LivingSocial became the latest flash sales site to add travel sales to its mix.
“Just as LivingSocial people discover new activities and experiences in their hometown or places they visit LivingSocial Escapes will now help anyone find one-of-a-kind day trips, packaged nearcations, quick escapes that don’t require air-travel, or weekend excursions they might not typically pursue,” the company says.
With LivingSocial and other flash sales sites, it's all about local deals and nearcations. Flash sales sites negotiate discounted rates from retailers and offer local deals or vacations for a limited number of days.
One of the first vacation package LivingSocial offered was a two-night stay plus cooking class, ski run or massage at The Essex, a culinary resort and spa in Essex Junction, Vermont for $359, at supposedly a 50% savings.
LivingSocial's attractive user interface comes with a video about the resort and its amenities.
Here's the video.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-NmBXm8-ZI
There's also a snippet from Fodor's about about the cooking classes, the resort's location on a Google Map and driving directions.
All told, an attractive and probably effective display.