I t finally feels like summer — and the calendar makes it official today.

It’s the time of year Albertans like to plan a holiday, be it two weeks on the beach in Maui or a road trip to Kelowna with the kids.

The good news, say travel agents, is that stable gasoline prices and scores of deals on hotels, food and entertainment have put the summertime getaway in reach of almost every budget.

Consumers — driven by optimism in the recovering economy — are expected to take to the skies and hit the highways in larger numbers this summer, industry reps say.

If high unemployment and fragile finances kept people at home in 2009, they feel more comfortable taking a vacation in 2010, according to Flight Centre spokeswoman Allison Wallace.

“Consumer confidence is back. Bookings are up, there’s phenomenal prices and we’re seeing a lot more inquiries.”

Travel is trendy, again, but luxury and frills are not. in a bid to draw families still reeling from the recession, many airlines, hotels and car rental agencies are offering bargains to shake the economic hangover.

Only last week, WestJet Airlines slashed average full-price tickets by up to 25 per cent.

Rival Air Canada is promoting a variety of sell-off fares and summer specials to places like California.

The idea is to appeal to price-sensitive consumers who might need extra incentive to take a holiday, say travel agents.

“Leisure travel is back, no question,” said Andrew Hopkyns, AMA Travel’s director of business development. “The deluxe stuff tends to come back first, but the middle class is a little slower — the price has to be right.”

It’s one of the reasons bargains are so plentiful this summer.

Take Orlando: Calgary families looking for a kid-friendly vacation can book a return flight, stay a week in a hotel and even score free transportation to Disney World, Universal Studios or SeaWorld for $299 a person plus taxes as part of a limited-time package offered by Flight Centre.

“Where we are seeing the great deals is Hawaii, Mexico and, funny enough, Orlando, even though it’s not near the oil spill,” said Wallace.

Want an adult-only weekend in Sin City instead? five hundred dollars could snag you airfare, accommodations in a four-star hotel and Cirque du Soleil tickets.

The most popular destination of all this summer might be Europe, in part because of Greece’s economic crisis and its impact on the euro.

“It’s primarily currency driven because the euro and the pound have really sunk,” said Hopkyns.

“Europe is hot and the deals are out there.”

Just ask the Walker family: Rachael, John and daughters Olivia and Kate are kicking off their summer holidays with a bargain getaway to the United Kingdom to visit family.

After careful research, John found a last-minute, one-way flight from Calgary to Manchester for only $49 plus taxes.

The Walkers plan to use the money they saved on airfare to shop and visit attractions overseas. “We like to get a good deal,” said Rachael.

“I think we saved more than a thousand dollars compared to last year.”

Travel industry counting on deals to lure Albertans

As any frequent flier knows, racking up free airlines miles is easy. Cashing them in for a cheap winter ski trip or maybe a quick jaunt to Europe — well, that’s a different matter altogether.

Unless you love the tropics in mid-summer or have reason to travel to Akron, Ohio, any time of the year, turning those accumulated miles into free travel is getting tougher and tougher.

“The biggest pain in trying to use your miles is finding a set of days that you can actually go where you want to go,” said Chris Lopinto, president of ExpertFlyer.com, a website that tracks seat availability and fares. “All the airlines want to do is to get you to buy a ticket for the highest price.”

Travel experts say there are a couple of strategies that can help. the best bet is to be as flexible as possible about the day and time you are willing to travel. planning a trip months in advance and booking far ahead also help. Airlines add new flights to their schedules 11 months out, so the earlier you book the better.

Several websites also have sprung up to help travelers track down what seats and flights are available. and thanks to a change in accounting rules, airlines now have a greater incentive to get unused miles off their books, which could loosen things up a bit. If you’re looking for help, here are a couple of websites you might consider, some of which charge for their services:

• ExpertFlyer.com and MileageManager.com. Similar to Google alerts, both sites alert users to the latest deals that match their desired travel itinerary. ExpertFlyer tracks up to 28 airlines, including Delta, American. Alaska, Hawaiian and Air Canada, among others. MileageManager allows users to input up to five different travel plans on 10 airlines, such as American, British Airways and Continental. Both sites come with a price. after a free trial period, MileageManger is $14.95 a year and ExpertFlyer is $9.99 a month.

• StarAlliance.com, oneWorld.com and SkyTeam.com. all three sites show airlines that partner with others and may have frequent-flier seats available. Miles earned on Continental, for example, may be redeemable on one of the dozen or so StarAlliance members, and vice versa.

Flying high: How to get the most out of your free air miles