The brand-new W Vieques Resort & Spa

JetBlue and Starwood Preferred Guest have launched new ways to earn freebies, both involving new mobile "check in" services. Now, a few taps on your smartphone screen when you check in for a flight or a hotel stay will net you 100 TrueBlue points or 250 Starwood points. It's not an instant free flight or suite, of course, but the bonuses are extras that can add up: rooms at Starwood start at 2,000 points and free one-way flights start at 5,000.

At Starwood, the brand is collaborating with Foursquare, a service we highlighted in our May issue. After linking your Foursquare and Starwood Preferred Guest accounts online, guests automatically get 250 points when they check in (on Foursquare) while checking in (at any Starwood hotel). It's as simple as that, and the offer runs through July.

At JetBlue, the partnership is with Facebook Places, a similar service to Foursquare or Gowalla. Originally launched in January, the pot has now been sweetened, giving fliers that check in 100 points for each JetBlue airport you visit. In other words, it's possible to rack up 400 points on a single round trip. To get the free miles, link your TrueBlue and Facebook accounts online and then simply check in during your trip. An additional bonus: If you carry the JetBlue Amex card, you'll get 300—rather than 100—points per check in.

New York's Eventi hotel

Kimpton Hotels has announced a new promotion to encourage travel to this summer's many LGBT events—the company has long been a leader in workplace equality—but of course anyone can take advantage of the 15 percent discounts on offer by booking with the promo code "PRIDE."

The discount off the best available rate, along with a $25-per-night dining credit, is available at all 51 Kimpton properties from May 26 to September 5 for Thursday-Sunday stays. (The Hotel Lumen in Dallas and the Hotel Palomar Dallas will extend the offer through September 18.)

Among the participating hotels are some of the brand's newest, like the Grand Hotel Minneapolis, the Eventi in New York City, the Hotel Palomar Chicago, and the Hotel Palomar Philadelphia. Properties throughout San Francisco and Washington, D.C. are also on offer. Kimpton has the full list—and don't forget you'll need to punch in "PRIDE" when booking.

One of 15 discounted villas

With Cinco de Mayo only a day away, we wanted to give a heads-up on a spectacular one-day-only deal from our favorite villa company in Los Cabos, Earth, Sea & Sky Vacations: 55 percent off 15 handpicked villas for bookings on May 5, with the discount applying to stays through December 15.

The company has asked us not to reveal the list of properties until tomorrow, but check back Thursday morning and we'll have added the link to the flash-sale website, which will name the participating properties.

UPDATED: Here are the details on the Cinco de Mayo flash sale!

For example, the six-bedroom villa pictured above (which we can't name until Thursday morning) ordinarily rents for $3,775 to $4,400 per night, depending on the season. If you book on May 5, it can be yours for just $1,699 to $1,980 per night.

The scoop:

• Book through Julie Byrd of Earth, Sea & Sky.
• This discount applies only to bookings made Thursday, May 5, 2011, between 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
• 15 villas are participating; we'll reveal which ones the morning of May 5.
• You can book stays through December 15, 2011, with NO blackout dates.

The Galeries Lafayette department store

While we don't often cover short-term sales on Deal of the Day, this airfare-only deal to Paris is well worth an exception. The flash-sale site Voyage Privé is offering round-trip flights to Paris on selected departure dates this May for as little as $419 including tax. That's a huge savings off going rates that easily top $1,000 for flights later this month.

As you might imagine, the bargain price comes with some caveats. The service is on niche French carrier XL Airways and only departs from New York and Las Vegas. For this deal, the only available dates are, from New York, May 22, 23, and 25; from Las Vegas, you'll have to fly May 26. The sale is available for booking through Monday, May 9, and you'll need to sign up for Voyage Privé to see the savings.

Still, the discounts are substantial—45 percent cheaper than booking directly with XL Airways and even cheaper than you'd find on other airlines. Voyage Privé also has hotel offers that pair with these flights, but we'd rather take the money saved on airfare and splurge on the Andersen suite at the Hot Listed Le Pavillon des Lettres—complete with its view of the Eiffel Tower.

Summer is high season for high prices in Europe but a collection of Concorde Hotels is making the Continent more affordable, with discounts of up to 30 percent off regularly available rates with a stay of two or more nights before June 30. With the discounts, high-quality sleeps in Paris can be had for as little as $153 a night in May and June.

What properties does the under-the-radar brand have on offer? In Paris, the Hotel du Louvre is available for $430 compared to $538, or 20 percent off. The Concorde Opera has rooms from $349 instead of $436. Sadly the discounted rooms at the famed Hotel de Crillon have already sold out. But rooms booked there for stays before May 31 do come with a €50 food and beverage credit.

Elsewhere, the Hotel Martinez in Cannes, pictured above, has rooms from $348, down from $496, a savings of 30 percent. In Nice, the Hotel Palais de la Méditerranée has rooms for $356 instead of $445. The Hotel Concorde Berlin has discounts of 15 percent, with rooms from $173.

Interestingly, the Concorde El Salam Hotel in Cairo is discounting stays through June 30, with rooms from $100 a night.

