New air service to Cancun from $10 O/W*

There's a 95 percent chance Senior Editor Christine Sarkis is thinking about travel right now. Follow her on Instagram @postcartography and Twitter @ChristineSarkis.

Christine Sarkis is an SATW-award-winning journalist and executive editor at SmarterTravel. Her stories have also appeared on USA Today, Conde Nast Traveler, Huffington Post, and Business Insider. Her advice has been featured in dozens of print and online publications including The New York Times, Conde Nast Traveler, and People magazine. She has also shared travel tips on television and radio shows including Good Morning America, Marketplace, and Here & Now. Her work has been published in the anthologies Spain from a Backpack and The Best Women's Travel Writing 2008. She is currently working on a travel memoir.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: The Trtl Pillow. It's easy to pack and comfortable, and makes it so I can actually sleep on flights.

Ultimate Bucket List Experience: Seeing the Aurora Borealis from the comfort of somewhere warm, like a glass igloo or hot spring.

Travel Motto: Curiosity is an amazing compass.

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: Aisle all the way.

Email Christine Sarkis at editor@smartertravel.com.

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Viva Vivaaerobus! The low-cost airline that’s been serving points in Mexico from Austin, Texas, since last year has announced new daily nonstops from Austin to Cancun and Monterrey, Mexico, with fares starting at $9.99 each-way (not including taxes and fees). Service begins on May 1, and the limited super-cheap fares require at least a five-week advance purchase.

Though Vivaaerobus is unique in that it’s a Mexican low-cost airline serving the U.S., it joins a larger phenomenon of low-cost carriers connecting the U.S. with Mexico and Central America. For instance, ATA connects the U.S. with Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Mexico. Frontier flies to Costa Rica and Mexico. JetBlue serves Cancun, Mexico. And Spirit, which already flies to Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua, just kicked off nonstop service between Ft. Lauderdale and Panama City, Panama.

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