Most of us over here at the Kayak blog have big love for other travel blogs. When we’re not thinking about what to write and post here, it’s likely we’re checking out other travel blogs for inspiration - and entertainment. (We might also occasionally interrupt these activities to take care of, you know, that strange concept known as “real work.”)

This week, these were some of our favorite travel-related posts from around the web:

Check out the unit on that guy: Millimeter Wave images from the TSA blog

‘Cause even a vacation in Kansas is expensive these days: The Impact of Gas Prices on the Family Trip

Perrin Post comments on our comment in a post: Perrin Post Comments of the Week

How laptops have fun: The 2008 Hotel WiFi Chart

Um, not that any of us are geeks: Wired’s Travel Tips for Globetrotting Geeks

And you thought your last seat mate was weird: Hey Air Travelers, You Are Extremely Disgusting People

Because dogs rule (cats are okay, too): Pet Travel Ain’t Just for Noah, Anymore

Because you know you want to: How To Hang with Flight Attendants Off the Clock

How not to be an ugly American: The Problem with ‘Do You Speak English?’

What happens when Seymour Butts checks in: Crazy Hotel Workers Blog

With Mother’s Day on Sunday, Hillary’s run for the nation’s top job saturating our media outlets and the new issue of Budget Travel’s Girlfriend Getaways out on newsstands, it seems like a fine time for a juicy gab sesh about women’s travel.

I was perusing Peter Greenberg’s weekly Travel News Roundup this morning (one of my fave travel sites), and was inspired by 50 Best Girlfriend Getaways author Marybeth Bond’s Top 5 Tips for Women Travelers. Bond, who makes regular appearances everywhere from Oprah to National Geographic, offers some great, all-purpose tips for women on the road.

I’ve got some women’s travel tips of my own, courtesy of a month-long solo travel stint in Thailand, a backpacking excursion through Europe and Scandinavia and the better part of a year living in London with a house chock full of (too many) other chicks (love you girls, but you know I’m right). These may be a little too specific in some cases, but if it can happen to me…It can happen to you, too:

When in Rome: Should you ever find yourself shocked and appalled at the snooty ‘tude and up-turned nose on the Italian shoe saleswoman removing your sneakers to allow you to you try on a pair of way, way too expensive shoes in a posh shop on the Via Condotti, check the bottom of your sneaks. They just might be covered in dog poop. And you just might not have noticed. And this Italian woman in stilettos bending to take off your shoes might just not be as uppity as you think.

Spanish Steps: If it ever happens that you’re walking peacefully down a dark alley, late at night, on the “wrong side” of the Ramblas in Barcelona with your significant other, and a group of five seemingly innocuous, jovial and surprisingly friendly Spaniards approaches you, then try to engage the afore-mentioned significant other in a “football dance” celebrating the country’s recent sporting victory, they might be friendly, nice, football-crazed Spaniards. But they might also be trying to pickpocket your significant other. Which will be unfortunate, but will also sour the significant other on watching football for the rest of your vacation.

More after the jump….

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This week had almost too many good deals to choose just five, but somehow I managed. Here we go… in no particular order:

Ireland Summer Vacation & Air from $899 (Aer Lingus)
Seen on Frommer’s
You’ll save hundreds off booking this trip separately. This includes a flight to Shannon, and return from Dublin, a night at the swank Ritz-Carlton, and six nights at the Blarney Golf Resort. If you get tired of playing golf, you can tour the countryside in a full-size car (also included in the price).

$199 — NYC 4-Diamond Westin in Times Square (Westin New York)
Seen on Travelzoo
This hotel is really top-notch, even for New York. You’ll save over $100 on select stays through summer, and can even get discounts on upgrades to suites, spa, and club rooms.

Fly to London from $339, Stay 2 Nights FREE (British Airways)
Seen on Kayak
You might have seen this… it’s being advertised all over the place. You’ll get discounted flights through the peak season and get two nights at deluxe hotels in London for free. I’ve flown BA, and I can attest they treat their passengers right.

Escorted Tour of Peru from $1,069 - includes Air (Gate 1 Travel)
Seen on BookingBuddy
Just flying to Peru can cost as much as this entire package. You’ll see Lima and Cuzco, and this deal includes flights between cities, some meats. tours in a motor coach, and a lot more.

