If there's one thing that gets our attention quicker than a resort’s lure of "kids stay free,” it’s a discount of 50% or better. Dream Resorts, with 11 hotels in Mexico and the Dominican Republic, is extending a version of its Winter Escapes deal into the spring and early summer (and then rolling it out again in the fall). Kids 12 and under stay free and, thanks in part to a resort credit, the savings are advertised to be as much as 50% off regular rates.

The Dreams line of all-inclusive resorts look plenty family friendly, with a focus on activities and with rates that include all your basic meals and beverages, as well as admission to the kids’ club. We looked the closest at Baja-based Dreams Los Cabos, which boasts ocean views from every room and offers three pools (one just for kids), golf, a spa and a roster of activities that includes archery, beach volleyball, movies on the beach, soccer, yoga, "monster" chess and basketball, and even cooking and cocktail classes. Its complimentary Explorer Club is for kids ages 3 to 12. With a minimum three-night stay, the Winter Escape package includes:

• lodging for two adults (normally starting at $481/night x 3 nights = $1,442 ) 
• kids 12 and under stay free (normally $73/child x 3 nights x 2 kids = $438)
• $200 in resort credit, which can be used on spa treatments, special dining, and wine
  

We test-booked a three-night stay for a family of four in early June at the Dreams Los Cabos. If booked without the Winter Escape package, the stay would cost $1,880 for two adults and two children in a junior suite. For the same dates, we found a Winter Escape rate of $372 a night for a family of four in a junior suite, or 1,116 for the three-night stay—a hefty 40% savings.

Then there's that $200 resort credit, which seems like such a great bonus until you try to use it. As it turns out, you can only cash it in for situations where you’ll be spending a bundle, and rules abound. For instance: You can use up to $100 worth of coupons at the spa, but only if you buy three separate treatments (a 50-minute massage starts at $125). Or you can use $60 in credit on “romantic dining” (a special dinner for two on the beach, normally $250) and $40 for wine (though you can only use it $10 at a time). 

Deal or no deal? A great value, even if it doesn't quite live up to its promise of 50% savings. We hate that the $200 resort credit is a classic spend-to-save "gotcha." But even so, it’s hard to complain about kids staying free at an all-inclusive.

The Kids Stay Free/Winter Escape deal is good for stays from May 1 through June 25 and again from August 28 through December 23. When booking online, look for the Winter Escape heading over rates, or mention the Kids Stay Free/Winter Escape deal when calling 866/237-3267.

While some of the resorts are more grown-up-geared (or even adults-only), we were intrigued by the special offer promising up to 40% off at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach, which seems to be the most kid-friendly of the bunch. The 324-room resort is cut into a hillside and offers three pools (including a kids’ pool with sandy-beach entry), a kids club, spa and beach access (though it's a non-swimming beach). The special offer includes:

• Airfare for four to Los Cabos on Alaska Airlines ($266/person if booked on Orbitz)
• Lodging for two adults and two kids under 12 in a junior suite (published rate is $260/night)

When we test-booked the special offer for a three-night stay in April, departing from Southern California, the package rate came to $1,951. But the Pueblo Bonito website didn't break down prices for hotel and airfare, so it was impossible to know where—or if—there were savings. To get around that, we test-booked hotel-only rates for the same dates, and found a rate of $195—which is 25% off the published “rack rate” of $260.  We can assume that the airfare portion of this package came to at least $300 per person.

Next, we shopped around independently to find the best prices for the air and hotel components, with mixed results. On Kayak.com, for example, we found a rate of $265 a night for the hotel ($5 more than the rack rate), or $957 for three nights after taxes and fees. Meanwhile, on Orbitz we found four roundtrip tickets from San Diego on Alaska Airlines for $266 apiece, which came to $1,064. The total for this vacation when booked independently came to $2,021—$70 more than Pueblo Bonito’s special offer.

But keep in mind that if you paid the $260-a-night rack rate at this hotel and booked your airfare through Orbitz, you could get this three-night vacation for $2,104. So the air+hotel special offer saves you only $153, or a measly 7%. 

The best deal of all came when we paired the hotel's room-only rate of $195 a night with airfare from Orbitz. With that combination, the vacation price came down to $1,649. That's more than $300 cheaper than the package rate!

