'Tis the season for shopping and school concerts and holiday parties and frazzled nerves.  If the crazies have hit and you're dreaming about an escape, listen up:  Hilton Hotels is running The December Sale, which promises savings of up to 33% at participating Hilton properties around the globe when you book by New Year's Day and stay before January 8, 2012.

Turns out that "savings of up to 33%" doesn't mean you'll always be able to chop a third off your hotel bill. When we test-booked the offer at two family-friendly properties, we found actual savings hovering closer to 20%. At the Embassy Suites Washington D.C. at the Chevy Chase Pavilion, which boasts a location directly on the Metro Red Line, a two-bedroom suite runs $127 a night, which is a savings of 20% off the best available nightly rate of $159.  Want something warmer? Take a look at the Grand Vacation Suites at Sea World.  At that all-suite resort, we found December Sale nightly rates that were also 20% less than the best available rate: $119 for a one-bedroom suite and $199 for a two-bedroom suite (compared to best available rates of $149 and $249, respectively).    

As always, there's plenty of fine print. The rates are non-refundable, full payment is due at the time of booking, there's a seven-day advance purchase requirement, and blackout dates may apply. Book online or call 800/HILTONS.

Racking your brain for the perfect present for a special family? Consider giving the gift of travel.

We're giving away a $500 gift certificate for Tauck Bridges, the leader in guided family travel. Tauck is known for putting together inclusive, fun family vacations for every age to enjoy together in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Africa. Tauck Bridges family travel adventures are all about shared enrichment and inclusive value, meticulously planned and seamlessly orchestrated so all vacation plans and details are handled for you so your family enjoys ease of family travel.

To enter, visit our Facebook page. You can enter through December 17, 2011.

Santa, baby, how about sticking a family vacation under the tree? We've rounded up a selection of great Black Friday travel sales that can help the big guy score a great deal.

• CheapCaribbean.com is offering discounts of up to $500 per person on Caribbean packages that include airfare. Sale ends Sunday.
• Orbitz is offering 50% savings at popular hotels in destinations such as Orlando, San Diego, New York, Miami and Hawaii. Sale runs through Monday.
  
• Shell Vacations Hospitality's Black Friday special lets you save 50% on vacations at its 23 family resorts in the US, Canada and Mexico.
  
• DirectAir is having a BOGO sale for Black Friday: Buy one ticket, get one free! Good for airfare through September 2012.
• Norwegian Cruise Line's sale includes a credit of up to $250 to spend on the ship.
• BookIt.com's Black Friday specials promise savings of up to 70% on vacations to Florida, Mexico and the Caribbean.
• Funjet's Black Friday weekend sale showcases the 10 best deals of the season, promising big savings on vacations in Mexico, the Caribbean, Hawaii and Las Vegas when you travel through February 6, 2012.
• Sterling Resorts is holding its annual blowout sale, with savings of up to 60% on condos at popular beach resorts along Florida's Gulf Coast.
• Heading off on a Disney vacation next year? Buy your souvenirs now at the Disney Store and save 50% on top of 20%! Use promo code THANKS.
• In Southern California, save 35% through Monday at the plush Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes.
• Like to ski? Liftopia.com's sale runs through Monday and offers up to 81% off lift ticket packages for your next ski vacation.
• There will be a new deal every hour at Yuupon.com, with savings of up to 90% (no, that's not a typo) on vacations to destinations all over the world. Sign up for their e-mail alerts for an advance schedule of the hourly sales.

In my latest Ask the Expert column, a reader is looking for a great deal on a Disney Cruise. It turns out that she has great timing, thanks to a few new developments at Disney Cruise Line that make it a great time to snag a cruise for less in 2012. For starters, Disney Cruise Line has added several new home ports, which makes it easier (and cheaper) for millions of families to drive to the ship instead of having to fly. In addition, Disney has a couple of excellent special offers on the table for sailings in late 2011 and early 2012. For more information, see Ask the Family Travel Expert: 4 Ways to Save on a Disney Cruise.

IHG, a group of seven hotel brands from upscale InterContinental to the raft of family-friendly Holiday Inn properties, has introduced what is essentially a rebate program for guests this summer.  The "Vacation Pay" promo promises a $75 prepaid MasterCard when you stay two consecutive weekend nights at any of IHG's 4,400 worldwide properties before August 31.  Participating chains include InterContentental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Holiday Inn, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites.

Up to four rebates are permitted per household, so you could get back as much as $300.   There are some hoops to jump through (registering, filling out and mailing forms, etc.) but if you have plans to travel this summer and don't mind the legwork, you could enjoy a tidy windfall. 

Hotel deals that include breakfast are often a decent value—but be careful; sometimes you're really paying an inflated rate for some cold eggs.

The Hilton Garden Inn is tempting our inner pancake addict, however, with its summer Great Getaway promotion, which promises 15% off its regular Bed & Breakfast rate at US properties—and up to 40% off those B&B rates if you're traveling overseas.

The promo includes breakfast for two and kids 12 and under eat free. The only catch? You have to completely pre-pay your hotel bill, with no freedom to cancel or change your dates.

When we checked out some July dates in a few US cities, we did find a consistent 15% price break. In Savannah, Georgia, for instance, we found  a Hilton Garden Inn in the historic district—with a heated pool and a location just three blocks from the fried chicken and gravy at TV chef Paula Deen’s restaurant. With the offer, you could get a B&B rate of $119 a night for a room with two queens, which is a 16% break on the usual $141 B&B rate. The regular rate, meanwhile, was just $137 a night—which makes the B&B rate a great deal all on its own, since it includes breakfast for four for a whopping $4. Here's a case, if you don't want the restrictions of that advance-purchase, where the B&B rate is happily the best rate on its own. 

