TripAlertz to launch this month – Sign up now for a chance to win a free trip!

There’s a new Web site launching this month, and I believe it’s one you’ll want to join and keep an eye on.

TripAlertz.com is a travel deals Web site that’s designed to bring the power of group buying to individuals.

The Web site offers hotel packages that often include a room plus amenities such as meals or spa treatments, at deep discounts. And the more people who buy the deal, the deeper the discount becomes.

For example, when TripAlertz launches on Oct. 19, it will offer a deal at the Royal Plaza Hotel inside Walt Disney World Resort for these prices for $285. If more than 50 people buy the deal, that price drops to just $234. What’s included?

• Three nights at the hotel
• Breakfast for 2 each day
• A Royal Passport Savings Book

That is amazing deal, especially with this hotel’s proximity to Disney World. Other hotel deals that will be offered when TripAlertz launches include stays in Beverly Hills, California, St. Pete Beach, Florida, and Riviera Maya, Cancun.

The deals are available for a limited time, but they are not “last-minute” deals that are only good on a certain weekend. You usually have a period of several weeks or months to choose from.

And I like that you get to book your dates when you buy the package. I have seen other deal sites where you need to buy the deal first and then hope to find open dates that work for you – with TripAlertz, you choose the dates before you buy.

I recently spoke with TripAlertz founder Brendan Murphy about his idea for the site. He told me that his years of experience in the travel industry showed him the deep discounts available for groups. When social media became mainstream a couple of years ago, he got the idea to use social media to bring like-minded people together to buy travel in bulk, and TripAlertz was born.

TripAlertz encourages users to share the deals they have found through Facebook, Twitter and other social media channels to try to get more people to buy, and drop the price for everyone. I love that the site also has built-in areas to discuss the trips, so that you can make and receive recommendations for dining, activities, etc. nearby. You could even plan to meet up with other folks who bought the same trip and are traveling at the same time you are.

And then there’s Waddlz, TripAlertz’ stylish penguin mascot. Brendan told me that Waddlz was a perfect representative for the site because penguins live – and travel – in large groups, called Waddles.

Waddlz has some special bonuses on many of the TripAlertz deals. For example, on the Royal Plaza Hotel package I mentioned above, Waddlz tells visitors that the first 50 people who book the package will also save the $8 per day resort fees.

So how do you get in on these deals? TripAlertz is free to join. It launches on Oct. 19.

I highly recommend signing up now, especially because they are launching with a great giveaway! The first 10,000 people to sign up for TripAlertz will be entered in a drawing to win 1 of 250 trips. Those are great odds!

And there’s one more excellent reason to sign up for TripAlertz.com now: TripAlertz is going to donate $1 to aHomeinHaiti.org for every new member who joins the site between now and November, up to $100,000.

After you sign up, be sure to invite your friends through the TripAlertz site. For every friend who joins, you can earn $1 to spend toward your first trip.