It's Not Too Late To Get Away And Save

You can still find plenty of deals on end-of-summer or fall vacations.

- Patricia Esswein

Budget-minded travelers often plan their vacations months in advance so they can find the best deals. But if you’re yearning for a last-minute summer or early fall getaway, there’s good news: Fuel prices are relatively low, and you can find good deals on airfares, as long as you know where to look. You have more options for places to stay, too.

Kiplinger expects gas prices to run about the same this summer as last—fluctuating between a national average price per gallon of $2.80 and $2.85 through the summer months and declining a bit after Labor Day. Wild cards in the forecast include a hurricane disrupting refineries on the Gulf Coast, or OPEC and Russia failing to agree to maintain their current oil production quota. To plan your trip, budget for gas and find current gas prices along your route, use AAA’s TripTik Travel Planner (https:// triptik.aaa.com) or the AAA Mobile app (both are free, with a couple of features available to members only).