Yeah, last minute travel can be cool. But it can also leave you cash poor, especially when you’re talking high-season travel in major vacation destinations. But as with most things in life, a just little edumuhcation can go a long way. Case in point: Kayak.com’s Fare Alerts.

Create a Fare Alert (or 12) on Kayak.com or SideStep.com for the summer getaway(s) currently sequestered in your noggin by clicking on the “Get fare alerts for this trip” link on the top right-hand corner of the flight results page. You can track fares for specific dates, a flexible span of time (e.g. summer weekends or, say, the month of June) or an entire region (e.g. Europe). When your daily or weekly Fare Alert (you choose how often it arrives) touches down in your email inbox, you’ll be able to make informed travel decisions.

Depending on what you ask it to track (specific dates, flexible span of time or even top cities in a region), each Fare Alert can show you:

- How much the fare for specific dates has increased or decreased in dollars since the last alert

- The airfare history for your trip dates based on searches made by Kayakers over the past 90 days

- A snapshot of prices in Kayak.com’s matrix view, so you can quickly compare prices by carrier and number of stops

- The lowest fare available during a specific span of time (e.g. the next four weekends)

- The best fares available for popular destination cities in a region you want to visit (e.g. Africa)

Who knows, maybe you’ll still pay craptons to travel to the most expensive resort on the hottest island right in the middle of the high season. After all, it’s high season for a reason. But at least you’ll be pimping it out with full knowledge of your unbridled American excess. Just remember the wisdom of G.I. Joe.

(**Editor’s note: Yeah, Kayak.com owns us. You wanna make something of it? I’ll have you know I was surreptitiously using Fare Alerts to aid in making my personal travel plans long before Kayak.com bought our parent company SideStep.com in December. Nepotism, bias, blah, blah, blah. Fare Alerts just make good travel sense.)

Haven’t had much time to check this one out yet, but a cursory jaunt around the newly launched site Kid Friendly Guide yielded some cool finds, like a kid-friendly menu search tool and a kid-friendly hotels search tool. While the site is not limited to travel, it looks like a good resource - something worth bookmarking - to check the next time you find yourself researching, planning or heading out on family travel adventures.

Know some travel-savvy kids and teachers? Tell them about the National Geographic Hands-On Explorer Challenge 2008, a contest whose winners receive a 10-day trip to Australia. To enter, kids must be between the ages of 9 and 14, write a 300-word essay about a hands-on discovery they’ve made and include a photograph that illustrates their essay. Deadline for the contest is Feb. 15, 2008.

Looking for a last-minute Pacific Northwest getaway near Oregon’s Mt. Bachelor this weekend or next? I ran across what I think is a great deal this morning while perusing the last-minute offerings on VRBO (Vacation Rentals By Owner), a site that allows property owners to rent homes and condos directly to travelers. I’ve used it many times in the past and, each time, had good results. It’s a great resource when you have a large group that wants to stay in the same location, especially near beaches and ski resorts. Here’s the deal:

Sunriver Vacation Rental A 3,500-square-foot five-bedroom, four-bath house with sleeping arrangements perfect for five couples or two families with kids in Sunriver, Ore. for $300/night ($200 cleaning fee will be added for stays shorter than 7 days), though the listing says last-minute deals are available, so make sure to ask about rate reductions for this weekend if you call.

The house offers a slew of amenities. A few:

- 55″ big screen TV and 48″ big screen TV

- Deck with hot tub

- Stainless steel BBQ grill

- Garage game room with air-hockey, ping pong table and foosball

- DVD, CD, TIVO, VCR, Playstation 2, central sound system with controls throughout the house

- Sub-zero fridge, gas range, double oven

Not bad for a last-minute Superbowl weekend escape in Oregon, eh? Spend Saturday on the slopes at Mt. Bachelor, Sunday taking in the game with plenty of room for food prep and plenty of diversion for those who aren’t as keen on watching the pigskin.

