10 Coolest Small Towns, N.H.

If you plan to visit a theme park, always bring a few sandwich-size Ziploc bags. They'll protect your cell phone and wallet when you're riding on flumes and other water attractions.

Once we know where we're going, my girlfriends and I divide up the list of things we'd like to do on our trip and put someone in charge of each item on the list. Then that person does the legwork by finding directions and prices, making reservations (if necessary), and researching nearby places to stop for a snack or a meal. Our method means that no one person is doing all the planning.

Before traveling by taxi in foreign (or even domestic) locations, ask a local (perhaps stopping in shops to question the sales staff) what the approximate taxi fare would be to a particular location. They've always been pleased to help me. In this manner, I can avoid paying the inflated tourist rates!

Ziploc now makes extra-large bags with handles. They're nearly two feet by two feet, and although Ziploc advertises them as being good for storage, they're also useful for traveling. Bring one on long shopping excursions and then use it as an extra carry-on for souvenirs on the way home.

The best carry-on bag that I've found is a gardener's tote. It has lots of pockets on the outside and room inside for a medium-size purse, yet it's small enough to sit comfortably at my feet on a bus or plane.

Whenever my husband and I get new pairs of eyeglasses, we relegate the old ones to our luggage, along with an inexpensive repair kit from the drugstore. If something happens while we're away from home, we can hopefully fix the glasses ourselves. If they're beyond saving, we have the backup pairs to get us through the rest of the trip.

Before you book a room over the phone, peruse the hotel's site for its "Web only" rate. It's often cheaper than the best quote you'll get by calling. Recently, over the phone, I was quoted a daily rate of $129. I booked the same room online for $89.

We've traveled to both Mexico and China in the last year and had the same experience in both countries: When we tried to exchange dollars to local currency, the banks wouldn't take bills with graffiti on them--telephone numbers, names, doodles, anything. Nor would they accept any bills that were torn or damaged. (We noticed a group from France having the same problem with their euros.) So before you leave home, make sure that any money you plan on exchanging is absolutely crisp and clean--or better yet, ask your bank specifically for brand-new bills.

If your children are old enough to dress themselves, consider this packing tip: Put each outfit (including socks and underwear) into a Ziploc bag and pack one bag for each day you'll be on vacation. It will save both time and aggravation, and may even prevent items from getting left behind.

Certified scuba divers who take prescription medications should keep a doctor's permission-to-dive statement with their certification cards. On a recent trip to Jamaica, I truthfully completed a lengthy questionnaire about my health, revealing that I have medically controlled high blood pressure and cholesterol. I was told I could not dive without a doctor's OK, even though I exercise regularly, am very fit, and have no other health issues. I now carry a letter from my doctor attesting to my fitness for scuba diving.

When seeking a cheap airfare, don't forget to consult the Web sites of the major charter tour operators--like Apple Vacations, TNT Vacations, Vacation Express, or SunTrips--which frequently sell air-only tickets in addition to air-and-hotel packages. Doing so helped me slash the cost of round-trip airfare to visit my mother in Las Vegas by well over 50 percent.

Before using frequent-flier miles, investigate how much the flight actually costs. For example, it takes at least 25,000 miles per person to travel from Boston to Alaska. The same flight cost us $288. After paying for our tickets, we received enough additional miles to travel for free to Sweden instead of Alaska!

Want to visit museums with your children without the boredom and tears? Go to the gift shop first and buy postcards of the museum's most famous works. Have your kids treasure hunt for these masterpieces. When you get home the postcards can go right into your trip album.

When you go to a convention or trade show, don't assume that the official prices at recommended hotels are the best you can do. Go to the hotel Web site. I recently got an AARP rate at a major hotel that was 30 percent below the special price offered through the tradeshow sponsors. AAA discounts often work, too.

Attach a few carabiners--the kind of clips rock climbers use--to the top of your wheeled suitcase. Purses, cameras, and shopping bags can be clipped to your suitcase, giving your hands and shoulders a rest while you're walking around the airport.

