Oh it’s gonna be cold in December (if this global warming thing ever chills out), but ye New Englanders could be hopping down to Florida for only $10 come Dec. 17, 2007. How can this be, you may be asking yourself. Skybus, the low-cost carrier based out of Columbus, is launching routes from Boston-Portsmouth to Jacksonville-Daytona Beach and Punta Gorda-Ft. Myers just in time for the winter doldrums. Skybus always sells at least 10 tickets for $10 on each of its flights. You’ll have to buy early to grab these low fares.

The new discount rental car brand from Hertz, Simply Wheelz, launches today at the Orlando International Airport. Why develop a whole new brand, you might ask. The new company has many similarities to a discount carrier, in that it offers online reservations, car pick-up from self-service kiosks instead of the usual staffed counters and rates starting as low as $15/day and $94/week.

Customers book online and head to an automated kiosk to get their rental documentation once they arrive at the airport. The machine spits out the rental agreement after scanning the customer’s driver’s license and printed web reservation bar code. The next step? Heading to the car, where the keys await. There is a small staff onsite to help customers, but it’s largely a self-service operation.

Do you absolutely rock it when it comes to planning the perfect Disney World vacation for your family? Do you know all the ins and outs of the parks? Are you the kind of mom who annoys friends and family members with your Cliff Clavin-esque knowledge of the Disney experience?

Well, Disney wants to hear from you (even if your friends and family would rather you keep your know-it-all lectures to yourself). Walt Disney World Resorts is currently looking for a handful of experts to head up its new Walt Disney World Moms Panel, set to debut in January 2008. The online forum will feature everyday people who can offer real advice to other families planning their own Disney vacations. Winners also get a free trip to the park to “research” all the facilities and amenities before the forum launches.

Applications are due by Oct. 5, 2007. If you plan to apply, don’t wait until the deadline. Apparently, Disney is capping the number of applications it will accept at 10,000.

With Air Canada’s Flight Pass program, travelers can purchase credits for one-way flights to be used during the next calendar year. Travelers buy tickets at a fixed cost (which Air Canada says is about 30 percent less than it would cost to buy the tickets a la carte) and use them when they want to visit the destinations covered under their specific Flight Pass package.

So that’s the short tutorial. Here’s the news: Air Canada has beefed up the program with Sun Passes to U.S., Mexico and Caribbean destinations. Costs vary depending on the number of credits you purchase, number of travelers using the credits and the part of Canada you’ll be traveling to/from using your passes.

But for the sake of an example, you could purchase a six credit Central Canada Sun Pass for $2,394 (Canadian) that covers travel from cities in Ontario and Quebec to Florida, Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Bermuda and the Dominican Republic.

Okay, for those of you who actually want to stay in the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla. where the late Anna Nicole Smith last laid her head, you can kiss those lofty dreams goodbye. According to E! Online’s Ask the Answer Bitch column, the hotel has renumbered its rooms and does not allow guests to choose a specific room or room number when making reservations. Says the hotel’s spokesperson, “We’re not interested in creating a shrine for Anna Nicole.” After all, that would be Howard’s job…

It just got a little more expensive to visit Mickey. Walt Disney World increased its adult one-day, one-park pass to $71 over the weekend. That’s up from $67. This price increase comes only seven months after the last one, which went into effect in January.

Walt Disney World Hikes Ticket Prices

Been thinking about a Labor Day getaway this year? Expedia has some good deals up on hotels and air+hotel packages. Examples:

- Airfare + three nights in Kauai for $703

- Airfare + three nights in Orlando for $320

- Airfare + three nights in Myrtle Beach for $416

Obviously, you won’t be staying in luxury accommodations at these prices, but that’s not a priority for many travelers these days.

Expedia Labor Day Sale

Here’s a cute way to make your child’s first flight a little more fun: USA3000’s First Flight Certificate. The discount carrier offers them to children on its flights upon request. The airline flies to Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean from 15 U.S. cities (St. Louis, Chicago, Cincinnati, Columbus, Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Hartford, Philadelphia, Newark, Orlando, St. Petersburg, Ft. Myers and Ft. Lauderdale).

Well, they don’t call it the renovation special, but I will. Miami’s Fontainebleau is currently undergoing a $1 billion renovation project slated to reach completion next spring. The changes to the property mean the lagoon pool area (pictured above) will be closed this summer - and though we haven’t been there to check out the noise level, we can only imagine that a property undergoing such massive upgrades is going to have at least a moderate amount of construction activity on the premises. But the beach is steps away, and of course, the salt and sand averse can still hit the pool on the hotel’s 7th floor.

To woo guests for the summer season, the resort hotel has cut its regular rates. The best deal, according to yours truly, is the Sunday-Thursday Ocean View Studio Suite for $199/night. All suites on the property feature kitchens or kitchenettes, free wireless Internet access, 32″ flat screen TVs, separate bathtubs and showers and balconies. One-bedroom suites have two full bathrooms, separate living and dining areas and washer/dryers. Rates start at $189/night and go up from there depending on the water view and size of the room. You can easily see how the rates break down on the Reservations Page. I love it when hotels do this….

Also, available only for phone reservations, the property is offering a Third Night Free deal that, as you can probably guess, gives guests a third night for free when they book a two-night stay in a one- or two-bedroom suite for travel between July 1 and Sept. 30. For more about that deal, call 800-548-8886 and mention the promotion “Third.”

PlanetOut recently announced its 2007 Gay and Lesbian Travel Awards (sponsored by Travelocity). Drumroll puhlease. Here are a few of the winners:

– Destination of the year: Mexico

– Gay resort town: Provincetown

– Domestic destination: New York City

– International destination: Montreal

– Airline: American Airlines

– Cruise company: Cunard

– Hotel collection: Kimpton Hotels

– Gay resort: Island House Key West

– Tour operator**: Alyson Adventures

– Gay events: Amsterdam Gay Pride

P.S. The link above seems to be going to the 2006 awards, but hopefully they will update it soon with the latest winners….