The Mountain Outpost (pictured), a brand new eco-adventure complex that’s part of the Kapalua Resort on Maui, opens its doors to the public this week. The opening is the latest of many recent changes around the resort. Earlier this month, the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua reopened after $160 million in renovations. New restaurants, a new fitness center, new hiking trails and a renovated and upgraded deli are among the numerous other improvements to this popular Maui vacation spot.

But because we love adventure, we were most excited about the new Mountain Outpost, which boasts Hawaii’s longest suspension bridge and offers heart-thumping activities like zipline tours, climbing and ropes challenge courses. To get the inside scoop on the new Mountain Outpost and other must-do activities in and around the sprawling Kapalua Resort, we checked in with Kapalua Resort’s Director of Resort Activities Adam Quinn. Read on for his local take on getting the most out of a visit to this 23,000-acre resort area.

It’s 6 a.m. We’re up, thanks to jetlag. Where should we head for early morning adventure?

Well, before starting any activity I usually like to eat a good breakfast. Luckily you can start your culinary adventure at Kapalua Resort’s newly renovated Honolua Store deli, which opens at 6 a.m. The deli serves a wide variety of ‘ono (tasty) breakfast items like Molok‘ai sweet bread french toast and a local favorite, Loco Moco, a generous mound of rice topped with a hamburger patty, eggs and gravy. They also offer new items like a crab cake Benedict and farm-fresh veggie omelette. The rustic Honolua Store, built in 1929, also sells sundries and all the snacks you need to pack for a day of exploring Maui.

On your ideal day off, where on Maui would we find you?

I like to head down to one of Maui’s best white sand beaches, D.T. Fleming Beach, for some fun watersports. This long beach is great for running, and the shore break is good for kayak surfing and boogie boarding. During the summer, it has great snorkeling around the lava rocks, too.

What activities at Kapalua Resort are most likely to satisfy our inner adrenaline junkie?

Anyone seeking an awesome eco-adventure should check out our new Kapalua Adventure Center where you can jump into a bio-diesel Mercedes-Benz Unimog for a journey to our Mountain Outpost located about 1,500 feet up the mountainside.

The Mountain Outpost’s eight dual-track zipline course is among North America’s largest—spanning nearly two miles with two ziplines more than 2,000 feet long. Adventurers can also put their endurance, balance and strength to the test with a comprehensive ropes challenge course and 35-foot climbing tower.

All activities are led by guides who have extensive knowledge of Hawaiian culture, history, geography, flora and fauna.

Can you suggest a great excursion for a family with one or more kids under 12?

The Maui Ocean Center is a great place to take the kids. This aquarium has the nation’s largest collection of living coral, and parents love taking pictures of their little ones in the see-through acrylic tunnel within the 750,000-gallon deep sea tank.

Where are the best spots for romance at Kapalua Resort?

At Kapalua Resort, The Plantation House Restaurant offers open-air island style ambiance and amazing panoramic views of the ocean.

Where would you send us to score postcard-worthy views?

Honolua Bay, a marine life conservation area, has fantastic snorkeling. Buy a waterproof camera to snap unbelievable photos of colorful coral and tropical fishes. To get there, hop in a catamaran sailing charter from Lahaina Harbor or Ka‘anapali Beach, and you’ll be taken to a picturesque bay with a scenic mountain backdrop about ten miles north of Ka‘anapali.

When friends and family visit you, what’s one place you always take them to see?

Watching the sunrise from the summit of Haleakala, the world’s largest dormant volcano, is a rare treat. I usually like to take my visiting friends and family to Haleakala National Park to enjoy the incredible above-the-clouds view, hiking and cultural activities.

What should every Maui visitor take home?

Maui Pineapple Company offers the nation’s only tour of a working pineapple plantation. Guests learn about planting, cultivation, and harvesting pineapple. A highlight is tasting pineapple in the field and then picking your own Maui Gold pineapple to take home. Kids especially love these tours. If you don’t want to carry fruit on the plane, order Maui Gold online at mauipineapple.com to be delivered right to your door.

A trip to Maui wouldn’t be complete without _______.