Deal or no deal? Don't pack your sunscreen just yet. The package didn't come anywhere near a 40% savings in our test. This is a reminder to always do your own own test-booking on any package that includes airfare, just to make sure you're really getting the best deal from your home airport. 

The spring specials are good through May 31. You can book online from either the specials page or the main reservations page on Pueblo Bonito's website. If booking by phone, call 888/205-3315 and ask for the Spring Specials for either air+hotel or hotel alone.

The packages focus on stays at the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel in Williams, Arizona, just east of Flagstaff. The 287-room hotel is next to the train depot and is a short walk from downtown Williams and Route 266; it also has an indoor pool, hot tub, and playground. The roundtrip train ride—using restored railroad cars, some dating back to the 1920s—takes about two hours each way, and gives you about four hours to explore at the Grand Canyon’s South Rim before heading back.  The Railway Express Plus packages are available for one or two nights, with or without meals. They include:

• One or two nights at the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel (usually $109/night this time of year)
• Round trip for four on the Grand Canyon Railway ($70/adult x 2 + $40/child under 12 x 2 = $220)
• Optional: Breakfast and dinner buffets at the Grand Depot Café ($92/day)
  
• Entry to the Grand Canyon (usually $16 for four people)

The best deal of all, though is the one-night, no-meals version of this package, which comes to $219 for four. You're basically getting the hotel for free and a dollar shaved off the train tickets to boot—for a true 50% off your total. Note that if you add in the meals, you're paying exactly $92 more—what you'd pay anyway for meals, so there's no savings.

Deal or no deal? No matter which deal you choose, you're guaranteed at least 20% savings. If you want to ramp up to 50% savings, skip the buffets. The meal add-on is not discounted, so opting for the no-buffet version is the way to go. Bonus: You won't be tied to a single eatery, so you can eat where you like.

All versions of this package are good for travel through March 14. You can book online or by calling 800/843-8724 and asking for the Railway Express packages.  Note: There is a strict payment and cancellation policy. You pay in full when you book and can modify your reservation up until the day before you travel, though you may have to pay more if you change to a more expensive date. There is no refund if you cancel within 72 hours.

Even without a package, spring is a great time to visit The Broadmoor, since rates are about 50% less than you'd encounter during the summer peak period. The Spring Break Getaway starts at $170 a night for a standard room, and includes free meals for kids and other discounts.

• Accommodations (usually $180/night this time of year)
  
• Kids under 10 eat free ($42/day x 2 kids = $84 value)
• 50% off adult admission to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo (50% of $14.25/adult x 2 adults = $14.25 value)
• 15% off select retail
• Free “serenity shower” or tub soak at the spa when you spend at least $100 on other services ($35 if bought on its own, or $15 if you bought with another spa service)

Most of these perks amount to window dressing, since they come at a cost. To take advantage of the retail and spa discounts, for example, you'll need to spend quite a bit to save a little. After the 50% discount on adult zoo tickets, a family of four will spend $28.75 on admission and save $14.25.

The big savings comes from the free kids' meals. Items on the kids’ menu at the hotel's half-dozen particpating restaurants range from $8.50 to $21 per entree,  and the daily breakfast buffet for kids ages 4 to 10 is $12.

For a three-night stay booked without the package, a family of four would normally spend $540 on the room; $252 on kids' meals (if they ate every meal at the hotel); and $43 on zoo tickets (if they desired). The total comes to $835, before adding in adult meals, taxes, and so on.

If the same family booked a three-night stay with the package, their spend would come to $510 for the room and kids' meals plus $28.75 for zoo tickets. The total comes to $538.75, before adult meals and taxes. This translates to a hefty 35% in savings.

Deal or no deal?  This is a good deal from the get-go, since the package price beats the regular room rate by ten bucks. But it's those free kids' meals that really make this special a super deal.

Need a rental car for Presidents' Day weekend—or any other weekend through May?  Enterprise Rent-A-Car is running a 50%-Off Special for weekend rentals through May 21. The deal applies to three- to five-day rentals and on cars ranging from economy to full size—though alas, no super-kid-friendly SUVs or minivans. The only real drawback we see is that the deal doesn’t apply to any airport locations.

