105 Supersmart Strategies

PART EIGHT: CAR RENTALSReserve the least expensive model Once you select a model, no rental-car company will ever let you leave with a cheaper one. When the car you reserved isn't available, they'd rather give you a better car for the same price than a lesser car for a lower price. If you're inclined, you can negotiate an upgrade at the car-rental counter. Prepaid gas is for people traveling on expense accounts You know who you are. Do ask, do tell Laws vary by state and rules vary by company, but unmarried couples can often skip the extra-driver fee (and the paperwork) simply by telling the clerk that they're domestic partners. Don't wait for the clerk to ask what your relationship is. Other ways to try to get around the extra-driver fee: joining the loyalty club (what on earth are you waiting for?), saying that you're coworkers or that you're members of AAA, AARP, or Costco. The point is to ask. Grab the keys and go Join the free loyalty club and you won't have to wait in what can be a cruelly long line, or tell the agent your address, or listen to the upsell on a bigger model or on insurance. You can get off the lot and into your vacation in a matter of minutes. Think globally, browse locally It's a little-known fact that some car-rental companies have different websites for different countries, and the rates for the same rental can vary. The prices quoted at Budget.com, for instance, won't necessarily be equal to the rates at the sites for the United Kingdom (budget.co.uk), Germany (budget.de), Ireland (budget.ie), and South Africa (budget.co.za). It's worth poking around. Don't pay double for insurance Insurance is a big profit generator for car-rental agencies, and they don't mind that it's confusing. If you own a car, however, your owner's policy will cover you no matter what car you're driving, including a rental. Also, most credit cards cover the Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) automatically, so there's no need to give the rental agency that extra $10 to $20 per day.

PART SEVEN: CRUISESGo fishing for deals Consolidators such as CruisesOnly.com, CruiseStar.com, and Cruise411.com basically act as travel agents, but they sell cruises at steeper discounts than are found elsewhere. Recently, cruise lines have prevented these brokers from advertising their best offers--but that doesn't mean they don't have 'em. Ask about unadvertised deals and upgrades. Arrive at the port the night before The cruise line doesn't care if the traffic was bad or your flight got delayed because of the weather. The ship will leave without you, and the responsibility to catch up with it is yours and yours alone. Walk right off the ship and head home At the end of the cruise, if you carry your own bags, you can often disembark before everyone else. Don't forget your passport Travelers returning to the United States by sea after visiting Mexico, Canada, the non-U.S. Caribbean, the Bahamas, and Bermuda don't need a passport until January (at the earliest). But anyone sailing before then should bring it anyway. If something unfortunate happens and you need to fly home, having a passport will make things considerably easier. Book your own excursions You can save money by finding out who's running the shore excursions or similar outings and booking directly with them. It's not without risks: If you book an excursion with an outside operator and don't get back to the ship in time, you're out of luck; but when you book through the cruise line, the ship will wait. Let cruise brokers fight over you CruiseCompete.com is a website where you post info on the cruise you want to take, and then agents bid against each other to get your business. You're under no obligation to buy anything if you don't like what you see. Make the first day count Your bags won't arrive at your cabin for a few hours after you board, so pack everything you might want in the interim (a book, swimsuit, sunblock...) inside your carry-on bag.

PART SIX: LODGINGIncentivize! If something is important to you, make it important to someone else. In other words, don't be afraid to try bribery--at least when it comes to getting upgrades from front-desk clerks and special treatment from maître d's. (Do not attempt this with cops and border agents.) Think of it as gambling: Twenty bucks could have a huge payoff. Upscale hotels charge for just about everything Telephone calls, Internet, breakfast, sometimes the gym.... Most of their guests are traveling on expense accounts and don't put up a fuss. But mid-range hotels tend to include that stuff for free. When you're not sure, ask before it's too late. Take a look at the mid-range chains Many of them--including Holiday Inn Express, Four Points by Sheraton, Courtyard by Marriott, and Hampton Inn--have been building new properties like crazy, with more style than you'd expect. A brand, as they prefer to be known, can be a marvelous thing, particularly in cities. See that pretty bowl of apples? Grab one, if not for now then for later; same with coffee near the front desk and bottles of water at the fitness center. Ultimately, the cost of that stuff is in your room rate. You're paying for it whether you take it or someone else does. Helping yourself to more than a single serving at a time, however, is tacky. Room service is a total rip-off Which would be fine if the food were better, or even warm. When you want to mellow out in your room, look in the phone book and get a pizza delivered. The concierge has a vested interest Well, not every single one, but how can you tell? Assume the worst: They may have hidden motives to recommend one place over another. In a pinch, ask other hotel workers (bartenders, waiters, etc.) for advice on where locals eat or hang out. Valet parking is a last resort A nearby parking lot will be 50 percent cheaper. Safe vs. sorry Use the hotel safe--unless, of course, you're the kind of person who prefers to learn things the hard way. Don't so much as touch the minibar Everything in it is overpriced. Plus, the modern minibar has sensors that know when you remove something. Putting that Johnnie Walker mini back doesn't mean you'll automatically get credited. You'll have to prove that you didn't drink it. The bedspread is toxic Anyone who has ever seen a reporter wield a black light on the local TV news knows that the hotel bedspread is teeming with creepy-crawlies. Remove it at once and place it in a corner of the room. Also, if you spot a bedbug bite or suspect the place is infested, run--not just from the room, but from the building. The last thing you want is to bring bedbugs home with you.