A trip to Maui wouldn’t be complete without attending The Feast at Lele, an intimate, oceanfront Polynesian lu‘au experience that includes traditional, upscale cuisine from Hawai‘i, New Zealand, Tonga and Tahiti, small beachside tables in a lush garden patio, beautiful sunsets and authentic hula and fire dance performances.

Note: All activities can be arranged through the Kapalua Adventure Center’s adventure concierges. For more information call 808-665-4FUN (4386) or toll-free at 877-665-4386.

Freelance writer Lorraine Sanders has been editing the TravelPost.com Insider blog since 2005. You can reach her at news (at) lorrainesanders (dot) com.

File this under Ironies in Travel:

Disney World Bans Children from Fanciest Park Restaurant

When I saw this headline, I thought to myself, now who exactly goes to Disney World - of all places - to get away from children? And then I thought, duh, precisely the parents who brought them there!

We don’t care who you flash from which balcony, how many beads you collect or the number of frosty, pink hurricanes it takes to render you senseless and befriending a lamppost in the French Quarter. But if there’s anything we do care about, it’s that you plan accordingly before you head down south to the nation’s biggest party. A few things to keep in mind for Mardi Gras 2008:

1. You can skip Mardi Gras and still go to Mardi Gras. Contrary to popular belief, the actual day on which Mardi Gras falls (this year, Feb. 5th), is not necessarily a day you need to include in your travel plans. The party officially ends the Wednesday after Mardi Gras - Ash Wednesday - and the town shuts down to recover from a month of parades, balls and parties. The best time to hit New Orleans for a taste of Mardi Gras debauchery is basically anytime during Carnival season, which officially began this past weekend and continues through Feb. 5th. While the weekend prior to Mardi Gras (Feb. 1-4) is prime time for those who love crowds, booze and packed bars, many who want to sample the sites and sounds of New Orleans without all the mayhem go in the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday. Check the Mardi Gras 2008 Calendar, and you’ll see that there are parades and events every weekend in January.

2. Grandstanding can make all the difference. Unless you’re a college kid or someone with really solid legs and a strong bladder, standing alongside the parade route can get real old real fast. Not only will you have to fight your way through the crowd every time you need to get a drink or use the bathroom, but you’ll have few bathroom options save porter potties and those in packed bars and restaurants (which are almost always reserved for customers only). Especially if it’s your first Mardi Gras or you’re traveling with kids, we suggest forking over the extra moolah for grandstand access during at least one of the parades. For example, you can get $50 tickets to the Bacchus Parade (Premium Seats via Ticketweb) that will land you general admission access to the grandstand at the Intercontinental New Orleans Hotel on Sunday, Feb. 3rd. You’ll have access to bathrooms, as well as food and drink (for an additional fee, of course). Many local hotels and restaurants offer tickets to special viewing areas for watching parades, so do some research online before you go.

3. Book activities and restaurant reservations in advance. If you want to participate in any guided tours, excursions or other activities or dine at a specific restaurant during the Mardi Gras season, it goes without saying that you should buy tickets or reserve your table well in advance. Don’t wait until you arrive - you may be disappointed.

4. To really see New Orleans, you don’t have to see Mardi Gras. Yes, Mardi Gras is one of the most unique, exciting and culturally important annual celebrations in the country. That said, it’s also the most hectic time of year in the Big Easy. But New Orleans has the same festive spirit, party-hardy bars, colorful markets and great restaurants all year round. It’s worth keeping in mind that, while you may miss the big bang that is Mardi Gras, visiting at another time of year will definitely be more economical and may result in better service at restaurants, shops and hotels.

Ah, the fine art of traveling with kids. It’s an activity we suspect many of you will engage in over the next 10 days. In that spirit, we asked travel expert and mother of two Tracey Rosen to drop some serious knowledge just in time for the holidays. As mother of six and a half year old Kayla and three and a half year old Zachary (pictured) and president of the L.A.-based public and media relations firm Productivity, Tracey travels frequently – often with her kids and husband Andrew in tow.

Here, she offers tips for traveling with children, reveals what’s in her diaper bag and shows how a child’s drawing might just be the perfect antidote for in-flight rudeness.

