Photo illustration by Ryan Sodkrlin/DN
Classic spring-break destinations
should be crowded again in ‘97
ByMkeKluck
Senior Reporter
It’s back to the basics, as well as the beach,
for many spring breakers this season.
Despite the effort — or sometimes, lack of
effort — of other spring-break vacation spots,
the old favorites of South Padre Island, Texas;
Daytona Beach, Fla.; Cancun; and Jamaica re
main popular with many college students look
J Wft.gjto inttieain.
We haven t had anybody asking for any
thing new,” said Kristen Naber, Travel and
Transport Leisure TVavel consultant. “It’s the
same old places.”
Naber said places such as South Padre Is
land and Daytona Beach remain popular
spring-break destinations because they actively
pursue the college market.
The popularity of those places has attracted
more and more students from around the coun
try.
‘Those places really cater to the spring
break crowd,” said Terri Johnson, manager of
Lincoln Travel. “Each year it’s kind of the same
because college kids want to run into other col
lege kids. A lot of times, spring breakers want
to be around a lot of people, especially ones
who are partying and having fun.
“Those crowds have also attracted other
business. MTV likes to come there and do
shows where there are a lot of people.”
Caribbean comeback
Loreen McCardle, sales manager of Sun
Splash Tours, said Jamaica and Cancun have
become popular among spring breakers within
the last five years because of the low cost.
But they have also put a lot of effort into
-inviting the spring break crowd.
Naber said her company offers charters to
Cancun, which can range anywhere from $450
to $700.
McCardle said Sun Splash Tours offer dif
ferent packages, which cover everything includ
ing air fare, hotel, meals and gratuities. Those
packages are popular with college students be
cause everything is paid for before they leave.
“With those type of trips, the students can
operate on a set budget and not go beyond what
they want to spend,” McCardle said. “A base
rate for Jamaica starts at $399. But there are
also plans which include the admission for par
ties aid events while there.”
Despite the low costs to Cancun and Ja
maica, Johnson said many places in the 48 con
tiguous states still remain popular because they
are drivable.
Scoping the slopes .M and more
Johnson and<Naber both said they haven’t
received any requests on information for spring-"
break skiing packages. Usually, spring break
ers from Nebraska who want to go skiing drive
to the ski area and pick up discounts when they
arrive. -
Even with the mainstay popularity of
Daytona Beach and South Padre Island, some
new places are being requested by spring break
ers, Johnson and Naber said.
Naber said she has received spring-break
information for New Orleans, while Johnson
has given out a lot of information on trips to
Orlando, Fla.
She said people who travel to Orlando can
accomplish both the enjoyment of going to the
beach as well as seeing the theme parks.
“It kind of depends on where you stay at,”
Johnson said. “There are budget properties ev
erywhere down there. You can do the Disney,
thing or get outside of town and go more to the
beaches and do the Daytona thing.”
Another popular destination with the older
spring-break crowd is Las Vegas, Naber and
Johnson said.
Last year, air fare for a three- to four-day
cruise was about as cheap as going skiing. But
this season the cruise industry is avoiding the
spring-break crowd like a hurricane.
“The cruise industry has raised the age limit
so you have to have a least one person 25 years
old in the cabin,” Naber said. “Many times all
passengers, except for families with their chil
dren, and honeymooners, need to be over 25.”
Although spring break is less than two
months away, Johnson said there are still some
popular and good packages available.
“But I would suggest you get started pretty
quickly booking your trip,” Johnson said.
Getting there is half the fun
when planning transportation
By Heidi White
Staff Reporter
When planning a trip for spring break, stu
dents may spend most of their time thinking
about where they want to go, but also how
they’re going to get there.
Angie Kettler, a customer service represen
tative for Budget Rent-A-Car, said although
many students rent cars for their spring break
trips, there are some restrictions to consider.
Budget Rent-A-Car requires renters to be
at least 21 years old and have a major credit
card. For those under 25, there is an extra $12
charge. Renters under 25 cannot let anyone else
drive the car, she said.
Another limitation is that no rental cars can
pass the border to Mexico, but they could prob
ably go to Canada, Kettler said.
At Rent-Sum-Wheels, some of the same
restrictions apply.
Branch manager Ron Martin said Rent
Sum-Wheels also does not rent to drivers un
der 21, but carries no extra charges for those
under 25. Cars rented must stay within the con
tinental United States.
Rose Sheridan said Avis Car Rental’s poli
cies are more strict than other local agencies.
The rental sales agent said Avis will only
rent to students under 25 who work for the
university and rent under their group plan.
At most agencies, insurance coverage is
strongly recommended when renting a car.
Kettler advises renters to call their own in
surance agents ahead of time to see if their poli
cies cover them while driving rentals.
If renters aren’t covered already, Kettler said
paying for the agency’s own insurance would
be a good idea. At Budget Rent-A-Car, $15 a
day would relieve the renter of any responsi
bility for the car, she said.
“Weird stuff can happen. One lady even
drove a Neon into the Rio Grande River,”
Kettler said.
Students planning transportation for spring
break should think about the time it takes to
reach their destinations along with rental re
strictions, Chananne Flepicka, office manager
at Adventure Travel said.
Flepicka said a lot of students aren’t rent
ing cars because they are under 25, and they
only stay at their destination for average of three
or four nights. This makes flying a better op
tion, she said.
Train transportation is also not as popular
as it used to be because of the time factor,
Flepicka said.
Riggert, a leisure travel associate for Omni
Travel Inc., said a lot of students take charter
flights to destinations that are big spring break
sites.
Most of these flights leave out of Kansas
City, Mo., or Omaha, she said, and head to
ward places like Cancun, Daytona Beach, Fla.
and South Padre Island, Texas.
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