PART FIVE: FLYINGCheck in at home The longest lines at airports aren't at security; they're at check-in. You can check in for a flight and print your boarding pass 24 hours beforehand, and you should do it. (This applies more if you're only carrying bags on; if you're checking bags, it may or may not help.) It's especially foolish to hesitate with airlines such as Southwest, where those who check in early can board first and get their choice of seating. A frequent flier's best friend Do yourself a favor and purchase noise-canceling headphones, which make flying way more pleasant. If you're buying Bose's, go for the QuietComfort 2. They're superior to the newer QuietComfort 3 (and $50 cheaper, too). Never check bags! Carrying your bags on will save you time on the front and back ends of your journey. If you've printed your boarding pass at home and you're not checking bags, you can arrive at the airport an hour early for domestic flights and two hours for international trips. Yes, the official recommendations are an hour more for each. Those are the rules for people who don't know what they're doing. Airplanes are flying buses You get little more than a little seat; now quit whining and take responsibility for your comfort. Assume that food, entertainment, blankets, and pillows cost extra, if they're offered at all. Rather than get nickel-and-dimed, carry on anything you want. Yes, it's a race Whenever you deplane from an international flight, walk fast. Passing 10 people during the long trek to the immigration checkpoints can spare you at least five minutes of waiting in a tedious line. Jump to the front If you're at the airport and your flight is canceled, call the airline's 800 number while you're walking to the airline counter (and stay on when in line); this increases your chances of getting on the next flight. Hands off the call button The vast majority of flight attendants have a Pavlovian reaction to the call button: When they hear it, they snarl. About the only time it's acceptable to push the button is when you or your seatmate is having a heart attack. Ever seen how bags get handled? If you must check a bag, take a photo of it in case the airline loses it, and put your itinerary and contact info inside in case it doesn't arrive with your flight and the airline needs to get it to you. Mark the bag with a sticker or colorful strap so it stands out: You may be able to recognize your bag, but the schmo on the other side of the carousel may not. And never, ever check anything valuable or fragile. Someone gets stuck with the middle seat That someone need not be you. Always reserve a specific seat when you book a flight or a package. Use SeatGuru.com to scope the plane's best and worst rows. (The closer you sit to the lavatory, the more likely you'll smell like it even after you've deplaned.) If you end up with a bum seat, try to switch to a better one at check-in. And if that still doesn't work, try again at the gate, and again when you're on board the plane. Airport security for beginners 1. At home, place gels and liquids (in 3-oz. containers) in a quart-size Ziploc. Wear slip-on shoes, and don't forget socks (going barefoot is gross). 2. In the security line, remove everything except your ID and boarding pass from your pockets. 3. When you're three people from the front of the line, take off your shoes and jacket, and remove your laptop from your bag. 4. Try to be patient with everyone who didn't do it this way. Go self-service The kiosks let you sign up for standby, change seats, check luggage, and sometimes upgrade cheaply. Got a big carry-on? Then you'd better be at the front of the line for your boarding group. Once you're on the plane, if it looks busy up ahead, stash the bag in any open overhead space. Never allow the bag to end up behind your seat, or you'll have to wait for the entire plane to empty before you'll be able to retrieve it. If we learned one thing from JetBlue's recent meltdown... When you board a plane, you have to assume you're going to spend at least the next three hours in your seat--so have what you need at hand, and visit the bathroom before boarding. Twenty bucks a day is $140 a week Airports charge a fortune for parking. AirportParkingReservations.com lists off-site options, which may even let you reserve a spot. And if you spend a night at a nearby hotel, it may let you park there for free. Call someone who cares To reduce the number of cars circling the arrivals area, airports are creating "cell phone parking lots" where people meeting an arriving passenger can wait for that person's call. The lots are the best thing to happen at airports since Auntie Anne's pretzel-wrapped hot dogs.