You won't always save by bringing the rental car back early. Alamo has an early-return policy at all of its locations, designed to discourage customers from returning cars early. If you show up at the lot a day or two ahead of schedule, Alamo will recalculate what you owe them at the daily rate; if it turns out to be less than what you would have paid for the week, they'll charge a $15 fee. Yet another reason to read the fine print on your contract carefully!

Create your own postcards by writing on the back of photographs that you've taken and developed while still on your trip.

When on vacation, I split my cash into envelopes, one per day, so I can keep track of how much I'm spending. If I need to dig into the next day's cash, I'll know that I've overdone it, and if I want to stay on budget, I'll have to cut back the next day. Any money left at the end of the day goes into a separate envelope. I've actually come home with money this way!

By starting a blog for each trip--at blogger.com, among others--you can keep your friends and family up-to-date on your adventures. All you need is an Internet café to add entries and photos while you're on the road.

If you wait to buy a discount-granting Entertainment Book until around six months before it expires (expiration is usually scheduled for November), you can often buy a $20 to $47 book for as little as $10, plus $5 shipping. Online access to the coupons is sold for $7 a month. These are great for vacations out of town.

Booking condos last minute can yield incredible bargains, and there's a way to maximize savings while minimizing the risk that you won't find a room at all. ("Last minute" generally means a month or less before your stay; seven-day deals usually start on a Saturday.) Buy your plane ticket and book a refundable hotel room you can use in case you can't find that bargain condo. Then, a month or so before your trip, start looking at last-minute sites—lastminutetravel.com, site59.com, etc. If you find a deal, simply get a refund on the hotel room and pay the cancellation fee, if there happens to be one. Using this technique, I found a great beachfront, one-bedroom condo on Maui—and I saved about $300.

Anyone traveling with multiple electronic devices (laptops, PDAs, cell phones, digital cameras, MP3 players) can easily confuse all the accessories that come with them. To keep all battery chargers, USB cables, media cards, and owner's manuals safe, dry, and organized, place them in individual Ziploc bags. You can put a label inside the bag to identify the contents, and one label wrapped around each cable to identify it.

Don't be too quick to grab one of those GST tax-rebate envelopes that are everywhere in Canadian airports. The envelopes look official, but they're really from companies that process the request for you and often pocket 15 percent or more. Instead, go to the Canada Revenue Agency Web site (cra-arc.gc.ca), download the Application for Visitor Tax Refund, and then file the request yourself. Your check will arrive in a few weeks. Just remember to get your receipt stamped by the Canada Border Services Agency at the airport.

Cruise lines offer packaged side trips at their ports of call. If you go online and look for these expeditions ahead of time, you can book directly with the tour companies and save money.

Destinationcoupons.com supplies free discount coupons for cities all over the United States and the world. Print them out on your home computer and save on hotels, shows, rental cars, restaurants, and many other activities.

I live in coastal Florida, where the electricity sometimes goes out during violent storms. Before a trip, I place a few ice cubes in a plastic bag and put the bag in the freezer. If the ice has melted and refrozen by the time I get home, I'll know we've had a power outage and that any food left in the refrigerator may be unsafe to consume.

If you're traveling with someone, discuss a central meeting place in case you get separated. My husband and I were in Paris waiting to board the Metro. He was able to board the train, but I was left behind on the platform. Having a plan saved both time and needless anxiety.

It can be difficult for parents to find a place to bathe their infant while on vacation. Showers obviously won't work, and the miniscule sinks generally found in hotel bathrooms aren't appropriate either. On our last cruise, we eliminated the whole problem by packing a small, inexpensive inflatable bathtub. (Ours cost only $7.99.) When we arrived, we blew it up and placed it in the bottom of the shower for an instant, safe baby bath.

Grab-rails and nonskid surfaces aren't common in European bathtubs and showers. I pack a few decorative rubber pads that have non-adhesive suction cups, so I can use them when needed to prevent a slip or fall, and then I take them with me to the next hotel.

Carry a Polaroid camera when traveling to developing countries. In Cambodia, several village children gathered around us, posed enthusiastically for pictures, and were fascinated by their images in our digital camera. We wanted to send them the pictures, but they were unable to tell us their address. Polaroids would have solved the problem!