How often do you travel with your children?

We probably travel with our kids every other month; however sometimes of the year, we find ourselves out of town two weekends within the same month, so it probably averages out to more like once a month.

What’s the best time of day to fly when you’re traveling with small children?

Believe it or not, we prefer to fly the red-eye flights if we are flying more than five hours. Our kids are accustomed to sleeping anywhere when they are tired, and this way they sleep through the flight and we don’t give them an opportunity to get antsy on the plane.

When a red-eye is not an option, we’ve found that an early morning flight is best because our kids can get excited about doing a particular activity when we arrive and they are usually on their best behavior in fear that they’ll lose that first activity if they act up on the plane.

What are your tricks for keeping kids occupied on long car trips?

I’m embarrassed to say this, but the DVD player in our car has been wonderful. Besides keeping the kids occupied watching a movie we found that it helps my son focus on something in the car and avoid getting car sick (as opposed to staring out the window and getting nauseous).

I also have each of my kids bring three toys that can’t roll around the car and can be played with in different ways, such as a doll with changeable outfits, an activity book with a Magna Doodle attached, etc. And of course, healthy snacks that don’t make a huge mess if they fall.

But the most important thing is that anything you bring for the kids needs to be in arm’s reach. My daughter usually stashes her toys in a small back pack, and I found a product called the Kiddie Kangaroo that fits on my son’s car seat to keep his toys and a water bottle within reach.

When you travel with your kids, what are some must-have items you always stash in your carry-on?

I always make sure that I have fruit snacks, raisins, and their favorite snack of the week, as well as Tylenol and Benadryl, a small activity book, crayons, a small toy or doll (I bring Word Spin or Sudoku for my older child), their blankets for snuggling, and a mini first-aid kit like the Medibuddy that can fit in my purse or the diaper bag (this became essential after my daughter fell in the airport on the way to St. Thomas and was bleeding, but we didn’t have time to leave the terminal to go to first aid to get a band-aid).

When my kids were in diapers, I always brought two extra than what I absolutely needed, a full stash of wipes (for diaper changes, hands, spills, etc.), and a change of clothes. Now that my son is potty training, I bring one or two extra sets of clothes and a Ziploc bag in case he has an accident.

The goal is to bring the largest diaper bag that can fit under the seat in front of you so that it is always in arm’s reach (and make sure you know where everything is so you don’t have to spend 10 minutes searching for a pacifier or snack if your baby/child is fussy).

What advice can you give parents traveling with children who encounter rude treatment from other passengers and employees on airlines?

Make sure that you’re not ignoring your kids and that any disgruntled travelers around you know that you are concerned about their comfort and are trying everything in your power to keep your kids calm, comfortable and entertained.

When my daughter was two and a half, a passenger behind us kept giving me dirty looks and making comments every time my daughter opened her mouth (and she wasn’t being loud). So I had my daughter draw a picture and then turn around with the cutest smile imaginable on her face and tell this older couple that she made it for them. At that point, they couldn’t help but smile and felt guilty that they had made their comments in the first place. Remember that you probably paid the same amount for your ticket as the person next to you and have just as much a right to be on the plane as they are. And if the plane is not full, flight attendants are usually willing to let you move to an area of the plane that is less crowded.

What’s the one piece of travel advice you’d want every new parent to know?

Try to stay calm, prepared, and involve your kids in planning a trip’s activities. Travel in and of itself can be stressful, and that obviously escalates when kids are involved. If you seem stressed, your kids will be aware of it and will most likely feed off of it. By planning everything in advance (but still leaving some room for flexibility for delays or adding a new activity that you didn’t know about), you can enjoy your time together instead of worrying about how to get there or what you are going to do next.

Also if you’re flying, try to book your trip on a 777 or Jet Blue (or Virgin America), because each seat has a television (usually with children’s programming or games) and the rows are wider, which allows your kids room to move around (and not be able to kick the seat in front of them).

At large resorts and vacation destinations, what safety tips should parents give their kids?

