With Spring Break just weeks away and summer right around the corner, many college students are looking for ways to escape from the hassle and stress of university life. Whether it is a cruise to the Caribbean, or a flight to watch a dear friend graduate, students are formulating travel plans.

While travel plans can be tedious, let alone expensive, online travel services are making it easier than ever to book the ideal vacation without leaving you broke.

One of the most popular online travel services is Expedia. Expedia follows the typical format that most online travel services do: Enter your information and they do the search.

For example, Expedia utilizes the “Cruise Wizard” that asks you a variety of questions to narrow down your search. Such questions include: “Where do you want to go?” “How many days would you like to cruise?” “When do you want to depart?” and “Do you want a specific cruise line?” After answering these questions, Expedia will list the selections that best fit your ideals.

Expedia also offers the “Wizard” system for hotel rooms and packages, airline tickets and rental cars. Perhaps one of the best services that Expedia offers is the “Fare Tracker.”

This is a free e-mail service that alerts customers of low fares to their favorite cities.

This is especially helpful if you have been yearning to travel to a destination but are waiting for the cheapest time to go.

Travelscape, a subsidiary of Expedia, is similar in what they offer for travel planning.

According to the site, Travelscape has a unique “10 clicks or less” guarantee that it will outperform any other online travel site in providing the quickest, easiest and most convenient way to configure and book any air, lodging and auto rental package to top destinations in the U.S.

Along with the travel search, Travelscape offers a variety of specials. For example, “Hot Hotel Deals” and “Featured Destinations” including Cancun from $88 and Miami and New York City from $99.

Another service provided by both Expedia and Travelscape is the ” Flight Price Matcher.” Utilizing this system, you set the price that you want to spend and they will try to match in to a qualifying flight on a major airline within 15 minutes.

Senior Mark Zehender is familiar with this system of travel planning.

“As I was making travel plans for summer vacation, I found that online travel planning allowed me to easily choose where I wanted to go,” Zehender said.

If you are particular to a specific airline, several of the major companies offer their own travel sites. Besides access to airline fares, American Airlines also offers all-inclusive vacations at special rates.

To qualify for these fares, AA asks you to become an AAdvantage member. Through this free membership, AA can notify you of upcoming specials as well as track your travel miles that could ultimately lead to a free airline ticket or discounted trip. Delta Airlines uses the same type of program with Skymiles.

If you are not necessarily particular about an airline, but are about your credit card, several credit card companies have their own online travel services.

Citibank Visa is one that offers trips exclusively for Citibank cardholders (and, as a college student, you probably would not have a problem obtaining a card if you don?t already have one).

Aside from the discount travel rates that you can find using online travel, the best thing about using it is the obvious convenience.

Like most college students, you probably are too busy to clean the bathroom, let alone plan a vacation. While travel agencies are helpful, they do have restricted hours that do not include the nights when you are awake and bored at two in the morning.

Plus, you do not have to feel guilty after occupying an hour of a travel agent?s time and walking out of the office with nothing but a handful of brochures.

Graduate Student Joe Ciccerelli found online travel planning to be most accommodating to his schedule.

“I wasn?t limited or restricted to travel agency hours when planning my own vacation, the information was available, right in front of me,” Ciccerelli said.

All credible online travel services do uphold strict guidelines for protecting the information that you provide during your visit to the site.

You do not have to worry about your credit card number being used to pay for someone else?s dream vacation.

?Tis the season to travel! So stop putting off the much-needed vacation that you deserve and take advantage of the specials that are available using online travel services.