Sep 14, 2007
This autumn, it's Club Med for quick getaways to the tropics, provided you don't care where you're going
You won't always find these deals on the Club Med website, which is notoriously difficult to use. But if you phone tel. 888/932-2582 and tell the Club Med reservationist that you're looking for a bargain-priced three-night or four-night package anywhere in the Caribbean or nearby, you'll quickly be amazed at what you're told. Throughout the fall, the French resort company has an always-changing assortment of promotions, some including airfare, some without. Recently, last-minute, three-night all-inclusive getaways (but without airfare) to Punta Cana and Turks & Caicos were priced at $249 and $339 per person, respectively. Last-minute four-night all-inclusive packages to the deluxe Club Med resort on the Bahamas' Columbus Isle were priced at $799 per person, with airfare from Fort Lauderdale included. Just tell them you want to get away and don't care where.
As for your airfare there (if it's not included), look to the smaller carriers that aren't usually associated with the tropics. Spirit Airlines (tel. 800/772-7117; www.spiritair.com) flies to all-inclusive capitals like Punta Cana, Cancun, and Montego Bay, Jamaica; the always-growing JetBlue (tel. 800/538-2583; www.jetblue.com) now has service to Cancun, Aruba, Nassau, two airports in the Dominican Republic, and three airports in Puerto Rico; Frontier Airlines (tel. 800/432-1359; www.frontierairlines.com) flies from various U.S. airports to Mexican favorites like Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, and Cabo San Lucas; and USA 3000 (tel. 877/872-3000; www.usa3000.com), which used to be solely a charter carrier, now offers flights directly to consumers from several Midwest and northeastern cities to warm destinations like Cancun, Montego Bay, Punta Cana, Puerto Vallarta, Cozumel, and several Florida airports.
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Fifty years ago, 
Arthur Frommer is generally acknowledged to be the nation's foremost travel authority. He is the founder of the