- Make sure your kids know your room number and what hotel staff uniforms look like in case they need help.

- Remind kids to stay on pathways and not near bushes or on the other side of fences (avoid falls or coming in contact with small animals or insects).

- Remind them that they can’t go to the pool area or in the pool without an adult that they came with (even if they can swim).

- And don’t let them climb on vanity stools in the bathroom unless you’re there so they don’t slip out from under them.

- And of course, always have a meeting spot that they can remember the name of in case they get lost.

- For the hotel room, most large resorts now offer bed rails for your child, as well as night lights and safety gates if your room has an outdoor area. I always bring outlet covers with me, as well. Either the hotel doesn’t offer them or housekeeping always forgets to keep outlets covered.

Has travel become any easier for parents in the last five years? Are there specific innovations or policy changes you can point to?

I think travel with kids has definitely become easier in the last five years. Hotels are offering more kid-oriented activities - whether it’s a kids’ program where you can drop them off for a few hours or family activities like s’mores roasting or movies by the pool area (my kids beg to go to the kids club and never want to leave).

Obviously, some hotels are more family-oriented than others, so I always look to find out if a hotel is best for business travelers or vacationers and confirm that our room has a bathtub in advance (many hotels are replacing tubs with over-sized showers).

We’ve also found that a lot of hotels have a secret stash of board games and movies available behind the front desk if you ask. You can usually get a good feel of a hotel’s family-amenities by visiting their web site as well.

Best kid-friendly travel snacks?

Fruit snacks, raisins, Gold Fish, and Graham Cracker sticks. Avoid snacks that are sticky or crumble easily. The snack should be healthy and filling enough to hold them over until the next meal but not stuff them where they won’t want to eat their next meal. I also pre-pack everything in snack-size Ziploc bags so they can be re-sealed and each of my kids can hold their own bag.

Let’s face it, traveling with kids can be a major hassle. Why is it worth it?

It’s the memories you create and the look on their faces when they try something new. You won’t take photos of them during a tantrum, so 10 years from now, when you look back at your pictures, you’ll focus on the fun that you had together.

Traveling also helps your kids understand that there is a whole world around them and they can learn about different cultures or appreciate what they have in their lives more.

Your kids also learn about compromising, i.e. going to a museum or a cultural tour in the morning and then in the afternoon going to a park or specific kids’ activity in the afternoon (as long as they help agree upon what the kids’ activity is). But most of all, you experience it together.

In recent years, airports have begun acting on a truism that lies at the base of the American consciousness: bored people really, really like to shop. Give us an hour, and we just might fork over as much as we paid for our plane ticket among the ever-growing throng of airport shops, services and restaurants.

But here’s another equally as important axiom of the airport shopping experience: all air malls are not created equal. When you’re looking for more than a Hudson News and a Laptop Lane to while away the hours and minutes until your next flight, we hope you find yourself in one of the following airports, which together comprise our list of The Best U.S. Airports for Shoppers.

Philadelphia International Airport

Overall, we give Philly’s own airport top props for offering travelers not just airport mall staples like Brookstone, Radio Road and Spirit of the Red Horse, but a variety of retailers less common to airports, including Gap, Swatch and Bose.

But what we love most is that the airport has its very own Airport Magic Shop (Concourse B). For those times when you really wish your delayed flight would disappear with you in it, we suggest heading here. Perhaps they can help you out. Philadelphia International Airport Shops and Restaurants

What to Buy: Bose Quiet Comfort Earphones

John F. Kennedy International Airport

While we can’t give this airport the winning slot overall, it does house what is, in our estimation, the most luxurious collection of retailers concentrated into one terminal. Clustered around Gate 4 in the airport’s Terminal 1, specialty shops from Bulgari, Hermes, Cartier, Salvatore Ferragamo, Tumi, Mont Blanc, L’Occitane and the New York Dufrey Toy Store do their part to tempt travelers out of their hard-earned cash.

