Smart Deal: Ireland Air and Car from $399

In keeping with our current trend of looking at airfares to show you how good a package deal can absolutely be, the savings on this smart deal from Aer Lingus is a real winner: $399 for round-trip airfare to Ireland, plus a car rental for a week.

If booked separately, the roundtrip airfare for travel to either Dublin or Shannon, from New York City in November, for example, starts anywhere between $700 and $900.

This fly-drive package is advertised as geared toward those who want to visit friends and family during the fall and around the holidays, so accommodations are not included. But even if you don't have a place to crash at night for free, Ireland is the land of the homey bed and breakfast, so a comfortable bed is possible from $69 per night (if you book through the Aer Lingus Vacation Store).

There's plenty to keep you busy, whether you fly into Dublin or Shannon. On the west coast of Ireland, not far from Shannon airport, take a jaw-dropping stop at the Cliffs of Moher. Drive north from Shannon to Galway, Ireland's most artsy city, and buy yourself a claddagh ring at the original makers of the famous jewelry from Ireland, Thomas Dillon's. Head south to the picturesque Dingle Peninsula and drive the lovely ring of Kerry. Both areas are chock full of architectural ruins, spectacular ocean views from rolling Irish countryside, and lots and lots of sheep.

Stays in or near Dublin can put you in striking distance of spooky-pagan-Celtic prehistoric monument, Newgrange. Make sure you spend at least a couple of days in Dublin city proper, to explore the Book of Kells at Trinity College, tread the path of James Joyce (and other scribes at the Dublin Writers Museum), and take in some live music and the craic at a local pub. That's an Irish term that loosely means the kind of convivial conversation and good time you are often easily able to encounter when visiting this very green, warm and friendly island.

Trip type: Air-inclusive, car rental
What the advertised price gets you: Roundtrip airfare from New York or Boston to either Dublin or Shannon (your choice); airline fuel surcharge; seven days of a manual, economy-class car rental.
What else you will have to pay: Up to $180 in government taxes and fees.
Book by: As soon as possible to ensure availability.
When: Select departures, Monday through Thursdays, starting November 1-December 16, 2010.
Other details: Aer Lingus also flies from Chicago, and departures from there for the same period start from $489. Departures other days of the week are available but will be more expensive; there are no blackout dates. Other gateways are also possible for an additional fee. Car rental upgrades are also available; inquire upon booking.