"What Exactly Is That Down There?"

During a visit to Mexico City, I was sitting in a plaza near a fountain, watching the locals stroll around in their Sunday best. Nearby, an older gentleman was playing a concertina; his music perfectly framed the scene. I took lots of pictures, but I didn't have a way to capture that music. Now I pack a small tape recorder along with my camera.

If you're a woman traveling alone, or your accommodations don't inspire confidence, simply wedge a small rubber doorstop at the base of the door when you're inside the room. It'll be virtually impossible to open the door from the outside.

Don't assume a single room costs less than a double one. I booked a hotel in Spain online and noticed that rates were the same whether I booked a single or a double, but the single was much smaller and its bathroom had only a small shower stall and no tub.

We always e-mail our itinerary--including flights, hotels, and confirmation numbers--to ourselves and to family members. If our luggage is lost or our wallets are stolen, all of this essential information is just an Internet café and a few quick clicks away.

Before setting off on one of my many backpacking excursions, I head to Kinko's to rebind my guidebook. I replace the cover with a plain black or navy one. It costs about $6 and allows me to blend in much better while traveling. People see my new book as a journal, not a travel guide that labels me a tourist.

If you're divorced and plan to travel out of the country with your children, check the legal requirements in advance. When I tried to take my kids to Cancun, I learned too late that Mexico requires a notarized letter of consent signed by both parents for minors traveling alone or with one parent or guardian. If the parents are divorced, a copy of the parental custody agreement is allowed instead. The airlines enforce this rule before you get on the plane.

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!

Need a place for a laptop in your hotel room? Take the largest drawer from the bureau and put it upside down on the bed with the drawer front away from you. This creates a perfect-height desk for while you're sitting comfortably on the bed (you can even lean back on pillows), plus there's side space for papers, and the top leans toward you for easy typing or writing.

Note the expiration dates of any debit or credit cards you plan on using while you're away. In Budapest, I tried to withdraw cash with my ATM card, only to find that it had expired just days before.

Rather than risk losing your department-store credit cards and club-membership cards, you should really leave them behind when you go somewhere you won't need them. Your purse or wallet will be lighter and your worries fewer.

Internet phone services like Vonage can be programmed to send transcribed voice mails to your email in-box. That way, you can check your home answering machine quickly at an Internet cafe without paying insane roaming fees on your cell. The transcriptions won't always be perfect, but you'll get the gist.

I switch from street shoes to flannel-lined moccasins at the airport. It saves time at the security checkpoint, and I'm comfortable during the flight. Once I land, I switch back to my street shoes.

A padlocked zipper tells thieves there's something in your bag worth stealing, but a key ring is much less obvious. Just use it to latch together the zippers. Best of all, you'll never have to worry about forgetting your combination.

Ever since my children were small, I've carried recent, wallet-size pictures of them when we all go on vacation, in case we get separated. Now that they are teenagers and traveling with friends' families, too, I send pictures for the other family to bring along with them. I also write my telephone numbers on the back of the pictures so they know where to reach me in an emergency.

I like to bring a Frisbee when I travel. At the hotel, it's a convenient place to collect car keys, loose change, my ChapStick, and any other small objects I normally keep in my pockets. I always know where everything is, and things won't fall off the nightstand. It's also handy to have so you can play Frisbee at a nearby park or beach.

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.

With two of our last three car rentals, the local branch wanted documentation beyond the standard insurance card issued by our insurance company. In San Juan, we were delayed a half hour while the agent made phone calls to verify that our liability insurance was good in Puerto Rico. In Miami, if we hadn't provided proof that our insurance covered rental cars, we would've been charged a daily collision insurance fee. Fortunately, we knew ahead of time and took a copy of the pertinent section of our policy. Our credit card included car rental insurance, but proof of that coverage was also required.

Create an ID page for each of your children before you leave on a trip. In addition to vacation contact information (hotel name and phone number), include the child's name, a current photo, home address, phone, date of birth, Social Security number, passport number, hair color, eye color, height, any identifying marks, blood type, allergies, medications, doctor and insurance phone numbers and ID numbers, immunization schedule, and fingerprints (these don't change, so investing the time to have a set made is worth it). If the unspeakable happens, the ability to hand over instant, concise information to authorities may prove invaluable. Update it before every trip.

When my husband and I travel, we take at least three different credit cards. I carry one he doesn't have, he carries one I don't have, and we both bring our primary card. If one of us has our wallet stolen, we can cancel two cards and still have one to use. We each have different ATM cards, too--useful if a machine doesn't honor one of the cards, or if we need more cash than our daily limit allows.

If you book a package over the Internet, print out all the details of what's included and take it with you. When a hotel desk clerk in Paris said that the breakfast buffet we had enjoyed for the previous seven mornings was not included in our package, I was able to show him the printouts and prove him wrong. He apologized profusely and wiped the breakfast charges from our bill.

Carry the exact change for public transportation. In Venice, we were annoyed when a vaporetto (water taxi) ticket-taker refused to give us our change. Later, we discovered that if you don't have the exact fare, ticket agents make no promises about giving change.

It's unnecessary to make a packing list for each trip. Instead, draw up a master list with everything you might need on any given trip--from ski goggles to snorkels, slippers to saline solution. Save it on your computer. Before you start packing, cross out anything you don't need for that particular trip.

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.

About a month before leaving on vacation, I start clipping the crossword puzzles from the daily newspaper and pasting them into a blank notebook. The puzzles keep me occupied during my trip. The newspaper's crosswords are so much more interesting than the generic books of them you can purchase at the airport.

If the porters haven't delivered your luggage to your door by the first night of the cruise, check what our experts call the "naughty room." Security will store any bags containing contraband (like candles, alcohol, or coffeemakers) in this centralized location until you come claim it. You'll be able to pick up your bag on the first night, but banned items will not be returned until the end of the trip.

Just before a trip to Spain, I emailed myself a list of addresses of the friends and family I might want to email while away. At a cybercafe, I was able to simply cut and paste the list into the address line of a new message.

When I go on a trip that requires me to accessorize a number of outfits, I buy little Ziploc bags and place the appropriate jewelry/panty hose/scarf inside. Then I punch a hole just big enough to slide the bag over the outfit's hanger. This way, my panty hose stay snag-free and my jewelry never gets misplaced.

Whenever I go somewhere, I bring a supply of postcards from my hometown. I write my name, address, and e-mail on the back, and offer a card to new friends so we can keep in touch. I also pack small souvenirs (key rings, etc.) that carry my local sports teams' logos. They make meaningful but inexpensive thank-you gifts for the small kindnesses that ease one's way during a trip.

Take along an extra duffel bag for your laundry. As your vacation progresses, throw dirty clothes into the duffel, keeping your suitcase for fresh clothes. At the end of the trip, put a tag on the bag and check it at the airport. This will also give you space in your luggage to bring home souvenirs or new clothes.

Remember to check the hours of operation for your hotel's airport shuttle. In Rome,we were surprised to learn that our hotel--which touted its shuttle--only offered the service a few hours a day.