The St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort

Though it's hard to imagine, it's only six short weeks until the start of hurricane season. For travelers unwilling to dodge the Caribbean because a storm might pass through, deals are the reward: Puerto Rico is offering a fourth night free at 31 hotels and resorts for stays June 1 through October 2.

Of the participating hotels, we particularly like two new Hot List properties, the W Retreat & Spa, on Vieques, and the St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort, on the water, 25 miles east of San Juan. Also offering the deal are 2011 Gold List honoree Las Casitas Village, in Fajardo, and the San Juan Water and Beach Club, on the northern coast in Carolina.

The Puerto Rico Tourism Company has further details on the summer promotion, including a full list of participating hotels. You'll need to book by June 13 for the savings.

Photo of Lisbon: Flickr/Fr Antunes

While we don't usually highlight one-time departures here on Deal of the Day, this discount from Swan Hellenic—brought to our attention by cruise specialist Tom Baker—is so steep we'll happily make an exception. The 15-day sail from Rome to Lisbon, departing on May 25, would normally sell for about $300 a day, Baker tells us. But because the cruise line is hoping to lure last-minute bookings, the fare is now about $100 a day, including shore excursions, three on-ship overnights, and gratuities, starting at $1,549 per person. That's an extraordinary value on a great ship, Baker says, and we agree.

The itinerary hugs the Mediterranean, with stops in Livorno, Nice, Barcelona, Tangier, and a detour up the Guadalquivir River to Seville. While the cruise pulls into Lisbon on the morning of June 7, one of those included overnights allows you to enjoy the Portuguese capital for another day.

While airfare isn't included in this deal, we found appropriate flights from New York from $1,152 including all taxes, from Chicago from $1,346, and from Los Angeles from $1,378. Compared to the regularly seen cruise-only prices for sailings like this—$300 a day works out to $4,500—this is still a deal, even with flights at those prices. To book, we recommend speaking with Tom Baker directly, as he'll have the latest information on available cabins and further details on Swan Hellenic's on-board programs. You can reach him at 800-592-3887.

UPDATE: Baker writes to alert us that two more sailings are offering steep discounts for last-minute bookings. A "Rivers & Vineyards" trip leaves Lisbon on June 8—picking up right after the Rome to Lisbon sail described above—and travels for 15 days northward along Iberia to France and England. Discounted fares start from $2,799 per person, or $187 a day, almost 40 percent less than regularly seen rates. Then, on July 21, a 16-day sail leaves Portsmouth, England for Ireland, Scotland, Iceland, and the Faroe Islands. The "Call of the Arctic Tern" itinerary starts from $2,699 per person, again a deep discount for a Swan Hellenic cruise.

The Redbury

A new offer from nearly 100 Preferred Hotel Group properties worldwide may be themed as a Baby Boomer special—but anyone can book the deal, which offers a second night for just $65, a significant discount from regular PHG rates.

Among the participating hotels are some Preferred Boutique properties, smaller hotels with lots of personality, including new Hot List entrant The Redbury, a stylish West Hollywood hideaway with just 52 rooms, the smallest of which is a huge 750 square feet. The Iron Gate Hotel & Suites is in Prague's Old Town, set in a 14th-century building. El Casco Art Hotel in Bariloche, Argentina has just 33 rooms on the shores of Nahuel Huapi Lake in Patagonia. And the Barnsley Gardens Resort is a rural Georgia escape we've featured on Deal of the Day before.

Many other hotels are available, and a full list is on Preferred Hotel Group's special offer page. The offer extends through May 31.

The Conrad Hong Kong

Hilton's collection of 16 luxury Conrad Hotels & Resorts are celebrating their 25th anniversary with free nights worldwide. Of particular note are two properties from our 2011 Gold List, the Conrad Dublin, where rates start at $230, and the Conrad Hong Kong, from $341. Both are offering a third night free with this deal.

Other hotels have the third night free, in Brussels, on China's Hainan Island and in Cairo, admittedly a destination for which the U.S. Department of State maintains a travel warning. Giving the fourth night free are hotels in Bangkok, Chicago, and Singapore, among others. In Istanbul, you'll get a fifth night free and two resorts in Bali and the Maldives will give the seventh night free, a rare discount at luxury hotels in those destinations.

To book, visit Conrad's 25th Anniversary special page before June 12. The deal extends through June 30.

The Sofitel Cartagena Santa Clara

More than 100 Sofitel hotels worldwide are now on sale, with discounts in a broad variety of destinations that are appealing this season. The offer of a fourth night free is even more enticing thanks to an included late check out, giving you the run of your room until 4 p.m. on the day of departure.

Among the hotels on special are a few that made our 2011 Gold List of the world's best places to stay, including the Sofitel Cartagena Santa Clara, the Sofitel Bora Bora Marara Beach, the Sofitel Phokeethra Royal Angkor resort and the Sofitel Metropole Hanoi. Interestingly, the Sofitel Cairo Maadi Towers is also participating, as Egypt works to lure tourists back with discounts. Many domestic destinations are also available. The full list of hotels is searchable by location on Sofitel's Seasonal Break Special page.

The sale is open now and you'll need to travel by May 20 to get the free night.