To take advantage of this promo, you must book at least 14 days in advance of your stay and travel by September 5, 2011.  Click on the Great Getaway box on the booking page, or mention the deal when calling the individual hotel's reservation line.

We've all been seduced by the promise of a rebate—only to have that unmailed rebate form wither away on the to-do pile until the promotion expires. But here's a vacation rebate offer worth making a priority: The InterContinental Hotels Group—which includes InterContinental, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo,  Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites—is offering a “Vacation Pay” promotion that rewards guests for weekend stays. Here's how it works: You stay at any of the 4,400 partipating hotels for  two consecutive weekend nights  (Friday, Saturday or Sunday). Afterward, you fill out a rebate form and Hoilday Inn will send you a $75 MasterCard gift card. You can use the two-night deal up to four times, to receive a max of $300 in rebates. 

The nice thing about a big-brand promo like this: The options are massive, running the gamut from the luxurious to the super-budget, and when searching destinations you can add sorting features such as hotels with pools, free meals for kids, or the company's family-friendly Kid Suites.

And while a $75 rebate for two nights only works out to a theoretical $37.50 discount each night, that can make a decent dent, depending where you stay. In Boston, for instance, the Intercontinental goes for about $360 a night in summer but we also found a Holiday Inn Express with easy access to downtown and Fenway Park, for $153 a night—where $37.50 amounts to a 25% discount. In Los Angeles we found the retro-hip-looking  Holday Inn Universal Studios - Hollywood—near the theme park, the  Hollywood Walk of Fame and Grauman’s Chinese Theater—with a rate of $239 a night for a Kids Suite, which features  a partitioned area with bunk beds, games and a DVD/CD player (regualr room rates start at $204 a night). 

The rebate is available for weekend stays through August 31, 2011. You can book online or call hotels individually, after completing the registration page; next, you you download a rebate form from IHG’s online rebate center, and mail it in after your stay. 

How to enter: For a chance to win a set of three 1.25-oz. GoToob bottles:

1. Like WeJustGotBack.com on Facebook. You've already liked us? Then you're good.

2. Add your best family vacation photos to WeJustGotBack.com's photo gallery by posting them in our Flickr group. (If you don't have a Flickr account, you can create one for free once you have a free Yahoo! account.)

You'll get one entry for every photo you post, not to mention the satisfaction of seeing your prized photos on WeJustGotBack.com's vacation photo gallery pages. Be sure to tag your pics with keywords such as location (city, state, country).

Enter until Saturday, March 19 at 5pm.

Three winners will be selected by our panel of judges (a.k.a. our illustrious staff) from all valid entries soon after 5pm on Saturday, March 19, 2011. To enter, you must be at least 21 years old and a legal resident of the United States or Canada. Good luck!

The idea of getting a connecting hotel room for the kids can mean the difference between a trip and an actual vacation—room for everyone to have their own space, downtime TV shows and age-appropriate bedtime hours.

Granted, the “luxury” of that second room can be cost-prohibitive. The Vancouver Four Seasons, however, is offering to make that second room more affordable with its Family Getaway package, which starts at $255 CDN a night ($261 US) for stays between March 13 and March 27. The offer is good throughout the year, though the rates go up seasonally (you're talking $335 CDN, or $342 US, at the height of summer).

The 385-room hotel is set above Vancouver’s biggest mall, and has landed on the Condé Nast Traveler Gold List and Food & Wine’s "World's Best Places to Eat." It has an indoor pool, gym, spa services, and easy access to the city beyond the mall downstairs. The deal includes:

• 50% off a second room (a $128 value)
  
• Welcome amenities for the kids (t-shirt, worth about $10 x 2 kids = $20)
• Free kids’ breakfasts in the on-site restaurant ($10 x 2 kids= $20/night)
• Daily activities by the pool or in the Playzone Game Room (always complimentary)
• One “Kids in the Kitchen” lesson from the Four Seasons chefs (also complimentary, but seasonal)
  

Deal or no Deal? $128 for a room at a Four Seasons? Deal. The other perks may not amount to much added value, but free is free.

Even if you don’t opt for the second room, there is a lot for families to love about the Four Seasons. While you may pay more for your room than at less luxurious hotels, you always get a lot of value: for instance, you never have to pay to use the kids' clubs, which can run $100 a day for two kids at hotels under the Ritz-Carltons and Fairmont umbrellas. Plus, we love how the Four Seasons adds little welcoming touches such as kid-sized bathrobes to use during your stay.

The Family Getaway Package runs through April 2012. Book the offer by calling 604/684-8111.

Come to Lake Louise during the winter and you'll find the legendary turquoise-blue glacial lake covered with ice and snow, creating an idyllic winter wonderland. It would be easy to fill up a week with activities. The postcard-pretty ski resort—two hours north of the Calgary Airport—offers skating on the lake, plenty of room for snowshoeing around the grounds, and easy access to the nearby slopes; it's also a short drive from the  bustling ski town of Banff. 

The offer promises rates starting at $279 CAD a night—fabulous value for this caliber of hotel. When we price-checked March dates online, we found a rate of $289 CAD a night ($291US) for a room with two queen beds, which is almost 10% lower than the $329 CAD regular rate. With this offer, you'd pay for five nights, which comes to $1,455 US before taxes—or $208 US a night if averaged over seven nights. That's 37% less than the regular rate. Plus, that $350 credit is like shaving $50 off each day’s expenses.

The offer is good through April 30. You can book online by using the promotion code PSTY or mention the deal when calling 800/257-7544. The free nights will be applied once you check in.