When we checked in San Diego, the deal was available at most area locations, including tourist-friendly Old Town. And it's hard to argue with the savings. For the upcoming Presidents' Day weekend, a full-size car was going for a regular rate of $43 a day at one of San Diego’s downtown locations, but only $20 a day in Old Town, a short trolley ride away.

To book the deal, start on the specials page, punch in your city and dates, and look for the orange “special” button next to participating locations. The discount is good through May 21, and doesn’t apply to charges such as taxes or the damage waiver.

For most of March and part of April, the resort is tossing out the following spring-training deals:

• Spring Training Survival: One-night package starting at $219 a night, including a $25 resort credit, plus peanuts, bottled water and a hat or banner for the game
• L.A. Dodgers or Chicago White Sox Spring Training: Two-night packages start at $399, including two tickets (worth $56) to a Dodgers or White Sox game

Impressively, these deals hit home runs. When we tested the basic Spring Training package with several travel dates, the package rate compared favorably to a low regular rate of $269. Factor in the $25 resort credit that you’ll probably use for breakfast and the package delivers a 27% savings. Note that this package does not include game tickets.

For the two-night packages, the $399 price tag averages out to $200 a night, which is already significantly lower than the lowest regular rate of $269. Once you factor in the value of the free game tickets, you're looking at a 36% savings on the room plus two tickets. Granted, a family of four would still have to buy two more tickets.

One caveat: We noticed that the last few days of March and April were already booked up at the Wigwam, but the rest of the spring-training season still had a lot of availability at press time.

The packages are good for travel through April 15. If booking by phone, call 623/935-3811 and mention the Spring Training Specials. If booking online, use the following promo codes: 0310STSurvival for the basic Spring Training Package; 0310DodgersST for the Dodgers package; 0310WhiteSoxST for the White Sox package.

Nothing rankles like paying top dollar for a hot dog and carrot sticks when staying at a resort, so the promise of free kids' meals is always tempting. Through the Marriott’s Escape! Family package, the Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Miami is offering free kids' meals for most of this year.

The 650-acre resort has plenty of family-friendly features, such as a waterpark with three pools and a 125-foot waterslide, Nickelodeon character breakfasts on weekends, and five championship golf courses. Golf may not seem like an obvious kid magnet, but here kids ages 6 to 15 can golf for free after 3 pm with a paying adult. 

The Doral's Escape package—starting at $199 on weeknights and $279 on weekends during this winter and spring—includes a room and three free kids meals a day for up to three kids 12 and under. (Note: most Marriott properties offering the Escape package let up to four kids eat free.)  To find out if this is a good deal for families, we priced out a three-night, Friday-Monday stay for a family of four in late February:

• accommodations in a garden-view room (using Marriott’s beginning “leisure rate” of $259/night x 3 nights =$777)
• free kids’ menu meals ($25/child x 2 kids x 3 nights = $150)

Deal or no deal? Bring on the chicken fingers. For these—and most—dates we checked, the leisure rate was virtually the same as the Escape rate, meaning that those kids' meals are indeed free, as advertised. For a three-night stay, it works out to a savings of about $150. The deal beat even the advance-purchase, no-refund rate, which was typically only $20 cheaper and did not include the free kids' meals.

Escape! Family package rates are available for stays through October 24. Use promotional code MAJ when booking online, or mention the Escape! Family deal when calling 800/713-6725. 

If you stay between February 14 and 19 and share the last name of any of our 44 presidents, you can get a room for just $99 a night. (If you need a refresher on those Presidential names—listen up, you Polks, Pierces and Fillmores—check out this White House list.) This is a nice boon for a huge swath of commonly-named folks—so heads up, all you Johnsons, Jacksons, Harrisons,  Tylers, Fords, and Wilsons.

But what if your driver's license says McCain, Kerry, or Willkie? These names—and any other non-Oval Office monikers—will still score a rate between $129 and $179 during the entire month of February. Even for a Dukakis, this is a solid deal, with savings ranging from 28 to 40% compared to starting rates in March ($179) and April ($224). February temperatures in this part of Texas are pretty mild, with typical highs in the 60s.

