By Joel L. Widzer

“It’s nice to see advice on how to travel inexpensively in style that doesn’t make you feel cheap.”
—Randall Curwen, Chicago Tribune

The first edition of The Penny Pincher’s Passport to Luxury Travel was hugely successful with readers who wanted to experience the joys of traveling in luxury on a budget. This completely revised second edition is full of new material and little-known secrets to help even the average person travel like the rich and famous…without being either.

The Penny Pincher’s Passport to Luxury Travel: The Art of Cultivating Preferred Customer Status (2nd Edition) provides a unique approach to travel that steers travelers away from no-frills journeys and points them toward the wonders of first-class accommodations and preferential treatment. The book explains, step-by-step, how to build relationships with airlines, hotels, and car rental agencies and turn these relationships into travel currency, discounts, and upgrades.

Reading this book can result in a superior travel experience: exceptional service and amenities, hotel and airline upgrades, and the sense of empowerment and freedom that comes from avoiding inhospitable employees and the annoying hassles regularly inflicted on the masses. Readers of The Penny Pincher’s Passport to Luxury Travel will become experts in navigating the confusing and often contradictory world of the tourism industry and gain the knowledge to turn their journeys into dream trips.

The Penny Pincher’s Passport to Luxury Travel provides readers with an intimate knowledge of the art of luxury travel, including;

  • The importance of building long-term relationships with elite travel companies
  • How and when to visit the most desirable destinations
  • The role frequent-user programs play and how to put the programs to work for you
  • How to travel against the grain using the “contrarian strategy”
  • How to avoid various travel scams
  • Finding the best methods for dealing with the labyrinth of airline and hotel rules, and much more.

Praise For The Penny Pinchers Passport to Luxury Travel

“For the penny pincher with a taste for luxury, here’s a book to study and absorb. Those shamelessly addicted to luxury travel will find plenty of food for thought and experiment.”—San Francisco Examiner

“It’s rare we feel compelled to recommend a travel book, but we can’t resist telling you about The Penny Pincher’s Passport. The guide makes a convincing case that even you can enjoy a more dignified style of travel—mainly by judiciously consolidating your travel business, however occasional and frugal, with a small universe of travel suppliers.” —The Washington Post

“The tips Widzer has can pay for the book at the first check-in counter you come to.”—Drew Griffin, CBS News

About the Author

Joel Widzer’s travels have taken him to more than sixty-four countries, logging over 125,000 miles a year, and accumulating more than 2 million frequent flyer miles. Joel has been interviewed about his innovative approach to travel by USA Today, Fortune Magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, The Washington Post, Money Magazine, Reuters, and has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, The Fox News Channel, Fine Living Channel, Inside Edition, and ABC, among others. Joel resides in Southern California. More information on Joel can be found at www.JetReady.com.

About Travelers’ Tales

Founded in 1993, Travelers’ Tales is currently marking ten years of excellence in travel publishing with the publication of The Best Travelers’ Tales 2004. By publishing the best travel writing from world-famous authors and new and emerging writers, the editors’ goal is to inspire and enlighten readers through true stories by travelers who have explored the depths of their experiences. The award-winning series includes: country and regional guides; books which explore the themes of women’s travel, spirituality, food, humor, and adventure; travel advice books; Footsteps: The Soul of Travel, a series of single-author travel narratives; and Travelers’ Tales Classics, a series which introduces out-of-print favorites of travel literature to a new audience.

Travelers’ Tales…the Power of a Good Story. TM

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The Penny Pinchers Passport to Luxury Travel: The Art of Cultivating Preferred Customer Status (2nd Edition)
By Joel L. Widzer
Travelers’ Tales, May 2004
$14.95 Trade Paperback, 316 pages, 5 1/8″ x 8″
ISBN: 1-932361-04-9