SuperClubs Helps with Passport Sticker Shock

1. There's no blanket travel cancellation policy. Policies and contracts of carriage vary from airlines to airline, hotel to hotel, and change all the time. It's best to check with your airline and hotel directly to find out what their current policies are before you go. 2. The closer you get to your departure date, the harder it is to change your policy. 3. Most hotels give full, or at least partial, refunds if a hurricane hits (or is expected to hit) during your stay. 4. While it's more complicated with airlines, many carriers do make attempts to accommodate passengers. In the past, many airlines have allowed passengers to change their tickets within a specific time frame in the case of a terrorism attack with "Peace of Mind" policies that allow passengers to rebook tickets free of charge, or receive credit for a future trip. It's good business, and once one major airline allows changes, many follow suit. 5. If you do decide to rebook your flight, be sure to find out the rules and regulations. Some airlines require that you make new reservations immediately, while others will allow you to rebook within a year. 6. Keep in mind that some airlines do not refund tickets purchased through a third-party discounter, or on the Internet through sites like Orbitz. Call the agency or packager you booked through first to see what's possible. 7. Always make your travel purchases with a credit card. If a hotel or airline closes, you'll be covered under the Fair Billing Act. 8. If you already have insurance for your trip to Jamaica or anywhere else in the Caribbean/Gulf of Mexico, read the fine print. Often you can cancel the trip and get a full refund in the event of a hurricane. 9. For traveling to any international destination, expect to spend at least $200 to change your ticket, but contact the airline before your originally scheduled departure date. Changing tickets after the flight has left is often much more complicated. 10. Consider booking a cruise instead of a land package; most cruise ships have state-of-the-art storm tracking systems and can steer clear of troubled waters, but you'll have to go to other ports, won't get your money back, and the water still might not be all that smooth. 11. For extra protection, always purchase travel insurance through a third party. TRAVEL INSURANCE Browse sites like quotetravelinsurance.com and insuremytrip.com for the best protection for you. Other names in standard travel insurance: Access America (800/334-7525, accessamerica.com) CSA Travel Protection (800/873-9855, csatravelprotection.com) GlobalCare (800/821-2488) Travelex (888/867-9531, travelex-insurance.com) Travel Guard International (800/826-4919, travelguard.com) Travel Insured International (800/243-3174, travelinsured.com). Medical assistance policies (hospital insurance, physician care): Wallach & Company (800/237-6615, wallach.com) Medical evacuation insurance: Travelers Emergency Network (TEN) (800/ASK-4-TEN, tenweb.com)International SOS Assistance (800/523-8930, internationalsos.com) Air Ambulance Card (877/424-7633, airmedassistance.com)

1. Ask your airline about its hurricane policies. Will your ticket be refunded? 2. If you become stranded, how will your airline help you? Find out ahead of time. 3. Will your deposit for a prepaid room be refunded? 4. What are the city/island/resort's evacuation plans? Are there hurricane-proof facilities for tourists? 5. What are your options once the storm hits? The city of New Orleans learned a lot from the Katrina disaster and now has a master evacuation plan in place, which includes a partnership with Amtrak. The Caribbean Tourism Organization does not have any organized evacutation plans at this time; it's best to check directly with each island's tourism office.

The 2006 hurricane season officially started on June 1, and word is it could rival last year's string of deadly storms. Peak storm month: September Last day of 2006 Hurricane Season: November 30 Travelers to hurricane-prone regions, such as the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, should plan ahead. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently released its annual forecast predicting at least eight hurricanes, four of which could be Category 3 or higher. As many as 16 tropical storms have already been named, with some even expected to reach as far north as New York City. The closer you travel to the equator, an area with limited wind conditions, the less likely you are to wind up in a hurricane's path; hurricanes need warm waters and favorable wind patterns to form. Islands with the lowest chance of being hit: Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Trinidad and Tobago; according to NOAA, you have a two percent chance of being hit by a hurricane in the southerly Caribbean isles ONLINE HURRICANE RESOURCES Noaa.gov National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's official website: One-stop hurricane information, including weather pattern analysis and maps Weather.com The Weather Channel: Hurricane tracking and airport closings Stormcarib.com Caribbean Hurricane Network: Daily island-by-island weather information