The 7,000-acre resort—set on the shores  of Lake LBJ, and offering four pools, a kids' club, three golf courses, water sports and even Andy Roddick junior-sized tennis courts—is an easy drive from the first Texan president’s memorial, the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Park. (The ranch of No. 43, meanwhile, is a little further away, in Crawford.) Horseshoe Bay even has its own small private airport, if you want to land your own version of Air Force One.

Use promo code HOL when booking online or call 877/611-0112. Assuming you're lacking a Secret Service detail, be prepared to show ID upon check-in to prove you’re a Grant or a Garfield.

Lots of ski resorts promise free lift tickets for kids, but as we preach over and over, you always have to do the math to see if "free" really means free. Keystone Resort  in Colorado is offering a Kids Ski Free  package through April. Here’s how it works: Book a package that includes four weeknights of lodging in a two-bedroom condo and three-day adult lift tickets, and you'll get free lift tickets for kids 12 and under (one child per paying adult). The resort advertises that packages start at $229 a night, though that package rate goes up after February 11. When we test-booked the package for a late-January trip, here’s how it broke down:

• 4 nights lodging in a 2–bedroom condo at Evergreen Condos (normally $183/night x 4 nights = $732)
• 3-day lift tickets (for our dates, normally $231/adult x 2 + $111/child x 2= $684 for a family of four)

Deal or no deal? Alas, the kids aren't really skiing for free—the package just hikes up your lodging price to essentially cover the cost of the kids' lift tickets.  So forget the package. Your best bet would be to book a one-bedroom condo, which typically offer ample space for a family of four and a sofabed for the kids. For the dates we tested, one-bedroom condos ran $143 a night—which would bring your total spend for lodging and lift tickets to $1,256. That's 9% cheaper than booking the package, and 11% cheaper than booking a two-bedroom stay on your own.

No doubt about it, Keystone is laying on the kid-friendly fun this winter. The resort is hosting five different weeks of “Kidtopia,” during which you'll find a long list of activities (many free), such as “disco tubing,” glowstick ski parades down the mountain, live music, and sessions of arts and crafts. If you visit after February19, kids can explore the new Ultimate Snow Fort, which will feature a snow dragon, drawbridge, and lookout tower. And to sweeten the pot for any dates, Keystone will also toss in a free Adventure Passport, which gets you freebies or discounts on activities such as snowbiking, ice skating, sleigh rides, snowshoe tours and—especially nice for the parents—yoga classes and margarita, wine, or martini tastings.

The Kids Ski Free package is available now through April. Kidtopia dates are February 11-16 and 18-21, March 15-21, and April 1-6. Use the link when booking online, or mention Kids Ski Free when calling 888/222-9285.

This winter is turning out to be a great time for a weekend getaway, thanks to big sales at two of the largest hotel chains. Last week we posted about Hilton's mega January sale, which offers winter weekend savings of up to 33% across its chains. 

Now Marriott has stepped up to the plate with a  Global Rate Break promo that lets you save 20% on weekend rates stay at many of its hotels—and claims to up the ante to a 40% discount at a few resorts. The deal applies to various Marriott, JW Marriott, Renaissance, Courtyard, Fairfield, SpringHill, Residence Inn, and TownPlace Suites hotels all over the world. 

We checked rates at several properties and found that, indeed, the deal typically delivers a 20% price cut. At Desert Springs, the JW Marriott in the Palm Springs area with requisite pool, lawn games and kids club, we found rates of $327 a night for a room with two beds and a balcony—down from the desert’s high season rate of $409. In Hawaii, the deal offered up the Kauai Marriott  for just $194 a night, down from $240.

But don’t get your hopes too high on the 40%-off lure that's said to be available at select resorts in the Caribbean, Latin America and Hawaii. When we test-booked a stay at a handful of properties for a February weekend getaway, we couldn’t find any availability at the 40%-off rate.  More commonly, we found that this deal led to a 20% discount.

The sale applies to weekend stays (Thursday to Sunday), and some hotels require a two-night minimum. You must book by January 22 and complete your stay by March 21. Use promo code F5X when booking online.