Unfortunately, the rest of the terminals at JFK contain a lackluster selection. When you’re stuck in another terminal with spare time, we suggest hopping on the AirTrain to Terminal 1. A full loop with stops at each terminal takes about eight minutes. John F. Kennedy International Airport Shops and Restaurants

Pittsburgh International Airport

While it doesn’t house nearly the number of retail destinations found in some others on our list, the Pittsburgh airport wins points with us for complementing airport usual suspects like Brookstone and The Body Shop with a well-rounded selection of less-common, but oh-so useful shops, including Victoria’s Secret, Creative Kidstuff, Clinique and GNC. Pittsburgh International Airport Airmall

What to Buy: A Victoria’s Secret Passport Cover

Portland International Airport

If there’s one thing every conspicuous consumer should do in Oregon, it’s taking advantage of the state’s lack of sales tax. Yup. The price marked on the tag – that’s the actual amount you’ll end up paying. So even if your travels leave you little time to explore and a lot of time in the airport terminal, you can still enjoy this shopper’s perk.

But absent sales tax is not the only reason to shop at the Portland airport. Unlike most airports around the country, this one leans heavily towards local and regional products. Hey, we all love playing with the massage chairs at Brookstone, but there’s something quite refreshing about being able to hunt for wares from Pacific Northwest artists at the Real Mother Goose Gallery, shop at the independent bookseller Powell’s Books, take a turn through the Nike store and explore the state’s top products at Made in Oregon. Portland Airport Shops

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport

Another airport where travelers can happily shop tax-free? There’s no sales tax on apparel in Minnesota, so even travelers who’re just passing through can score deals on plush wearables from Naturally Cashmere and men’s shoes from Johnston & Murphy. Find both stores in the airport’s Main Concourse. For the tykes, head to Creative Kidstuff in Concourse F for classic toys from the Little Engine That Could Train Set to the Karito Kids. Minneapolis-St.Paul Airport retailers

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport

Sea-Tac does not, by any means, offer the most comprehensive airport shopping around, but it does have three stores that scored the airport a spot on our illustrious list. First, there’s ExOfficio, a great destination for apparel that can keep up with even the most frequent and active travelers. Then there’s Fireworks, an airport outpost of the small local chain of galleries that sell house wares, art and home accents made predominately by artists and artisans hailing from the Pacific Northwest. And last but not least, the Discovery Channel Store is one of those places that’s always fun to hunt around in – no matter what your age. Sea-Tac Pacific Marketplace

What to Buy: The ExOfficio ExO Dri Tee

Dallas Fort-Worth International Airport

Next up on our list is this Texas behemoth. While the retail offerings here include a slew of airport regulars (think Brooks Brothers, Rosetta Stone, etc.), the sheer volume of offerings makes this a great airport for retail therapy. What’s more, travelers have a plethora of automated shopping options. Sure, product vending machines are common in airports around the country (and the world), but rarely does one find so many in one place. This airport boasts automated shops for a bevy of retailers, including Apple, Proactiv, Sony, Elizabeth Arden and Motorola.

If your inner shopaholic craves a more traditional retail experience, unleash your inner Tony Romo at the Official Dallas Cowboys Pro Shop in Terminal E or fight off layover boredom with a spree through specialty shops like Fossil, L’Occitane and Mont Blanc in Terminal D and Terminal A’s Brighton Collectibles, Landau and the Jethro Pugh Western Shop. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport Shops

Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport

The Southern Belles must have voted when this airport was collecting retailers. Not only does this busy airport have a Bath & Body Works in Concourse B and The Body Shop in the Atrium, but it also houses a Bare Escentuals retail outlet in Concourse T. That last one is a popular purveyor of mineral makeup, often thought to be much healthier for the skin than mainstream cosmetic products. Atlanta Hartsfield International Shops and Restaurants

Nevermind that this moose’s nose looks like a pig’s. How cute is this kids’s Moose Hat from Columbia? This 100 percent fleece hat comes in three color schemes and features a double layer ear band to keep the hat snug and comfortable during cold winter weather. ‘Cause it’s all about dressing them up in funny outfits before they get old enough to catch on to your little game…