Usability: A
Tabletalk
Tabletalk.salon.com
For intelligent discussion and useful advice, try
Salon magazine's discussion rooms at
tabletalk.salon.com. There are a large variety of
categories, including sports, health, education,
house & garden, movies, music and technology,
with multiple discussion threads in each. There’s
everything from freelance writing and spiritual
health to role playing. You can view the discus
sions as a guest, but to participate you need to
register, which is simple and will also provide you
with a record of what you’ve read.
Content: A- Usability: B+
Geocities
geocities.com
So you want to build a web site, but HTML gives
you a headache? No problem—Yahoo’s Web Page
Builder will walk you through the whole process
(works best with Windows). The templates are
kind of dull, but you can have a web site up and
running in 10 minutes. Thumbs up on the help
section; you can add on more as you learn. If
you’re a beginner, this is the place to start.
Content: B+ Usability: A