7 May Airfares From SF You Simply Cannot Beat

Looking to get out of town? You’re in luck: May brings with its some terrific shoulder-season fares, whether you’re looking to keep it regional (under $100 to Vegas) or really get out of town (how’s Iceland for under $300 sound?). All fares double-checked for May flights and still available, at least at press time.

You’re going to: Portland

Roundtrip: $101 on Alaska

Briefly: Portlandia may be over, but Portland is still terrific (and we know you’ll be looking for cheaper real estate there).

Stay at: The perfectly located Sentinel, with Salt & Straw on the room service menu and a beautiful, 65-foot marble-topped bar at the Jackknife.

Stop by: Powell’s, Voodoo, and Loyly, the best sauna in the U.S.

You’re going to: Vegas

Roundtrip: $97 on United

Briefly: Skip the slots; head for the hills.

Stay in: A tent. (Or maybe just a bug shelter, depending on the temps.)

Head for: Atlatl Rock Campground—for a chance to explore red-rock formations, petroglyphs, and petrified wood (so basically the opposite of the ferns-and-redwoods of the state parks closer to home.)

You’re going to: Minneapolis

Roundtrip: $160 on Frontier

Briefly: An under-considered arts and design destination.

Stay at: The Hewing, with a lake-living deco that’ll make you want to add a couple days and head for Voyageurs.

Stop by: The Walker’s Allen Ruppersberg show (your Instagram feed demands it), the American Swedish Institute, and the Gehry-designed Weisman Art Museum, with its “Prince from Minneapolis” photography show.

You’re going to: Honolulu

Roundtrip: $331 on Delta

Briefly: A good fare on a perpetually expensive route

Stay at: If you’re so desperate to get away from the chain-corporate vibe, head to the Modern—but know that you’ll be giving up easy beach access. Otherwise, just give in and go to the nearly century-old Royal Hawaiian.

Stop by: Diamond Head for hiking, Pearl Harbor for history, and Hook Up Surfing for instruction if you need it.

Iceland (2 images)

You’re going to: Reykjavik

Roundtrip: $268 on Wow

Briefly: Everyone you know has been there, but it’s still great—especially if you head to the island’s less-explored north.

Stay at: An Airbnb, since the Akureyri boutique hotel scene is still TBD. Maybe this one?

Head for: The under-visited Mývatn region, not forgetting Sigurgeirs Bird Museum—truly a must-stop if you have any interest (and we certainly do) in the birding possibilities (“Nowhere in the world can so many species of duck be found in one place”.) Also: volcano hiking, flightseeing, and everything else.

Dublin (2 images)

You’re going to: Dublin

Roundtrip: $375 on Wow (stop off in Iceland for free, BTW)

Briefly: No better place in the world to drink—a Guinness or anything else.

Stay at: The fun, clubby Dean

Head for: Kilmainham Gaol (it’s the Dublin version of Alcatraz, only with a deeper history), the Book of Kells, because you must, and a drinking experience that begins, but does not finish, at Mulligans.

Hanoi (2 images)

You’re going to: Hanoi

Roundtrip: $651 on Korean Air

Briefly: Explore the city for a couple days, and then head out to the surrounding, spectacular mountain towns near the Chinese border.

Stay at: The Chi—a boutique vibe and super style-y bar at around $50 a night

Head for: Sapa, a mountain village that’s the setting-off point for hiking this exceptionally scenic part of Vietnam.

Meet your guide

Diane Rommel

Diane Rommel has written for The Wall Street Journal, Outside, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, Travel + Leisure, Wallpaper and Afar, as well as The Cut, Buzzfeed, Huffington Post and McSweeney’s. She once drove from London to Mongolia, via Siberia.