Cruises are a different matter.

I've stayed at that hotel, which is nicer than it sounds, and was about a 10-minute walk from the station and, thus, the Heathrow Express. The best nonstop fare I found using Kayak  10 days in advance was $1,259. The hotel was $1,713 that's for two people, which is a savings of more than $900 off the total package. Again, this deal may already be gone, but others will have taken its place.Look too at such sites as LivingSocial and even AmazonLocal. AmazonLocal offered a $5 coupon for up to 25% off a Virgin America flight. What made that especially sweet was that I had failed to book a ticket about eight weeks before the trip when Virgin had offered a fare sale. Booking three weeks out,Uyghur culture I saved one-quarter on the fare and felt less like a dolt for failing to follow the first rule of airfare booking: If you see a great fare, grab it.

For trips closer to home, check out Travelzoo . "We cater … to the user based on the geography," said Andrew Young, editorial director for the deal site. "If you're in L.A., you're more likely to see Palm Springs or San Diego than you are New Hampshire or Montreal or Bermuda."On Monday, Newport Beach's Balboa Bay Resort was offered for $199 a night usually $367, and the Las Vegas Palms Casino Resort was as little as $49 a night midweek stay and $59 weekend. The New York Hilton Midtown was offered for $179 a night with continental breakfast. If you can get a New York hotel for less than $200 a night, you're doing well.

We think of last minute that involves airfare as being very close to departure; that's not so with cruises, where last-minute rates might be as much as 90 days out. Travel agents often have news of great cruise bargains, china tour operators and you can also find them online in various places, which directed me to a Travelocity bargain for a seven-night Alaska cruise for a June 1-8 trip starting at $539 on Holland America's Oosterdam.The keys to last-minute travel remain the same no matter the mode: Be flexible on dates. Let price dictate the destination. And, perhaps most important, know a bargain when you see one by doing the math. See what a package would cost you if booked separately. Check out that hotel to see what it would charge you on any given night. Check a cruise fare by calling the cruise line.