3- and 4-night Mexico Summer Cruises from $219 (Cruise Value Center)
Seen on Travel Ticker
If you’ve never taken a cruise, this is the perfect opportunity as these short sailing are enough to evaluate whether you’ll like it. They are also on Royal Caribbean ships that have great reputations. Some of these cruises also depart on Fridays, so you don’t even have to take a lot of time off work.

If there’s an airline miles promotion that every traveler from here to eternity and back again has heard about, it’s gotta be FTD.com’s miles-for-flowers promo. So when an email encouraging me to earn 25 miles for each dollar spent popped into my inbox from Northwest Airlines World Perks this morning, I started to dismiss it with a been there, done that click of the mouse. But then I thought, wait, this familiar promotion is reminding me of something important for anyone who travels these days: you can earn airline miles on almost anything you’d ever need or want to buy.

Whether you’ll actually be able to book award travel with them is another question. But first things first. You’ve got to have the miles to go places with them. And as someone who recently traveled from California to the Caribbean on a 30,000-mile award ticket, I can tell you that the days of getting good deals with your miles are hardly over.

Click through for 5 tips that will help you earn more miles on everything you buy.

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New York? Miami? San Francisco? Yes, please!

The bad news? You can only choose one city. But here’s the good news: you won’t be footing the bill. Leave that to Kayak.com, USA TODAY’s Today in the Sky and InterContinental Hotels and Resorts.

Through May 16, 2008, you can enter the Pick A Trip Sweepstakes by filling out a survey and selecting your preferred destination city. Winners will be contacted on or about May 19, 2008. So in two short weeks, you could be ramping up to hop a plane to one of these fab cities. For each city, one winner will receive round trip airfare up to $850 and a two-night stay for two at an InterContinental Hotel.

Good luck!

The 2008 Webby Award winners were announced today, and we were amped to learn that “the people” chose Kayak.com as the People’s Voice Winner in the travel category. Thanks, people! We like you, too.

And thanks to everyone who voted for us and to Kayak.com users everywhere. We’re honored and will do our best to keep up the good work.

Speaking of which, if you’ve got any feedback you’d like to send on your experience with the site, get in touch. Hearing from you makes us happy.

When a trip I’m taking involves more than 10 hours of travel time – not counting any unforeseen delays – I approach it much differently than a quick flight within the continental U.S. or one that takes me from coast to coast. Spending the better part of a day getting to and from a destination is taxing, but add an overnight leg to the journey, a lengthy layover or an impossibly long flight to the mix, and it’s easy to end up cranky, tired, hungry or bored to tears. But none of those things have to happen.

I recently took a trip that involved a five-hour red-eye followed by a six-hour layover and another three-hour flight, and the experience got me thinking about tips for travelers on long-haul journeys. Here’s a list of ideas to help you the next time you’re embarking on such an adventure:

1. Food: Bring it with you. Don’t count on the airline to provide anything except the seat you’re sitting in. I always pack granola bars and make a sandwich or pick up something post-security at the airport before boarding a plane. (And though this may sound like a small point, I’d recommend skipping extras like tomatoes, lettuce and other sog-inducing veggies. There’s nothing quite as depressing mid-flight as a squishy sammie with wet, disintegrating edges.)
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Just a quick note to let everyone know that the Checked Bag Airline Surcharge Chart has been updated to reflect the new policy at American Airlines (hey, it was only a matter of time…).

On Monday, the nation’s major carriers implement new fees for checked baggage (you can get the lowdown on which airlines are charging what fees with our Checked Bag Airline Surcharge Chart).

Not surprisingly, other travel companies are seeing the new fees as an opportunity to woo travelers with special luggage-related perks. Here are two:

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With sky-high gas prices nearing – and in some states exceeding – $4/gallon and the summer family travel season just around the corner, many North America hotels are offering travelers special incentives and deals to offset hefty fuel costs.

In recent years, gas cards have been the major perk of packages inspired by rising fuel costs – but this year, we’re happy to report that some hotels are sweetening the deal with free or discounted parking, too. We’ve rounded up a few of our favorites to help you stretch your vacation dollars. (And remember, to book these packages, you’ll have to make reservations directly through the hotel and mention the promotion at the time of booking. Be sure to ask about any other special restrictions while you’re at it):

Heading to Santa Barbara? Through June 30, 2008, the Hotel Mar Monte’s Tanks for the Memories package includes free valet parking and a $25 Chevron gas card for each night of your stay. Stay three consecutive nights, and the hotel will throw in an additional $10 card per night, which brings the total amount you’ll receive in gas cards to an impressive $105.

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