11 A.M. I am impressively tan, considering my normal state, in which I could pass for a Da Vinci Code villain. Kate is brown like a nut. I hate Kate. Of course, I don't, and even if I did it wouldn't be because she tans like George Hamilton. It would be because she chose our poolside seats today and the screaming children, it turns out, have some kind of three day weekend. I think the holiday they're being let off for is National Eardrum-Piercing Scream Day. To be fair, she's even more peeved than I am. Her malevolent glare reaches Blue Steel-level intensity and yet the children remain unaffected. They have puffy swim wings of kryptonite or something. We're heartened that we're not alone in our stressful state of we-love-kids-but-just-not-these when another woman gets up and gives the business to the head screamer's parents. "This is the adult pool, she reminds the attendant. We nod vigorously. (Our only exercise of the weekend.) We bond. Our consolation is the pre-check-out bill that was slipped under our door. It's remarkably lower than it has any right to be after so many lobster quesadillas and, um, margaritas. BUDGET TRAVEL, we congratulate ourselves. BUDGET TRAVEL! We are checking out at noon, and then hope to spend some quality time in the spa area before heading home. Betting on the lack of sound-barrier-breaking munchkins at the spa, I duck out early to retrieve my bag and head for the sauna. 7 P.M. The Ritz-Carlton does not have many German employees in Miami, but they clearly brought one out here for the sole purpose of expertly humiliating Kate and me during check out. Please imagine the role of Elsa (a guess) being played by Marlene Dietrich. Kate: Wait, this can't be right. Ana: No, it can't. This is so much more than the bill we got this morning. Kate: Can you review some of these charges? Elsa: But of course. What would you like me to look at? Kate: How about these two charges? They're both for around $50. Could they be duplicates? Elsa: Hmm. [Raises eyebrow.] At 11:30, you ordered margaritas and a lobster quesadilla. At 1 PM, you ordered margaritas and another lobster quesadilla. And French fries. Ana: And what about... Elsa: At 2 PM, you ordered margaritas and a lobster quesadilla. Yesterday, you ordered lobster quesadillas and... Ana: Stop! Here, this mini-bar charge! We didn't actually have that stuff. I just took it out to make room for the... [Elsa's eyebrow is raised so high it meets her hairline.] Ana: ... leftover wine... Elsa: Very well. I will take off the charge for $12.75. Kate and I huddle meekly, ready to surrender our credit cards. At that very moment, our bartender from our final good-bye drink runs to the counter and alleges, wrongly: "You forgot to pay for these!" Elsa does not seem surprised. In the cab on the way back to the airport, our Socratic dialogue with Elsa gains hyperbolic proportions, and we find ourselves giggling through security, shouting apparent non-sequitors to each other -- "YOU HAD NINE THOUSAND LOBSTER QUESADILLAS!" When we're asked if we want our $100 upgrade, we figure that after eleven hundred margaritas, we deserve it. MIDNIGHT On a capacity-filled plane, a $100 upgrade starts to seem like a bargain. We unwind in our spacious seats and continue to giggle about Elsa. Our good mood stands out and is, apparently, contagious. The harried flight attendant, fresh from cleaning up a, uh, "whoopsie" in the coach lavatory, smiles at us as she refills our drinks. She's clearly frazzled, and we ask her to join us. Wisely, prudently, she declines. But we chat throughout the flight and it's clear that being a flight attendant is a career for those of great calm and good humor. On the way out the door, she smiles and hands us a wine bottles wrapped in a napkin: "It's from our European leg," she says, "I think it's good." Budget travel. Back to day one